Bodyguard of Azula
by Deus Swiftblade
Summary: Naruto is banished from Konoha but gives them the slip and boards a ship, soon after he is shipwrecked on Ember island and is saved by Azula. Three years later, Naruto is Azula's bodyguard while she hunts for the Avatar but did he see the last of Konoha?
1. Shipwrecked and Water Tribe

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or the Last Airbender.

Warning: Azula will be a year younger then Zuko in this story.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 1: Shipwrecked and Water Tribe

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Konoha Council room)

"Naruto Uzumaki, because of your crimes against Uchiha Sasuke, you are banished from Konoha." Tsunade said looking at her godson. "You will be thrown into jail until the Fire Daimyo arrives in five days; there your chakra will be sealed, you will never be allowed to return to the village unless we order you to come back." She looked at the ANBU in the room. "ANBU, take him to the jail."

Both the civilian council and Shinobi council watched Naruto being led away; they had expected him to protest that it wasn't his fault or ask why the Hokage was doing this in a loud voice. But all Naruto did was stand in the middle of the room, he did not react when his punishment was given and he walked calmly out of the room while being led by the ANBU. While the civilians were celebrating, the shinobis looked at each other, they all felt that something was wrong but they just did not know what it was.

(Location: Konoha Jail)

Naruto sat on the poor excuse for a bed. "That went as expected." He said while only he heard a reply. **"Yes it did, are you still going to leave?" **The Biju inside of him asked. "Is that a rhetorical question Kyuubi?" Naruto asked back with a small smirk.

The fox grinned. **"Fair enough brat, let me rephrase that: **_**When **_**are you going to leave?" **Naruto looked out the tiny window in his cell. "Soon enough," He answered.

(4 hours later, Location: Hokage office)

Tsunade watched the sun go down from the window in the Hokage's office. As Shizune came through the door, Tsunade turned to her and asked. "Is everything ready?" Shizune nodded. Tsunade got out of the Hoakge's chair. "Let's go get Naruto."

As Tsunade and Shizune walked down to the jail, Tsunade remembered how she tried to find a way to protect Naruto from being executed by the civilian council. She had finally came up with a plan: She would banish Naruto but would wait for the Fire Daimyo to come to Konoha to banish him, however the real plan was to smuggle Naruto out of Konoha and pass him off to Jiraiya who would then train him for as long as he could until Konoha needed him again. Tsunade explained her plan to the shinobi council, the Daimyo, the sensei's of the Konoha Twelve, the lands that Konoha were allied with (especially Suna because of Gaara) and they all agreed to it. The first step began tonight.

(Location: Konoha Jail)

As Tsunade and Shizune entered the room that held Naruto, she motioned the guard to leave. She walked to the cell; Naruto was looking out the window. "Naruto." she called, making her godson turn to face her. "We're getting you out of here." She opened the gate to the cell. She motioned Naruto to come out of the cell but he stayed where he was. "Come on Naruto, we don't have much time." Tsunade told him causing him to laugh. "That's where you're wrong Tsunade." Naruto said coldly untying his headband from his head. "You're wrong about the fact of not having much time. You see, you didn't have any time to begin with." Confusing both Tsunade and Shizune, he dropped his headband to the floor and at the same disappeared with a _POOF! _

Shizune looked on in shock. "It was a **Kage Bunshin **(Shadow Clone)?" She asked not believing what she saw. Tsunade could only nod. "We have to send the ANBU squads out immediately!" Shizune cried rushing for the door but was stopped by Tsunade calling her name. "It wouldn't be any use, we have no idea where he's go or how much of a head start he has." Tsunade's face had a look of both defeat and sadness. "Naruto is gone Shizune, he is gone and I don't think he'll come back willingly." Shizune started to cry right then and there, Tsunade helped her back to the Hokage's office and after setting up sound proofing seal, began to cry with her.

(Location: Ship out on the sea)

Naruto smiled at what the plan had been. When he had brought Sasuke back, he could immediately tell that the civilian council was planning to have him executed. Deciding to take a page out of Orochimaru, Itachi and recently Sasuke's book, he made the choice to sever all connections with Konoha. He had figure that just walking out the front gates would not be a good plan, so with some advice from Kyuubi he made a Kage Bunshin, sent it out to the nearest port in the land of Fire and boarded a ship that was leaving the Elemental Countries. While he was in the jail cell, Naruto used a **Kawarimi **(Body Replacement) with the clone, putting him on the ship. The same ship was now a month at sea and the Elemental Countries were far behind them.

"**That was very slick, Naruto."** Kyuubi complemented him. "I do try to please." Replied Naruto, who was looking at the sea, he had never seen it before and was amazed by its beauty but that was soon forgotten as Naruto saw what appeared to be a dark smudge on the horizon. "Any idea on what that is out there, Kyuubi?" He asked. **"I'm not an expert on what happens at sea gaki; I think you better go find one of the sailors." **Kyuubi answered, prompting Naruto to wave over one of the sailors, pointing out to the smudge that was getting bigger. Before he asked his question, the sailor took one look, swore and told Naruto to get below decks while warned the captain about the fast approaching storm.

Everyone scrambled to get below decks once the captain gave out the warning whistle but by then it was too late as the storm hit the ship and hit it hard. The only way that one could explain this storm was it was like the mother of all storms had gotten pregnant and was giving birth at that exact moment.

Naruto tried to reach the door leading below deck but was swept away by a wave that had crashed onto the ship. The last thing he heard was the fox screaming.** "Stay awake, Naruto stay awa-!" **Before being knocked unconscious and being dragged under the waves.

(Location: Ember Island)

Azula walked along the beach. She had no idea why her father decided to send both her and her brother Zuko as well as Mai and Ty Lee with her uncle Iroh to Ember Island for a vacation; quite frankly it was getting annoying with Ty Lee being overly cheerful, her uncle doing nothing but drink tea along with Zuko and Mai being awkward around each other.

Azula sighed, things had changed when her father became Fire Lord and her mother had disappeared. She had gotten even better at Firebending; some were calling her a prodigy while Zuko floundered around. She was being taught by the best Firebenders that were out there, including her father. She had gained his approval and while Zuko, despite being the eldest, did not, she resented him for always being with their mother. Azula wanted her mother to show her that she was loved as well but her mother always paid more attention to Zuko and that had irritated her to no end.

Hearing Ty Lee come up behind her, Azula suppressed a groan that almost came out. "Hey Azula! Why are you out…?" Azula looked back at Ty Lee, she had trailed off in talking and if you knew Ty Lee, that didn't happen. Ty Lee was pointing out to the water; Azula looked at where she was pointing and saw that somebody had washed up on shore. She ran over to check on the person and noticed it was a boy about Zuko's age, maybe a little older. "Ty Lee, go and get my uncle, he's injured." She told Ty Lee, pointing to the boy who was bleeding from the head.

As Ty Lee ran off, she looked closer at the boy, he had blonde hair which was uncommon and reminded her of the sun. He had a natural tan as well as six strange birthmarks, three on each side of his face that looked like whiskers. Hearing footsteps on the sand, she turned and saw her uncle coming towards her. When he finally reached her, he knelt to examine the boy. "Azula go back to the house and get your brother to help you make a bed ready." Iroh said after looking the boy over, she nodded once and ran back to the house.

(Location: Beach House)

Naruto awoke to the sound of waves crashing on the shoreline. As he sat up, he noticed that somebody was sitting next to the bed. "Ah you are awake, that is good." The old man said. Naruto looked around to figure out where he was. "Where…?" was he all could say before a wave of nausea hit him and forced him to lay back down but the old man understood what he was trying to say, "Where am I?" "You are on Ember Island in my brother's beach house. My name is Iroh." He answered pointing to himself. "What is your name?"

Naruto sat up again. "My name is Naruto." He told the man called Iroh. "How did I get here? The last thing I remember was being swept into the sea when a storm hit my ship." Iroh looked at him with a look of understanding. "My niece found you when you washed up on shore, she had me come out to look at you and you managed to get a bad injury on your head."

Naruto felt around his head, when he found the injury he winced at the small pain that was still there. "In that case, I think I should thank your niece for saving my life."

Iroh smiled. "I will tell her that, in the meantime you should get some rest, I will be back with some tea." After he left the room, Kyuubi began to talk again. **"Nice to see you in the land of the living again kit." **

"How long was I out Kyuubi?" Naruto asked, being all business.

"**You were out for two days since you washed ashore, we were lucky that the ship was close to this island when the storm struck, you drifted here during the night otherwise you would have be a dead person."**

"Well it's a good thing we washed up here then."

"**I guess your right about that but the question I have gaki is what are you going to do now?"**

As Iroh came back into the room with tea, Naruto finished the conversation silently. _"What we are going to do is stay here now."_

(One year later, Location: Fire Nation Capital, Royal Palace)

Fire Lord Ozai looked at the twelve young men kneeling before him; these men were in the army of the Fire Nation and were some of the best. After Ozai had scarred Zuko and banished him with the impossible task of finding the Avatar, there had been several attempts on his daughter's life by Earth Kingdom assassins. The last attempt would have been successful had a sentry not saw the attack and sounded the alarm. While Azula was recovering Iroh, who had gone with Zuko to watch over him, had sent a message proposing that Azula be given a bodyguard and even recommending someone. Ozai surprisingly agreed with the proposal and immediately looked for the most talented young Firebenders in the army.

And now those eleven were right in front of him, the twelfth was Iroh's recommendation and was the only non-Bender in the twelve. While the eleven were fairly well known and respected officers in the army, the twelfth was a common soldier and was often a problem disobeying orders, protecting civilians and other nonsense but the odd thing was that the soldiers had more respect for him then the other eleven.

"You are all here because you have been given an opportunity." Ozai said. "You have the chance of being the bodyguard to my daughter, Princess Azula. You will be her voice as well as her shield against all threats to her." The eleven looked at him with excitement; this was indeed a great opportunity, while the twelfth remained silent. "Now I have decided that there will be a test to decide who will protect Azula, there will be a tournament and the winner will become the bodyguard."

The eleven nodded in agreement, while the twelfth shook his head. "Do you disagree with this plan, boy?" Ozai asked him with a slight dangerous tone. The twelfth nodded once. "Yes Fire Lord Ozai, I think it is pointless to fight among ourselves. What we should do instead is the twelve of us fight an Agni Kai against Princess Azula herself, the person who wins becomes her bodyguard."

Ozai thought it over; the plan did have its merits. "Very well then, the twelve of you will fight against my daughter in an Agni Kai. It will begin in four hours, now go to the arena and wait." He commanded. The twelve stood up, bowed to Ozai and left for the stadium. Ozai chuckled to himself, the poor fool would not last five minutes against his daughter, she was a Firebending prodigy while he could not Bend at all. It wouldn't be a problem for Azula to beat him and that was a sight Ozai was looking forward to.

(Location: Agni Kai Arena)

The audience in the stadium buzzed with excitement, Princess Azula would be fighting an Agni Kai against twelve opponents. Such a task had never been done but everyone was absolutely sure that Azula could do it; she was after all a Firebending prodigy.

The gong sounded, signaling the start of the Agni Kai. Azula rose from her kneeling position and turned to face her opponents. Eleven of them wore the skull-like helmet of a Firebender and by judging their armor, were officers but the twelfth himself was just a soldier, and not even a Firebender judging by his conical helmet. As soon as she was done analyzing them, she took her stance and eleven of her opponents took that as the sign to attack her.

It took a combination of tricky maneuvering and exceptional Firebending but Azula had defeated eleven of her opponents and was trying to fight the last one but no matter what she did, he would always managed to avoid her attacks. She launched fireball after fireball but all he ever did was step out of the way. After a few more minutes of this Azula looked at her opponent, "Are you just going to stand over there or will you actually to try to fight me?" She asked him angrily. He looked at her for a moment and Azula thought he looked a little familiar. When she was distracted, he got in close and began to fight Azula hand-to-hand which proved effective, every time Azula tried to bring in some close combat Firebending, her opponent would always stop her by blocking the limb that was spewing the fire, it was then Azula realized why he did not attack at the beginning of the Agni Kai, he was observing how she fought and where her weak points were. Although this fight lasted a good while, Azula was beginning to tire and was finally beaten when her opponent swept her legs out from under her, causing her to fall, and then kneeling over her, holding a knife to her throat and a fist drawn back ready to strike.

After a few seconds had passed, he withdrew his knife and lowered his fist, letting Azula get back on her feet he looked to Ozai as he landed in the Stadium. "Well done young one, you have beaten my daughter who is a Firebending prodigy while you are not a Bender yourself." Turning to Azula, Ozai continued. "Azula, because of his victory against you, this soldier is now your personal bodyguard; he will protect you with his life. Show your face to your Princess." Ozai commanded the soldier, who reached for his helmet and took it off, causing Azula's eyes to go wide. "You're…"

(Two years later, Location: Northern Water Tribe)

"RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!" was the general phrase that the Fire Nation soldiers were screaming as they ran back to their ships to escape the giant fish-like monster that the Avatar had created out of water. As they retreated, the soldiers saw a person who wore a black cloak with the hood up, hiding his face but the soldiers knew him. "Sir, what should we do about that?" One soldiers asked him as they filed in behind him, pointing to the giant monster.

The cloaked person looked at the thing. "Return to the ships and tell them to set sail, this invasion is over. I will deal with this." He ordered the soldiers. As they ran back to the ships, he saw that the monster was reaching down to him in order to attack. He settled into a stance, moved his hands and drew out his sword, as the hand was about to crush him, he swung his sword once and the entire arm of the monster simply fell off. Sheathing his sword, he looked at the monster that was reeling back and took a breath. "LA!" He yelled, making the monster look at him. "WHAT DO Y**OU THINK YOU'RE DOING?" **The people of the Water Tribe looked on in fear as another voice took over the cloaked person. **"HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN WHAT TUI WAS SUPPOSED TO GUARD? YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO MAKE SURE SHE DID NOT DIE, YOU ARE HER GUARDIAN; NOW SHE IS DEAD AND YOU ARE OUT HERE TRYING TO TAKE REVANGE, WHAT YOU SHOULD BE BACK THERE TRYING TO FIND A WAY TO FIX THE BALANCE! YOU WILL GET YOUR WATERLY ASS BACK TO THAT OASIS, RIGHT** **NOW! I WILL CLEAN UP THIS MESS, NOW GO!" **The voice roared at the giant monster. Once what he had said had gotten through, the cloaked person moved on quickly to his next target.

(Location: Zuko and Zhao)

As the two fought against each other, they saw that the giant monster suddenly melt down and retreat back to the oasis. "What is going on?" Zuko asked in wonder, allowing Zhao to punch him in the chest making Zuko fall on the ground. "My troops were successful in destroying that thing; soon they will destroy the Water Tribe for good, my name will be remembered forever!" Zhao declared in a triumphant voice, which earned him a laugh from the cloaked person leaning against a doorway behind him. "How very wrong Zhao, as of right now the ships from the Fire Nation are now leaving and heading back to safe waters, your name will be forgotten Zhao and you are alone." The person stated, as he watched Zhao run away in fear, he grinned. "I love it when they run." He began to chase Zhao, leaving behind a bewildered Zuko.

(Location: Spirit Oasis)

Sokka watched as the two fish circle each other. The Ocean spirit had come back to the Oasis and melted back into the pond, leaving Aang on the grass. Zuko arrived shortly after to find the Avatar unconscious with Katara and Sokka there as well as his uncle. Aang woke up shortly afterwards. Zuko and Iroh decided to take their leave at that point but were interrupted when Zhao ran back into the Oasis with a terrified expression. "Someone, please hide me!" He half-screamed surprising everyone. At that moment all they saw was a blur and suddenly the cloaked person was behind Zhao with his sword out. "Admiral Zhao, for your incompetence and blatant stupidity, you will die." He said in an official voice and before anyone could stop him, he plunged his sword through Zhao's head.

As he pulled his sword out of Zhao's head, he looked at Aang who had a furious look on his face. "Why did you do that? He was defenseless and scared; you didn't need to kill him!" Aang cried angrily.

The person said nothing, he only walked forward like he was going to take Aang but was blocked by Sokka who had his boomerang out and ready to use. "Move boy." The person told him but Sokka just shook his head. "Move," The person told him again, pointing his sword at Sokka.

"Look pal, I've been having a bad day. The Northern Water Tribe was invaded, the moon spirit was killed and the girl that I liked gave up her life in order to become the new moon spirit. So pardon me if I'm not just going to roll over and let you take one of my friends, okay?" Sokka asked the person in a half-sarcastic, half-deadly serious tone of voice.

The cloaked person did nothing for a few minutes, and then started to laugh. "I can respect that." He finally said lowering his sword. He turned to leave until he heard Iroh asking him to stop. "What do you want, old man?" He asked turning back around to face Iroh.

Iroh, completely unfazed by the cloaked person's rudeness, grinned and said. "It's nice to see you again, Naruto." The cloaked person just looked at him for a minute and then sighed. "Iroh," He greeted while lowering his hood. Naruto had grown in the past three years, he had trained extensively which showed on his face, he had lost the rest of his baby fat, giving him a more a mature look. He had also grown his hair out a bit, giving him a wild look and had put a good deal of muscle on his body. All-in-all Naruto had turned into someone that made girls drool as he walked by (Naruto still had enough of his innocence to wonder why they kept looking at him like he was a piece of meat, bless him), add in his politeness, his manners and he had Fangirls wherever he went (Something he did not appreciate).

Iroh's face grew serious. "Naruto, why are you here?" he asked.

"Why do you think I'm here?" Naruto asked back.

Iroh's eyes widened. "She sent you here?"

Naruto nodded. "That's why I'm here; she understands the need for balance."

Iroh laughed. "Two years ago, she would not have cared if the moon spirit was killed, only if the Northern Water Tribe had been conquered."

Naruto grinned. "You could say that I've been an influence on her"

Zuko finally caught on. "Wait, you don't mean…" He started to say but stopped when Naruto only nodded once.

"Hey kid, what's your name?" Naruto asked Sokka as he turned to face him. "My name isn't kid." Sokka told him indignantly. "It's Sokka of the Southern Water Tribe."

"Well then Sokka, it will be interesting to fight you as my Opponent." Naruto told him, he turned to leave the Oasis leaving the dead body of Zhao behind and was halfway to the exit when Aang landed in front of him and stopped him. "You didn't answer my question, why did you kill him?" Aang demanded, pointing to Zhao's body. "Do you not care about human life?"

Naruto looked at the Avatar. "I find those words funny coming from a coward, a traitor and a mass murderer." He stated with ice cold eyes. Aang stiffened. "What do you mean? I am not a coward, a traitor or a mass murderer!"

Naruto looked at Aang like he was an idiot. "Really, you don't consider yourself those things?" When Aang nodded, he chuckled. "You are those things _boy_. I call you a coward and traitor because when you were told you were the Avatar, you ran away and hid for a hundred years, while this war went on. You betrayed your own people when you ran away." He said in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.

Aang faltered a little but replied. "I do admit that I ran away but I'm not a mass murderer."

Naruto smirked like he had caught the Avatar in a trap. "So you are the last Airbender just by coincidence?" Aang took a step back and Naruto took a step forward. "Because of your actions, your entire civilization and people were wiped out by the Fire Nation. While the Fire Nation did the deed, you allowed them to do it therefore you are the murderer and the Fire Nation was just your way of killing your own people, bravo." He mocked, clapping his hands. Aang fell down to the ground as the memories of what he did repeated over and over again in his mind and while Katara and Sokka ran over to him, Naruto left the Oasis as well as the Northern Water Tribe.

(A week later Location: Fire Nation Capital, Royal Palace)

Azula walked into her room after her father had given her a task to do. She started to pack, making sure that she took everything she needed. "So what did the Royal Flaming Asshole want you to do?" A voice asked her from the shadows in her room that would have surprised and/or sacred anyone else, but Azula had lived with it for two years now so she had gotten use to it. "That's Fire Lord Ozai to you, Naruto." She told her bodyguard who stepped out of the shadows. Ozai and Naruto did not see eye-to-eye often and didn't agree on a lot of things, because of Naruto's unique position he was allowed a seat on the war council despite being a common soldier which also irritated Ozai to no end, what even further irritated Ozai was that during the war council Naruto would often oppose Ozai when a plan for the warfront was passed, he then would give his solution to the plan or come up with his own plan that saved lives while also gaining territory in the Earth Kingdom. Because of what he did to try and save lives, the soldiers all loved and respected him, while the officers took after Ozai and treated him with distain.

"You say fire, I say flambé." Naruto replied grinning making Azula give an annoyed huff. "Why do you still do that?" She asked him referring to him talking from the shadows; Naruto did this to Azula for the first couple of months that the two were together, Naruto would speak to Azula when it looked like Naruto wasn't in the room to A: sharpen her senses as well as make her develop a danger sense because he would throw things at her if she didn't find him fast enough and B: to freak her out and make her lighten up.

"Old habit," Naruto answered before becoming serious. "What did he want you to do?"

"Fire Lord Ozai wants me to hunt down and capture my uncle and ZuZu." Azula told him, he nodded once. "I'll go grab my gear." He started for the door but Azula stopped him. "Naruto, why did you agree to go the North Pole, I told you only what I thought Zhao would do and I could've been wrong but you still went, why?"

Naruto looked at her. "I went to stop Zhao from doing something stupid but I had a different reason for doing that then you." He said cryptically and turned to leave again. He was at the door when he heard her say his name; he turned and saw uncertainty in her eyes. "You won't leave me alone, will you?" She asked with a slight fear in her voice. She hated how weak she sounded; she knew that something was happening to her but she didn't know what it was, she still had her devious and cruel edge but there were times where she thought that everyone would leave her and she would be alone and not wanted or loved, that thought sacred Azula to no end. That's why she asked Naruto that question; he had been with her for two years and has been a friend as well as a bit of a teacher to her, so she was terrified if he would actually leave her.

Naruto sighed, walked back over to Azula and looked at her. Before she could object, he pulled her into a hug and held her there. "I told you this before Azula." He said to her, his voice soothing her. "I will always be there with you, even when you don't need or want me. I swore to protect you, no matter what it may cost me. I'm your servant, your protector and your friend. Remember that Azula and you will never be alone."

Azula gave a small smile. When she stepped away from the hug, she was back to normal. "Weren't you going to go grab your gear?" She asked pointedly.

Naruto laughed. "Alright, I'll go now."

"One more thing Naruto, did you see my uncle and ZuZu in the Northern Water Tribe?"

"Yeah I did, although I suspect that they have already left, I also met someone interesting."

Azula looked at him. "Who was it?"

"It was someone who has the potential to fight me as my equal."

"Are you talking about the Avatar?" Azula asked him, only to receive a sour look from Naruto. "It wasn't the brat; it was a kid from the Southern Water Tribe who was traveling with the brat." He replied, avoiding the word Avatar when talking about Aang.

"And what is so special about this boy?" Azula asked Naruto, who gave her a mysterious smile. "He isn't a Bender." He answered before finally leaving the room leaving Azula to think about her task and what he had said.

**End**

**Author's Note: **So here is my Naruto/Last Airbender crossover, which I hope will go far.

I will state this right now: this is not the last time we see Konoha, right now I thinking about that Naruto will run into each of the teams separately (he runs into one of the teams, they report back to Konoha and then Tsunade will keep sending out people he knows to try and capture him) and at the Western Air Temple, have everyone be kidnapped by Konoha shinobi and brought back to the village or something along those lines.

Yes I know that I killed Zhao off differently but I wanted Naruto to shock everyone there by killing him without difficulty or hesitation. I wanted to show the difference between Naruto when he had just graduated from the Academy and the way he is now, as well as show how different he is from Aang.

For the record if I have offended anybody with my description of the storm that hit the ship Naruto was on, I apologize.

Also, yes this is a good Azula story but it's not going to be right away, I'm aiming for her to have a mental break down but be able to recover from it.

For those of you who have not caught on to the reason Naruto had for going to the North Pole, let me break it down for you. You start off by using the Sage of Sixth Paths formula:

**Juubi separated by Creation of all things = Chakra of Juubi and body of Juubi**

You then do:

**Chakra of Juubi divided by nine = Nine Bijus**

**Body of Juubi sealed into giant stone prison = moon**

Which you then plugged into:

**Moon minus Moon spirit = power of moon being destroyed**

And that leads to the conclusion

**Power of moon being destroyed = very good chance of Juubi's body getting out**

And that is the reason why Naruto went to the North Pole, for the people who STILL don't understand: he went to make sure that the body of the Juubi did not break free.

Also the reason that Naruto called Sokka out instead of Aang will be partially explained next chapter and the way I spelt opponent will be explained as well.

I will try to stay as close to the Last Airbender storyline as I can but there will be some changes to it with Naruto in it (but then again, that's why we do crossovers).

The next story I going work on is a one-shot about an idea I had for a Naruto/Digimon crossover. I am going to use bits and pieces from the first four seasons and mix them together to put into the story, if you want to know what they are then you are going to have to wait till I finish writing it.

And for those of you who want to see the short story of Naruto in a big space battle, I will get to that after I work on the Naruto/Digimon and after I work on my Naruto/Matrix or add another chapter to this story.

I will do my best to keep writing, so I see you all next chapter!


	2. Paragons and Family

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or the Last Airbender

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 2: Paragons and Family

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Water Tribe ship at sea)

Sokka stood at the prow of the ship, watching the water pass him by. He was trying to think but with what he knew they were going up against he was finding it hard to concentrate. He suddenly felt a brief pain in his leg, like something was biting him. Instead of hopping around and yelling, he looked at said biter. "I thought you stopped doing that to me Akela." He said in good humor.

The wolf pup just looked at him with a look that said "you're thinking too hard." Sokka and Akela hadn't been with each other for long.

(Flashback: day after the Siege of the North)

Sokka was fishing near the coast outside of the city. He was fishing for sea crabs when he heard a whimpering noise coming from a nearby ice cave. When he went to see what was making the noise, he found a four-month old wolf pup laid next a dead wolf that had been burnt to death, which Sokka knew it was the pup's mother. As he neared the pup, it turned around and growled at him, its fur was covered in soot and ash.

"Easy little guy, I'm not going to hurt you." Sokka told him as he knelt down in front of the pup and held out some seal jerky. The pup slowly padded over to him, ate the jerky out of Sokka's hand and then fell asleep on his lap. Shifting his weight so that he held the pup in his arms, Sokka headed back for the city, his fishing gear left behind.

(Location: Spirit Oasis)

"Sokka, what do you think you're doing?" Pakku yelled in outrage with Aang and Katara beside him.

Sokka looked up. "I'm giving someone a bath." A whine of protest caused him to look down. "Oh stop that, you're covered in ash and soot. I'm doing you a favor."

"Why are you giving someone a bath in the Spirit Oasis?" Pakku asked angrily.

"Because everyone would be busy using the canals to repair the city so I would just be in the way."

"Uh, Sokka," Katara looked at her brother. "Who exactly are you giving a bath?"

"This guy," Sokka brought the clean pup out of the water and sat him on the grass. As the pup shook his fur dry, his furs natural color showed making Pakku's eyes go wide. "That's impossible; they're supposed to be a myth!"

Sokka, Katara and Aang looked at the wolf pup. While Aang looked confused, Sokka and his sister knew what Pakku talking about. The pup's fur was pure white.

(End Flashback)

After Aang learned about the Water Tribe myth of white wolves, he was surprised as the rest of the group. But the pup had wormed his way into their hearts and so they decided to keep him. Sokka decided to name the pup Akela, after the white wolf Alpha in the myth. Akela had gotten along well with Appa, when the two of them met for the first time Appa had been sleeping. Akela simply jumped onto Appa's head, made himself comfortable and began sleep as well. According to Sokka, they had a friendship that was made in "Sacred snoring."

Akela and Momo didn't get have such an easy meeting. When Akela had first met Momo they were both with Katara and according to her, when Akela saw Momo he gave a grin she had only seen on Sokka when he was really hungry and saw something that had meat, she called it the "Doomsday smile". This led to a grand merry chase throughout the city for about eight hours. By the time it had ended, Momo was hiding inside Aang's clothes and Sokka was telling Akela that if he couldn't have the winged lemur for dinner, then neither could he. After that, if Momo was irritating Akela, all Akela had to do was show him that same grin and Momo was gone quicker than you could say "Monkey feathers!"

Akela simply pushed against Sokka's leg, which to Sokka meant "What's on your mind?" Sokka reached down to scratch Akela behind his ear; the pup was big enough to reach his kneecap and it looked like he was going to get bigger. "I was just thinking about what we're up against, that's all."

(Flashback: a week after the Siege of the North)

The prisoner was a soldier of the Fire Nation navy that had attacked the Northern Water Tribe. He was captured while trying to make it back to the ships. Both Pakku and Chief Arnook interrogated him for information about the Fire Nation military forces and plans but he kept his head facing the ground and responded only with silence and insults.

After four hours of interrogation, Pakku and Arnook let Aang, Katara and Sokka talk to the prisoner. Aang and Katara did most of the talking while Sokka hung back and listen but the prisoner just gave them the same treatment. "Well, what about you, little Water Tribe boy," The prisoner finally asked Sokka. "Don't you have a method for pumping me for information?"

Sokka thought about what he said, then shook his head. "No I won't do that but I do have a question for you. Do you know anything about a guy named Naruto?" he asked.

The prisoners head snapped up so quickly that some were hoping he had broken his neck (Fire Nation prisoner in Northern Water Tribe city, did you think they were going to be nice to the guy?) "How do you know about Lord Naruto?" he demanded.

Sokka was a bit surprised at the prisoners' reaction. "I was there when he killed Zhao."

"What did you do to gain his attention?"

"I stood in his way when he tried to take the Avatar and didn't move."

"And he didn't kill you?" the prisoner sounded surprised.

"No, he asked me my name and said that it would be interesting to have me as his Opponent."

The prisoner glared at Sokka. "You had better not be lying to me about Lord Naruto naming you as his Opponent or I swear to Agni I will BURN you, understand?"

Sokka noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. "Katara, Aang, stop." He told them as they moved to protect him. He slowly walked over to the prisoner, knelt down to look the prisoner straight in the eye and said. "I swear on my pride as a Water Tribe warrior that I, Sokka, son of Hakoda, Chief of the Southern Water Tribe, am telling the truth to you."

The prisoner made his shoulders slump for a few seconds and then looked at his hands. They were manacled and chained to the ground with both the manacles and chains made completely out of ice. He took a breath and then completely melted the chains and manacles by Firebending. Before the Waterbenders that were nearby, Katara or Aang could attack him, the prisoner knelt down before Sokka, his head touching the ground. "Forgive me Lord Sokka." He said.

Everyone looked dumbstruck but Sokka was able to recover quickly. "Why am I forgiving you?" He asked carefully.

The prisoner brought his face up. "I ask for forgiveness because I did not believe your words about Lord Naruto."

"It's okay but I still want to know who this Naruto is and why me being his Opponent is so important."

"Being Lord Naruto's Opponent means that Lord Naruto considers you to be his equal, that you are also a Paragon."

Sokka grew confused. "Paragon, what is that?"

"I cannot say, only Lord Naruto can explain it to you."

Aang decided to interrupt. "What's so great about this Naruto anyway? From what I've seen of him he is a murderer who doesn't even care about human life!"

The prisoner leapt from where he knelt to attack Aang but was stopped by Sokka's boomerang being held in front of his face. "Stand down soldier." Sokka commanded him.

The prisoner complied but glared at Aang. "I will not hear you slander Lord Naruto, every time he fights in the field he tries to make sure that everyone gets out alive. He tries to save lives while you cower and hide Avatar. So shut. Your. Mouth."

Katara was about to respond when Sokka turned his face to her and shook his head. Looking at the prisoner he asked. "Can you talk about him?"

"Lord Naruto is the bodyguard of Princess Azula and the Paragon of the Fire Nation. He is not an officer of the army but commands respect from the soldiers, Benders and Non-benders alike. He leads his men personally into battle and had won many victories. He is able to fight and defeat a Bender on equal grounds and has done so on many occasions, both within the Fire Nation army and the enemy. Until today, many believed that he wouldn't find someone he would consider to be his equal."

"Is he a Bender himself?"

"Not in the usual way."

"Why would he consider my brother to be his equal? Shouldn't he be more worried about the Avatar?" Katara asked making the prisoner laugh. "Lord Naruto doesn't even consider the Avatar a threat. He believes that a person who runs away and lets his own people die is a weak coward with no honor."

"I'm not weak or a coward!" Aang yelled in protest.

"You had to go into the Avatar State just to attack us with that giant water monster and Lord Naruto was able to defeat you with one swing of his sword. You are a weak coward and have no honor therefore Lord Naruto has no respect for you."

"So how is it that this Naruto guy has more respect for Sokka then Aang?" Katara demanded.

"Lord Sokka had already said it; he stood in Lord Naruto's way to defend a friend and refused to back down, Lord Naruto believes that friendship is one of the most important things someone can have in his life. That is why Lord Naruto respects Lord Sokka and not the Avatar, who had let his friends die."

Aang, feeling both furious and sad, left the area to practice his Waterbending, Katara stayed for a few more minutes and then left to follow Aang. The prisoner turned to Sokka. "Lord Sokka, may I ask something of you?"

Sokka raised an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"Will you allow me to walk away and return to the Fire Nation?"

The area grew loud with furious cries of "NO!" coming from everyone and also making Aang and Katara stop and looked back. "Why would I do that?" Sokka asked.

"If you let me go, I will be able to spread the word that Lord Naruto has declared you to be his Opponent and are therefore the Paragon of the Water Tribes, just as he is the Paragon of the Fire Nation."

"How would that help me?"

"So people would know that Lord Naruto has an Opponent and respect his wishes."

Sokka looked at the prisoner for a few minutes and then to Arnook. "Chief Arnook…"

Arnook nodded and then turned. "Take the prisoner to the docks and give him a boat but follow him to make sure he gets to the Fire Nation and nowhere else." He ordered two of his warriors. Everyone looked shocked but the two obeyed their chief by grabbing the prisoner and headed for the docks. While everyone watch the prisoner being taken away, Sokka quietly left to think about he had learned from the prisoner. Nobody saw him until the next day.

(Next day, Location: Pakku's training area)

"You're slow Aang! Avatar or not, you need to be better if you want to pass my expectations." Pakku barked out. He turned to speak to Katara, only find her looking at the stairs. Turning around, he saw Sokka standing there with Akela beside him. "What do you want Sokka?"

"Sifu Pakku, can we speak alone?" Sokka asked in a formal voice. Pakku looked at him briefly and nodded, turning to Katara, Aang and his students he said. "Practice your sets until I return." He walked down the steps with Sokka and Akela until they reached a secluded spot. "What is it that you want?" Pakku asked.

"I want you to teach me Waterbending." Sokka told him.

Pakku began to laugh. "You want me to teach you how to Waterbend when you're not even a Bender? You would be an embarrassment to me and my teachings."

Sokka bowed his head. "I apologize, I meant that what you to teach me how to Waterbend without Bending."

Pakku stopped laughing and looked at Sokka. "What are you talking about? You cannot Waterbend without Bending."

Sokka silently cursed himself. "What I mean is please teach me the basic stances and sets for Waterbending that is all."

Pakku was silent as he looked at Sokka's bowed head. "Why?" he finally asked.

"Because I'm supposed to go up against someone who is stronger, faster, better than me and all I have is my machete, my club and my boomerang."

"You have forgotten about your intelligence and wits."

"That won't be enough to beat this guy!"

"Is there another reason for this request?" Pakku asked with suspicion. Sokka nodded his head once and then whispered into the Waterbending masters ear. "I see." Pakku said after Sokka was done. He turned around and started to walk away. He stopped, looked back at Sokka and said. "Just because you're not a Bender doesn't mean that I'm going to be easy on you. In fact, I'm going to push to your edge and then I am going to make you break that edge, got it?"

"Yes Sifu Pakku." Sokka answered as he and Akela followed Pakku to the training. As he walked, he tried to hide a smile from Pakku.

(End Flashback)

"That was a long month." Sokka commented. Pakku wasn't kidding when he said he was going to push Sokka to his edge, he was relentless. Lesser men would have caved or run away but Sokka endured. He began to improve and for a reason unknown to him, get silent disapproval from Katara. Aang didn't understand what Sokka was doing but decided to go with it.

Sokka looked at the night sky and saw the full moon. "C'mon, it's time we went to bed." He began to walk to the stairs leading below deck. "And if you fart in my face again Akela, you're sleeping in the crow's nest." He told the wolf pup, who simply gave a challenging look in return. As they walk to the stairs, they both saw Katara and Aang talking. Sokka could hear the words "Avatar" and "Scary" but he decided to keep silent and kept walking.

(The next day)

They were about head to an Earth Kingdom base before heading to Omashu. Both Katara and Aang had been gifts from Pakku and now Sokka stood before him. "Sokka," Pakku started. "Your training has no doubt been one of my more unusual ones but nonetheless you have also proven to be one of my best students, perhaps even better than your sister." He sighed. "My only disappointment is that you are not a Waterbender. Had you been one, you would have one of the greatest Benders this side of the world has ever seen."

Sokka bowed his head. "Thank you Sifu Pakku." He climbed onto Appa's back and settled in, getting a dirty look from Katara. "Chief Arnook has sent a message to a village that's his father had once known. They'll send someone to meet up with you once you've reached Omashu and begin your Earthbending training with King Bumi. For now, head to General Fong's base so that they can give you an escort." Pakku told them.

"Understood," Sokka answered with Akela barking in agreement. As Aang yip-yipped Appa, Sokka heard Katara muttering something. "Is everything alright Katara?" he asked.

"Everything is fine Sokka, just fine." She replied in an annoyed tone. Sokka wisely decided to keep his mouth shut.

(Location: Azula's ship)

"Well then, maybe you should worry less about the tides, who've already made their mind about killing you and worry about me, who is still mulling over?" Azula told the ship's captain.

"I'll pull us in." The captain answered with a bow and then ran off. Before he went below decks, he was stopped by Naruto. "I know she told you to bring the ship in but I want you to use your best judgment." Naruto told him.

"Thank you Lord Naruto but right now, my best judgment is to obey Princess Azula." The captain replied.

Naruto chuckled. "I wouldn't worry; Azula won't have you thrown overboard because of this." Looking at the captain's face, he continued. "If it's any consolation, I'll go talk to her." The captain gave a nod of thanks and continued to go below decks.

Naruto walked up beside Azula. "How many times have I asked you to stop threatening the captain of the ship Azula?"

Azula thought it over. "Truth be told, I lost count." She answered sarcastically

Naruto looked at her for a minute, than whack her over the head. "What was that for?" She demanded while rubbing her head.

"That was for being sarcastic when I was being serious."

"But you do it to me all the time!"

"I'm your bodyguard, I'm allowed." He grew serious. "But back to the point, you told me that you would stop threatening captains after that incident involving that captain's son and a bedroom." He said, making her have a faint blush on her cheeks. "That happened one time and you still won't let it go." She accused.

"With good reason Azula, if you want to rule the Fire Nation then you cannot threaten or punish everyone who displeases you. That'll get you killed in the end, understand?"

Azula nodded. "Good, now I'm going to let you off the hook this one time, but keep this up and I will enforce punishments." Naruto told her.

Azula grew nervous. "What kind of punishments?" She asked, desperately trying to make sure her voice didn't crack. To those who knew Naruto in the Fire Nation, if he used the word 'punishment' what he really meant was that he was going to prank you and prank you hard. No one was safe from Naruto's 'punishments' not even Fire Lord Ozai (considering he was the first victim of Naruto's 'punishments').

"To start off, I will steal your most prized possession and have it copied and distributed throughout the Fire Nation."

Azula became absolutely terrified. "Please don't do that!"

Naruto only smirked in answer. Azula's face turned smug as she figured out a way to make sure Naruto didn't follow through. "You don't know where it is and don't forget, you'd have to deal with the outcome as well." She declared.

Naruto's smirk turned into an evil grin. "It's currently hidden away in a safe in your room. The safe is hidden behind the only portrait of you and Zuko when you were children and is opened by a key that's hidden underneath your bed." He walked away leaving Azula dumbstruck. He turned to face her again. "And I'm able to outrun and hide from the Fangirls but the last time I checked, you only lasted a half hour against the Fanboys."

He walked away again, leaving Azula with a sacred look on her face at the mention of the fanboys. Meanwhile inside his head, Kyuubi was laughing. **"You truly are evil gaki." **

"I threaten her for a reason fox. If she keeps going like this, she's going to end up like her Royal Flaming Asshole of a father." He told the Biju under his breath.

"**I know that and you're doing a decent job of guiding her but even you have to admit that some of your methods are downright hilarious."**

"Of course I do. That's why I do them; it's a treat to see the confident Fire Nation Princess get flustered and angry."

(Location: Aboard Appa)

Sokka kept a look out as they flew through the air. "There it is!" He cried pointing to a large fortress. As they landed and Katara, Momo and Aang hopped off of Appa, they were greeted by someone. "Welcome Avatar Aang! I'm General Fong." The general introduced himself while he and the small army of Earthbenders bowed. "And welcome to all of you great heroes, Appa, Momo and the mighty Katara!"

"Mighty Katara, I like that." Katara stated while crossing her arms.

Fong looked around. "Forgive me but wasn't there another person with you?" He asked, making Aang and Katara start to look around for Sokka. They finally heard him talking from Appa's back; he was on his stomach having a face-to-face conversation with Akela. "You really need to stop falling asleep every time you get on Appa." They heard him tell the wolf pup. After he and Akela landed on the ground, he saw the general and the Earthbenders. "Sorry about that. Once Akela is out, he's hard to wake up."

General Fong shook his head. "That's not a problem Paragon Sokka." He turned around and motioned the group to follow him into the tower. Sokka wasn't quite sure but he could have sworn Fong said that last part with distaste.

(Location: General Fong's office)

"Avatar Aang, we were all amazed at the stories of how you single handedly wiped out an entire Fire navy at the North Pole. I can't imagine what it feels like to handle devastating power. It's an awesome responsibility." Fong declared while stroking his bread.

"I think those stories are a little exaggerated. I never destroyed any of the ships…" Aang was cut off when Fong said. "Avatar, you're ready to face the Fire Lord now."

"What?" Aang shouted. "No I'm not!"

"Aang still needs to master all four elements." Katara explained.

"Why? With the power he possesses, power enough to destroy hundreds of battleships in a matter of minutes, he can defeat the Fire Lord!" Fong told them as he rose to his feet.

"I told you, I never sunk any of those ships, I…" This time Aang was stopped by Sokka who put a hand on his shoulder. "But sir, Aang can only do that when he's in the Avatar state." Sokka told the general.

"You see, it's the special state where-" Before Aang could even start his explanation, Fong interrupted him. "I'm well aware! Your eyes and tattoos glow and you gain unbelievable power." Fong walked over to the map of the four nations. "Without you, we'd be slaughtered before we even reached their shores. But, with you leading the way, as the ultimate weapon, we could cut a swath right through to the heart of the Fire Nation."

When Sokka heard general Fong use the words "Ultimate weapon" his eyes went flat and he began to grow suspicious of the general. Akela had also picked up on what the general had said and began to softly growl, before Sokka shook his head silently telling the wolf pup to stop.

"Right but the thing is, I don't know how to get in or out of the Avatar State, much less what to do once I'm there." Aang explained uneasily.

"So it's decided then, I'll help figure out how to get into the Avatar State and then you'll face your destiny." Fong declared.

"No, nothing's decided! We already have a plan. Aang's pursuing his destiny his way." Katara told the general.

"Well, while you take your time learning the elements, the war goes on." Fong replied. "May I show you something?" leading them to a window and pointed down to a small building where wounded soldiers walked or limped near it. "That's the infirmary and those soldiers are the lucky ones, they came back. Every day the Fire Nation takes lives. People are dying, Aang, you could end it now! Think about it." Fong walked away and watched as Aang and Katara left the room, leaving Sokka and Akela. "Was there something you needed?" Fong asked.

Sokka looked the man straight in the eye. "Yeah I have a question: how many of those men were injured because of sheer stupidity?"

"Whatever do you mean Paragon Sokka?" the distaste was much more evident now that Fong and Sokka were alone.

"You know what I mean. Also, what do you have against me?"

Fong's face grew hard and bitter. "This war will be won by the Avatar and by the Benders as well as the Non-benders who support him. It will not be won by upstart little brats who think they're better then the Avatar. Why don't you go home and let the Avatar, your sister and the adults fight the war? "

Akela gave out a loud growl and lunged for the general, only for Sokka to bark out. "Akela heel!" Akela stopped, bared his fangs at the general and then padded back to Sokka. "Try to control your dog. We don't need a feral animal loose here." Fong told Sokka.

"Akela is a wolf, not a dog. And I like him feral." Sokka motioned Akela to follow him as he walked to the open doors. Just before he left, he turned to face Fong. "Let me ask you this question instead: How many men were injured and how many were killed because of your sheer stupidity when you went up against Naruto?" he left the room with that question in the air.

(Location: Azula's ship)

She practiced the motions again and again. But no matter how many times she was able to generate Lightning, she was still one hair out of place. Both Lo and Li had left her to go down below so that she could have some peace. Finally stopping, she looked around and saw that her bodyguard was still in the same spot at the prow of the ship.

He was sitting in a meditative position and concentrating on his outstretched right hand. After a few seconds what look like blue Chi to Azula began to swirl around his palm. It began to compress on itself as more and more began form and swirl. Soon enough, floating a few inches above his palm was a blue spinning orb. She saw Naruto's eyes focus on the orb and it began to spin even faster and form four white blades spinning with the orb. As she watched the orb spin Azula heard a low thrumming, like something was trying to cut the air itself.

The orb continued to spin until Naruto let out a sigh and relaxed, letting the orb disappear. "Not there yet but definitely making progress," He said to himself. He rose and looked at Azula. "Is something the matter?"

"It's nothing. I keep generating Lightning but no matter how many times I do it, I'm always just a hair out of place." Azula told her bodyguard who raised an eyebrow. "Are you telling me that in order for your Lightning generation to be perfect, you must have perfect hair?" He asked with mischief in his voice.

Before Azula could respond, he said. "I'm just playing with you Azula. You've made some good progress with Lightning generation. Do you remember what happened the first time you successfully created a lightning bolt?"

Azula looked away. "Enough Naruto." she said.

"I'm glad that I manage to spread my legs in time but what I want to know was why that lightning bolt was that low in the first—"

"I said enough!" Azula threw a fireball at him, which he promptly dodged.

"You need to lighten up Azula. You keep going like this and you'll burn out fast. You're already one of the best Firebenders out there."

"No! I can't just be one of the best, I have to be THE best Firebender there is! I have to be perfect in… OW!" That last bit was uttered because Naruto had walked up to her and bonked her on the head.

"Stop right there Azula. That's your Royal Flaming Asshole of a father speaking and I want to hear you, not him, speak." Naruto told her in a serious voice. "Now what do you think of your Lightning generation abilities?"

Azula thought it over for a minute, trying to separate what were her thoughts and what were the thoughts her father drilled into her. "I think that they're pretty decent." She finally answered.

Naruto smiled warmly. "There, you see? It's okay to be decent at something Azula. Remember that no one is perfect." He looked at the setting sun. "Let's head below decks, we're both tired and hungry. A meal and some sleep will do us good."

Azula nodded in agreement and began to walk towards the stairs alongside Naruto. "By the way Naruto, what was that thing in your hand? It looked like it was made out of blue Chi." She asked him.

"It's just something I'm working on, that's all."

"Once it's done, will you show me how it works?"

Naruto sighed and said. "No Azula. Once it's completed, I only plan to use it when the situation calls for it." That was all he would talk about the subject, he wanted to keep what he was working close to the chest.

(Three hours later, Location: Naruto's room)

The banging on the door woke Naruto up. Feeling glad he went to sleep in his clothes, he opened the door to see one of the Firebenders in front of him. "What is it soldier?" He asked.

The Firebender was a little nervous but kept his voice from cracking. "Sir, its Princess Azula. She had some kind of nightmare and now won't let anyone in to see her, not even Lady Lo or Lady Li. She's tried to burn anyone who walks in."

Naruto nodded. "Go back to your post soldier; I'll take care of this." The soldier saluted and left. Naruto walked down the corridors to Azula's room. When he got there he saw both Lo and Li were standing outside the door. "Having nightmares," Lo said but it was Li who continued the sentence. "For her to have them is disgraceful."

Naruto threw them a glare that would have melted a blizzard created by ten master Waterbenders. "You know damn well who gave her those nightmares. If anyone is disgraceful it's him."

"Curb your tongue." This time it was Li who spoke first and Lo who finished. "If you know what's good for you."

Naruto laughed. "You know, I still don't understand why he assigned you two to teach her Firebending. You're not even Benders."

"And neither are you." Both of them said in unison.

"Yeah but the difference between me and him is I fight the war his family started while he and the both of you sit on your asses in comfort." He waved them away. "Now leave, you're not doing anything but being inconsiderate to her."

"You will not―!" They started to say but were silenced when they saw his eyes turn crimson. "I said **leave.**" He growled, his voice turning deeper. They left rather quickly.

He opened the door and walked through, closing it behind him. The lights were off but there was a small window that let in the full moon's light fall somewhat on the bed. "Azula?" he called out to the bed.

"Go away!" the bed screamed and out flew a fireball. Naruto ducked and let it fly over his head and hit the wall. "Go away, I'm not a monster!"

"It's okay Azula." He stood at the end of the bed. "It's Naruto."

The edge of the covers lifted and Azula looked out at him, the light from the window showing the hopelessness and scared look on her face. "N-naruto?" she asked hesitantly.

He nodded. "It's me." She stared at him for a second and then leapt at him, burying her face in his chest as she held onto him and cried.

Naruto sat down on the bed with her, simply holding her and rubbing her back while she cried. When she was done, he asked. "Was it the same dream again?"

She nodded. "I was chained to a post and surround by people who kept laughing at me and calling me monster. The post was set on fire and I was burning but I could still hear them calling me monster." She buried her head into his cheat again, tears threatening to fall.

"You're not a monster Azula." He told her. "You have a side of you which is both kind and caring. You've only just begun to show it recently. Do you remember the orphan you met on the street?"

She nodded. It was a week before her father ordered her to hunt down her brother and uncle. She had been walking with Naruto and a procession of Imperial Firebenders through the city to see a prototype of a new battleship that was being built. As they approached the docks, a small boy ran past Azula and grabbed her money pouch.

The boy didn't get very far before he captured by the Imperial Firebenders. As he was about to lose a hand for stealing, Azula stopped them. She walked over to the boy, knelt down so the two of them were at eye level. She asked him why he was stealing. He told her that he was stealing so he could buy food for the other kids at the orphanage because the person who ran the orphanage kept all the food and only fed the orphans the bare minimum. The owner also made them sleep in infested beds and rat chewed sheets, when they got sick they weren't treated unless they were dying.

When the boy was done, Azula had a look of pure fury on her face. Looking up at Naruto and her guard, she told them that they were going to this orphanage. Looking back at the boy, she asked him if he could show them where it was. He agreed and showed them the way to the orphanage.

What they saw horrified them. The so-called 'orphanage' was a rundown building. When they walked in, they were disgusted at the conditions in which the orphans lived in. When the owner came to greet Azula, she asked him why were the orphans living like this. He told them that he was short of funds. The boy called him a liar, saying he kept a large amount of money in the orphanage. The owner hit the boy and threatened to whip him in front of Azula, Naruto and the Imperial Firebenders.

Azula told the Imperial Firebenders to hold the owner and then told Naruto to go and look for the money. He came back after a few minutes, carrying a big truck full of Fire Nation money. He told Azula that this was only one out of twenty five. She then ordered the Imperial Firebenders to throw the owner in prison. She then ordered Naruto to go down the docks and bring the workers who were building the prototype here.

When they arrived, she told them to start fixing the building. The orphanage was going to be funded by the Royal Family and the next time she would check the place, it will have better accommodations for the orphans and it will have a better owner. She then turn back to the boy, took back her pouch and opened it. She poured out about half of the money, gave it to him and told him to share with the other orphans.

"Those kids still think of you as their big sister. Do you think that makes you a monster?" Naruto asked her.

"No." she answered, she had stop her crying.

"Are you feeling better now?"

"Yes."

Naruto stood up, letting Azula stay on the bed. He turned to leave but was stopped when Azula grabbed his hand. "Please stay." She said, scared at the thought of being alone.

Naruto looked at her and then nodded. He walked over to the wall and sat down against it. Azula got out of the bed, walked over to where Naruto was, sat down next to him and leaned her head against his shoulder. She was asleep in less than five seconds.

"**She is a broken child." **Kyuubi stated.

"_I know she is. She can fix herself but she needs a friend to help her."_ Naruto silently replied.

"_**Is that all you want to be Naruto? Or is it something more?" **_The fox wondered to himself.

(Location: General Fong's office)

Aang walked into Fong's office "General Fong?" He called.

"Come in Aang. Have you thought about our discussion?" Fong asked despite already knowing the answer.

"I'm in; I'll fight the Fire Lord." Aang said.

After having a discussion with the general, Aang returned to the quarters where the rest of the group was. Both Katara and Sokka looked up from their beds. "I told the general I'd help him, by going into the Avatar state." He told the two of them

"Aang, no, it's not the right way." Katara argued. Sokka said nothing as he absently scratched behind Akela's ear. "There's a right to do this is through practice, study, and discipline." Katara continued.

"The general does have a point…" Before Sokka could finish what he was saying, Katara interrupted. "That's something I'd expect to hear from you. You just want Aang to glow it up or something!"

"That's not what I was talking…" Again Sokka was interrupted by his sister. "If you two meatheads want to throw away everything we've worked for, fine! Go ahead and 'glow it up'!" Katara said in a huff as she walked out of the room.

"Katara, I'm just being realistic. I don't have time to do this the right way." Aang tried to defend himself but it didn't sound convincing to him either. The room was silent for a few minutes until the sound of breaking wind disrupted it. "Dammit Akela, at least aim it the other way!" Sokka told his wolf pup off. Somehow, Akela managed to look smug.

What began the next day would seem to anyone else as weirdness. To start off, Fong had Aang drink a special tea that was supposed to enhance a person's Chi tenfold and might also make Aang go into the Avatar state. The result of that idea was Aang in a sugar high that would have made little kids either join him or watch in wonder, he was flying all around the place on an air-ball and talking at a really fast pace. While Sokka commented that Aang could "talk the Fire Lord to death." Akela was trying to follow Aang with his eyes. When Aang finally crashed into one of the columns, Akela cover his eyes with his paws. Both Sokka and Katara weren't quite sure if he was doing that because of Aang crashing or because he got dizzy from watching Aang fly all over the place.

Sokka tried to scare Aang into the Avatar state by using Momo as a head. Not only did that fail, when Akela saw Momo, he gave Momo the Doomsday smile. The end result was Akela chasing both Sokka and Momo around the fortress. Somehow, Momo had managed to get stuck in Sokka's shirt, so Sokka had to stick his head out of the middle of the shirt, giving the appearance of a two headed being, one head being human the second head a flying lemur. The soldiers who were watching found it pretty hilarious and started to laugh their butts off.

The third attempt would have made any sane person check General Fong's head to see if there actually a brain in there. He organized a ritual that had Aang wear clothing from all four nations (which, quite frankly, look ridiculous). The shaman began to chant a lot of mumbo-jumbo, poured water and earth into a bowl, threw a torch in, used an air blower bellow and then, just to top it all off, threw the stuff (let's call it mud) at Aang. The only thing they got out of that Aang sneezing and splattering all the mud on Sokka, Katara, Fong and Akela. As they were about to leave, Akela shook himself in front of Fong, splattering him with more mud. To Sokka, Akela was saying "I blame you for this," to the general.

(Location: Spa Resort)

"Look at these magnificent shells!" Iroh said. "I'll enjoy these keepsakes for years to come."

"We don't need any more useless things now," Zuko told his uncle. "You forget, we have to carry everything ourselves now."

They then heard a voice that surprised them. "Hello brother…uncle…" Azula said from where she sat, Naruto stood against the wall in the same cloak they saw him in the North Pole only with the hood down.

"What are you doing here?" Zuko growled at his sister.

"In my country, we exchanged a pleasant hello before asking questions." Azula said lightly while she fiddled with a seashell. "Have you become so uncivilized so soon, ZuZu?" She asked as she got out of the chair and walked over to the two with a seashell in hand.

"Don't call me that!" Zuko yelled, making Naruto narrow his eyes and readied himself for a fight.

"To what do we owe this honor?" Iroh asked his niece with some suspicion.

"It must be a family trait, both of you so quick to get to the point!" she broke the seashell causing Iroh to scowl.

"I come with a message from home; father changed his mind, family is suddenly very important to him. He's heard of plans to overthrow him, treacherous plots. Family are the only ones you can trust." Azula broke eye contact with Zuko and turned to the window. "Father regrets your banishment, he wants you home."

Zuko just stood, mentally double checking to make sure he heard his sister correctly. Meanwhile, Naruto walked up to Azula, told her that he'll be outside and walk out the door.

"Did you hear what I just said?" Azula demanded. "You should happy, excited, grateful. I just gave you great news."

"I'm sure your brother simply needs a moment to—" Iroh began until Azula cut him off. "Don't interrupt uncle!" she barked. She walked up beside Zuko. "I still haven't received a thank you, I'm not a massager. I didn't have to come all this way."

"Father regrets…he…wants me back?" Zuko asked, still not sure about it.

"I can see you need time to take this in. I'll come to call on you tomorrow, good evening." Azula told Zuko and walked out of the house. As she made her way back to the ship, she saw Naruto sitting against a tree waiting for her. When he got up and walked behind her, she asked. "Why did you leave Naruto?"

"Because if I didn't, I would have started laughing," Naruto said. "Family is important to the Royal Flaming Asshole, that's one of the better jokes I've heard you tell Azula."

"Yeah, a joke…" Azula said quietly but Naruto was still able to hear her. "Am I going about this the right way Naruto?" She asked.

He shrugged. "You're doing what your father would do and I know that the Royal Flaming Asshole doesn't think friends or family are important. The question is do you consider them important?"

She thought it over for a few minutes, by the time they return to the ship, she replied. "I'm not sure."

Naruto simply nodded. "I understand, maybe you just need to think on it?

Azula nodded in agreement as they boarded the ship.

(Location: General Fong's fortress)

Aang sighed in defeat as he watched Katara walked away. He turned back around to watch the sunset. He heard Sokka come up beside him. "Are you going to convince me that this is a bad idea now?" he asked.

Sokka shook his head. "I know it's a bad idea and so do you, you just want to end this war so badly that you're ignoring this one crucial point."

Aang lost his temper after hearing this. "Don't give me that Sokka! You were agreeing with the general said after I told you two what I had done!" he yelled at Sokka

Sokka simply waited for Aang to be done. "While I did say that the general had a point, Katara cut me off before I could finish. What I was going to say that it's also too risky to try it because there is a downside to it."

Aang grew confused. "What do you mean a downside?"

"Aang, you know how I constantly use my boomerang?" Aang nodded. "While the upside is that it can hit someone from far away and always come back to me, the downside is that it can take too long to come back to me. If I throw my boomerang at someone and that was my only weapon, it could give someone the chance to kill me. Every weapon has a downside and from what I've seen, the Avatar state is a weapon."

"How is the Avatar state a weapon?"

"When you enter the Avatar state, your emotions take over and you let rage rule your actions."

"No I don't!"

"Yes you do Aang and when that happens, everyone in your way could get hurt. Look, my dad taught me that in battle, rage must be tampered with discipline."

"And how am I supposed do that?" Aang demanded.

"Do what you're supposed, learn and master the four elements."

Aang calmed down when he heard that. "Do you think that will help me with the Avatar state?"

"Why else would all the previous Avatars go through the exact same thing?" Sokka asked.

"Your right Sokka," Aang said, giving a small laugh. His face grew troubled. "What about General Fong?"

Sokka thought it over. "Look, tomorrow morning go tell the general that you want to continue on your journey. If he disagrees, I'll do something that'll prove my point."

"Are you sure?"

Sokka just gave a small grin.

(Location: Spa Resort)

"We're going home, after three years. It's unbelievable!" Zuko said as he packed.

Iroh looked out the window as he thought. "It is unbelievable. I have never known my brother to regret anything."

"Did you listen to Azula? Father realized how important family is to him. He cares about me!" Zuko protested.

Iroh turned around to face his nephew. "I care about you! And if Ozai wants you back well… I think it may not be for the reasons you imagine." He told Zuko.

Turning away from him, Zuko said. "You don't know how my father feels about me. You don't know anything!"

"Zuko," Iroh said. "I only meant that in our family, things are not always what they seem."

Zuko whirled around. "I think you're exactly what you, a lazy, mistrustful, shallow old man who's always been jealous of his brother!" As he stomped away from his uncle, they both heard a laugh from the door. Turning their heads, they saw Naruto leaning against the door frame. "I'm sorry, what you just said was ridiculous Zuko." He said.

"What do you mean?" Zuko demanded.

"Iroh is not jealous of the Royal Flaming Asshole. If anything, he's jealous of Iroh." Naruto explained as he walked into the house.

"Hello Naruto." Iroh greeted.

"Iroh," Naruto greeted. "How've you been?"

"I've been fine."

"Good to know, how about you Zuko?"

Zuko hesitated a little bit. "I've been…okay." He looked at the person who he once considered a friend but now he wasn't sure. "Why are you here Naruto?"

Naruto put a mock pout on his face. "What, I can't just say hello to you two?"

"Considering who you're with…?"

Naruto sighed. "Fair enough, I'll go then." He walked back to the door, stopped and turned back to face the two. "Zuko, I came here to tell you two things. The first is to remember the first rule I taught you and your sister."

"Look underneath the underneath?"

Naruto nodded.

"What's the second thing?"

"You weren't the only one who was scarred by him." He walked out the door leaving Zuko to think about what he said. Meanwhile Iroh nodded his head in agreement, understanding what Naruto meant.

(Location: General Fong's fortress)

After having another nightmare of being in the Avatar state, Aang stood in front of General Fong the day. Sokka had disappeared before Aang woke up. "The thing is I don't think we'll ever be able to trigger it on purpose." Aang explained. "So I guess that's it."

"Sure I can't change your mind?" Fong asked, if one was paying attention, one would have heard the slight pleading tone in his voice.

Aang nodded. "I'm sure. I can only reach the Avatar state when I'm in genuine danger."

The doors suddenly burst open. "General Fong!" The soldier cried as he raced in.

"What is it?" the general asked as he rose from his desk.

"Look out the window into the courtyard sir!"

Fong and Aang rushed over to the window. What they saw surprised them. A good majority of General Fong's army was fighting but they weren't fighting an army. No, they were fighting just one person and one animal: Sokka and Akela. Oddly enough, it looked like it could go either way.

(Location: Spa Resort)

Zuko walked down the staircase that was carved into the side of the mountain. He stopped for a second to look at the ship. He started to walk again when he heard "Wait! Don't leave without me." Turning around he saw Iroh coming down the stairs with a travel pack just like the one Zuko had.

"Uncle, you changed your mind." Zuko said, happy that he was coming

"Family sticks together, right?" Iroh asked.

Zuko turned back to look at the ship. "We're finally going home."

As Zuko walked down the staircase, Iroh looked at the ship with suspicion.

(Location: Azula's ship)

"They're coming." Naruto noted.

"Yes, I can see that." Azula said with a small hint of sarcasm.

Ignoring that, Naruto turned to the captain. "Captain," he called. "Have the Imperial Firebenders line up."

"Yes Lord Naruto." The captain answered, he turned around and began giving orders.

"This won't go as smoothly as you think it will." Naruto told Azula.

"And what makes you think that?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

He shrugged. "It just will."

"You're paranoid."

"I'm your bodyguard; it's my job to be paranoid about stuff like this."

"Will you relax, nothing will happen. ZuZu is desperate to go home and my uncle won't let him go alone. This will be easy."

"If you say so but if it happens and Zuko goes for you, I will not interfere."

"Why?"

"Two simple reasons, number one: I know you can handle him and number two: I want to see how far Zuko has come along."

Azula scoffed. "ZuZu was pathetic at best with Firebending; I don't know why you want to see how far along he's come."

"I never said I wanted to see how he progressed in Firebending."

"What else is there?"

"Last time I checked, he took an interest in swordsmanship, he was very agile and he did last longer then you did when he was hiding from me."

She scowled. "Don't remind me."

"You're still embarrassed about the fact that you were tied up in a tree after five minutes of hide and go seek?" Naruto was genuinely surprised. Azula would have responded had Zuko and Iroh had not appeared at the other end of the dock.

As the two walked down the pier, Naruto noticed that Iroh kept looking at the Imperial Firebenders on each side of them. _"Ten says that this is about to get ugly." _Naruto thought as he silently leapt up to the roof of the command tower and sat down, leaving Azula with two Imperial Firebenders behind her.

"**No bet." **Kyuubi replied.

"Brother, uncle, welcome." Azula greeted them as she bowed and they bowed in return. As he and Zuko bowed, Iroh noticed that the Imperial Firebenders had filed in behind them. "I'm so glad you decided to come."

"Are we ready to depart, your highness?" The captain asked.

"Set our course for home, captain." Azula told him.

"Home," Zuko said quietly to himself.

"You heard the princess, raise the anchors, we're taking the prisoners home!" The captain ordered as he, Zuko and Iroh walked up the gangplank, only to stop and freeze when he realized his mistake.

"_And here we go." _Naruto thought as Azula glared at the captain.

"Your highness, I…" the captain tired to explain but it was too late. Both Zuko and Iroh had caught on. While Iroh quickly spun and dealt with the Imperial Firebenders, Zuko had thrown the captain into the water. "You lied to me!" He accused Azula with a look of fury.

"Like I've never done that before," Azula answered before turning her back to him and signaling the two Imperial Firebenders behind her to attack as she walked away. They were quickly defeated by him as he took them down at the same time.

"Zuko, let's go!" His uncle called out as he fought the Imperial Firebenders on the pier. Zuko simply bent his fire into the shape of two daggers, one in each hand, and began to attack Azula.

"That's an interesting way to Firebend in close combat." Naruto noted.

"**But it's also sloppy." **Kyuubi stated. **"He's striking wildly and not focusing."**

"You know Father blames uncle for the loss of the North Pole and he considered you a miserable failure for not finding the Avatar." Azula taunted her brother as they faced each other. "Why would he want you back home, except to lock you up where you can no longer embarrass him?"

"**Good Kami woman! Are you trying to make him madder?" **the fox wondered out loud.

Naruto simply raised an eyebrow. "Is that a rhetorical question?"

Zuko simply yelled in rage and began to attack Azula again. After a few moments of twisting, turning and deflecting Azula grabbed one of Zuko's hands in a hold and then launched a blue fireball at him. He stumbled back to avoid it but it caused him to fall down the staircase. As his eyes refocused on his sister he saw that she began to generate Lightning.

But before she could use it against him, Iroh intercepted the Lightning by grabbing Azula's hand and redirecting it towards the mountainside. Taking advantage of her surprise, he twisted her hand, making her bend forward and kicked her in the chest, making her fall overboard.

"Well I guess that's my cue." Naruto remarked as he stood up and leapt off the tower.

As Iroh and Zuko ran down the pier, they saw a brief shadow fly over them. As they reached the staircase that led back up the mountain, they saw Naruto standing in front of them. Before they could even attack him, he took one step to the side and said "I'll give you guys about a twenty minute head-start." As Zuko and Iroh raced past him, he walked back to the gangplank where Azula had gotten out of the water. The sopping wet princess glared at her bodyguard and growled. "And what do you have to say in your defense for not stopping them?"

He thought it over for a few moments, gave a fox like grin and said "Told ya."

(Location: General Fong's fortress)

"Will you hold still?" A soldier shouted as he tried to hit Sokka, he missed and Akela bit him hard in the leg.

"Why would I do that?" Sokka asked out loud before he dodged a stone ring that was thrown by one of the Earthbenders. He had been fighting against the majority of the army for a while now and though it sounded odd, he felt that there was a kind of flow in the fight. It was like he could tell what they're going to do before they even did without even looking at them, he could dodged an spear thrust from behind him even when he couldn't see the person who held the spear. It seemed that even Akela had noticed the flow.

Meanwhile Aang was racing down the stairs outside of the tower and had met up with Katara. "What's going on Aang?" She asked.

"All I know is that Sokka is in the middle of the fight." Aang explained as he pointed to the fight.

Fong shoved his way into the middle of the fight and order his troops to halt. "What is the meaning of this?" he demanded. Before anyone could answer, he continued. "Why did you attack my troops?"

"One of your soldiers decided to be funny and tried to trip me by Earthbending. When I saw it coming and stepped out of the way, he got mad. He tried to attack me and I retaliated. The next thing I know, I'm fighting about three quarters of your army and proving a point to you." Sokka answered making Fong even more furious.

"What was the point you were trying to make?"

"That even an army can be beaten by one person. I'm guessing that thought never even crossed your mind when you fought against Naruto. How many of your men were injured or killed before you finally decided to pull out?" Sokka asked the general in serious tone of voice.

When he heard that question, Fong snapped. He didn't see Sokka in front of him with his soldiers wounded all around him, he saw Naruto back in that battleground looking at him with disappointment. "I told you to leave." Fong heard him say.

"Hold him!" a soldier tried to obey the general's order but Akela had bitten him, allowing Sokka to move out of the way when Fong tried to hit him. The two of them fought against each other with the army forming a circle around them with Katara and Aang in the front.

'_Those moves look a little familiar." _Katara thought as she watched her brother fight. She knew those stances from somewhere but couldn't place them.

Meanwhile Aang was trying to stop the fight. "Please General, stop fighting!" Fong looked at him and then suddenly he used his Earthbending to sink Sokka into the ground up to his waist. "If you want me to stop, than use the Avatar state!" he ordered and then began to give Sokka a beating.

Katara tried to stop the general but was held down by the soldiers, Akela was stuck because his legs were encased in stone. Sokka was beginning to look bad from the beating he was getting. "I don't see glowing." The general told Aang who was desperately trying to go into the Avatar state but with success.

"You don't need to do this!" begged Aang.

Fong scowled. "Apparently, I do." Turning his attention back to Sokka, Fong punched him so hard that he spat out blood and slumped forward onto the ground. For Aang, it was the straw that broke the camel's back. He went into the Avatar state as he saw Sokka slump and turned to glare at General Fong. "It worked, it worked!" the general celebrated.

But the celebrations did not last long as the general was thrown back by a slash of air courtesy of a very pissed off Aang (why else would he be in the Avatar state?). Aang then began float upward by bending a large tornado to support him.

"Avatar Aang, can you hear me?" Fong shouted. "Your friend is safe, it was just a trick to trigger the Avatar state," He released Sokka from the ground and released Akela's legs from the stone, the soldiers also let go of Katara. "And it worked!" he cried.

Aang responded by suddenly slamming back down to the ground, causing a ripple of air and an upheaval of the earth to blow away the ring of soldiers and causing damage to the fortress itself. Before Aang could do anymore, he was stop by the one person he did not expect: Sokka. But there was something different about Sokka as well. Just as Aang's eyes and tattoo shined a bright white, Sokka's eyes were shining as well. The only difference was that Sokka's eyes were shining the darkest black one could ever see.

"**Enough." **Sokka said in a voice that was overlaid with another voice. Aang went completely still when he heard the word but his spirit was lifted out of his body. He felt a hand on his shoulder and when he turned to see who it was; he saw that it was Roku.

"**It's time you learned." **The pervious Avatar told him. As they flew away on Roku's dragon, he explained to Aang just what the Avatar state was, what it meant, what it did and what the downside. After watching all the Avatars before him fade away, Fang carried him back to his body. Before he could reenter his own body, he felt a presence. **"I see that Roku had forgotten to mention something important about the Avatar state." **An ethereal voice said. Aang turned around to see a cloaked person standing in front of him. The cloak itself was ever changing, the fabric was made of both black and white and the two colors kept moving around, never stopping at particular point. The hood was up and no matter how hard you tried, you could never see the persons face.

"What do you mean?" Aang asked cautiously.

"**He forgot to mention that there is a group of people who can cut off the link between and the Avatar state, you've already met two of them and one of those two commanded you to stop." **The spirit explained.

"You mean Sokka?" the spirit nodded in acknowledgement at Aang's question. "That's great! He can help me when I go fight the Fire Lord!"

The spirit gave a humorless laugh. **"Such naivety, these four people weren't given this power to help you. They were given the power so that they could stop you or possibly break the Avatar cycle."**

"You can't do that, if the Avatar cycle is broken then the balance will be disrupted and the world will be thrown into chaos!"

"**And that's a bad thing?" **the spirit asked.** "I'll tell you a secret Avatar," **it walked up to Aang and leaned down to whisper in his ear. **"The world will be around long after your precious cycle is broken. I should know, I was here long before the cycle even came into existence." **

Before Aang could even reply, the spirit made shooing motion and said** "Off you go now, little Avatar." **The next he knew, he was back in his own body. When he took a look around and saw all the damage he had done, he had look of sadness on his face. As Katara rushed over to comfort him and to give him a hug, he whispered "I'm sorry Katara. I hope you'll have to see me like that again."

"Hah! Are you joking? That was perfect!" They turned to see the general walking up to them with a slightly crazed look. "We have the means to control you when you're like that."

Aang threw the general a look. "You're out of your mind." He accused.

Fong ignored him. "I'll guess we'll hammer out the details on the way to the Fire Nation." He was about to continue but Sokka, still covered in bruises from the beating, walk up to Fong and buried his fist into the general's stomach. While he bent over to grasp for breath, Sokka kneed him in the face, breaking his nose. When the general was reeling back from that, Sokka grabbed the hair on the top of his head and slammed his face into the ground. "That was for the beating." Sokka told him. "Anybody who got a problem with that?" he asked the soldiers, who were shakings their heads very quickly. Akela decided to add insult to injury by walking over to the general's unconscious head and raised his rear leg (we don't need to go into any more detail, do we?).

"Do you still an escort to Omashu?" One of the soldiers asked. Sharing a quick look with Aang and Sokka, Katara replied "I think we're all set."

As Appa carried them away, Aang looked back at Sokka, who was being treated by Katara. "You were right Sokka; the only way for me to master the Avatar state is to master the four elements." Aang then remembered something. "You said that if the general disagreed with what I was going to say, you were going to do something, what was it?"

"Weren't you paying attention Aang? I did do something." Sokka answered.

"You mean the fight?" Sokka nodded. "But it started before I went to speak with General Fong, how did the fight help?"

"I knew what the general was going to say long before you went to speak with him Aang."

"What do you mean?"

Sokka took a breath as he began to explain. "After our first meeting with General Fong, I did a little snooping around and talked to the soldiers. It turns out that while that the general is a bit of a glory hound. After I heard him used the words 'Ultimate weapon' I knew that he was going to get you to agree to unlock the Avatar state by any means necessary."

"That still doesn't explain the fight."

"I was getting there Aang. I had also found that in the same that we arrived at Omashu, General Fong had launched an attack against a new Fire Nation colony that was still being constructed. It had no defenses except for one person."

"Was it Naruto?" Katara asked.

Sokka nodded. "From what I could find out, he apparently asked the general to leave and if he didn't, they would have to fight him. General Fong didn't know who he was at that time, so he ordered the army to attack."

Both Aang and Katara were silent, until Katara finally asked the question. "How bad was it?"

Sokka's face turned grim. "Would you say that the army at the fortress was fairly big?" When he saw the two of them nod, he sighed. "Guys, according to the soldiers the army is about a tenth of its original size."

"You mean…" Katara asked completely shocked. "You mean that one man killed that many people?"

Sokka nodded. "After he killed all those people, he stopped the battle and introduced himself to the general. After he had done that, he told General Fong to again leave, this time he did."

"That's all interesting but what does that have to with the fight?" Aang demanded.

Sokka raised a hand. "I'm getting there Aang. After we had our conversation I went to the soldiers and talk to some that thought that the general's plan wouldn't work. After a while, we came up with a plan. Some of the soldiers would start a fight with me in the courtyard because of a phony reason. As the fight progress, we would get louder and louder with the fighting and the insults until we had attracted enough soldiers to make it an actual fight. Once that happened, we would simply wait until General Fong showed up with you in tow Aang. After I made those comments about Naruto, he flew into a rage and we all know what happened after that."

Katara and Aang just looked at Sokka as he scratched behind Akela's ear. "So you were expecting that beating he gave you?" Aang asked.

"Yes, once you saw that I knew you would be enraged and go into the Avatar state, thus proving my point about the Avatar state being a weapon. " Sokka answered.

Aang and Katara didn't say anything as they thought over what Sokka had told them, not just because of what he told them but also because of what happened when Aang was in the Avatar state. To them, how Sokka was able to stop Aang completely, with just one word, scared them.

(Location: Spa Resort)

Naruto watched as Azula showed the crowd the wanted poster for Iroh and Zuko. As the crowd dispersed, he walked up beside her and asked "What are you thinking about?"

"I'm not thinking about anything, I'm just annoyed." She snapped.

Naruto looked at her for a moment. "You're annoyed with me, aren't you?"

Azula turned to glare at him. "What were you thinking, letting them get away?" She demanded.

"I was thinking that if I let them get away, it would give you more time."

Azula narrowed her eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"If Zuko and Iroh are on the run and you would have to chase them, it would give you more time to find your answer." Naruto explained.

"My answer, what are you talking about?"

"Your answer to whether or not family and friends are important to you." Naruto explained further.

Azula grew troubled. "I… I don't have an answer."

"I didn't expect you to have one right away."

She started to walk away. "I'm going to get some sleep."

"Alright, sleep well."

Azula continued on her way while still trying to figure out what her answer was. _"Somehow," _she thought. _"I think I'll be dealing with this question for a while."_

**End**

**Author's Note: **Thank you all for the reviews you've sent me about this story.

I will state this right now: I'm going to skip The Cave of Two Lovers. The reason is that it's a little pointless for this story.

For those of you who did not know where Akela came from, that means one of three things. Number 1: You have never watched any of the older Disney films. Number 2: You were never a Cub Scout or a Boy Scout. Number 3: both Number 1 and Number 2. If you need some help then I'll give you a clue: Look for the Bear Necessities.

For those of you who want to know who the cloaked spirit was, don't worry he will be explained.

The full meaning behind being a Paragon will also be explained later as well. As well as why Sokka went to Pakku and why Naruto is not a normal Bender.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	3. Omashu and Painful Reunions

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender

This is just a Naruto/Azula story, there will be no harem.

This story is not an intentional Aang bashing.

Also to the people who thought this was Naruto/Sokka needs to reread the first chapter and tell me where the sexual tension is, because the last time I checked, there wasn't any.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 3: Omashu and Painful Reunions

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: outside of Omashu)

Katara, Aang and Sokka stared at what was in front of them. There stood Omashu with a Fire Nation flag hanging from the entrance and covered in smoke.

"I can't believe it." Aang said as he looked at the city before turning to face the siblings. "I know the war has spread far but Omashu always seemed… untouchable."

"Up until now it was," Sokka stated while crossing his arms "Now Ba Sing Se is the only great Earth Kingdom stronghold left."

"This is horrible." Katara said as she walked up beside Aang "But we have to move on."

"No." Aang replied. "I'm going in to find Bumi."

"Aang stop." Sokka told him. "We don't even know if Bumi is…"

"What?" Aang interrupted "If he's what?"

"Alive." Sokka bluntly stated. Ignoring Aang's outraged look and Katara's dirty one he continued. "You'll have to face the facts, sooner or later you're going to lose someone." He looked at his sister. "We should know."

Deciding to ignore her brother, Katara turned back to Aang. "I know you had your heart set on Bumi but there are other people who can teach you Earthbending."

"This isn't about finding a teacher." Aang said stubbornly. "This is about finding my friend."

"Alright, then how do we get in?" Sokka asked before Akela stiffened up, turned around, bared his fangs and growled. "What is it Akela?"

"Hey, the group with the white, six legged buffalo thingy, we're coming up behind you!" they heard a voice call out and then suddenly a boy riding a dog came up the slope. "How're you doing? The name's Kiba Inuzuka and this here is Akamaru." He introduced himself and the dog who barked a greeting.

"Must you do that, Kiba? You'll scare people if you keep that up." Another boy said as he walked up to beside Kiba. "Oh relax Shino; their dog smelled us out before we showed our faces." Kiba replied.

Akela's growl got louder. "Hey! Akela is not a dog, he's a wolf!" Sokka shouted at the two.

Kiba looked a little embarrassed. "Sorry about that, I'm still learning so your wolf smelled like a dog to me. No hard feelings right?" the last part was directed to Akela, who simply flicked his tail once. To Sokka, that meant Akela was thinking it over.

Shino turned to face the slope. "Are you coming Hinata?" he called.

"I'll be right there; I'm not as fast as you guys." A girl said as she came up the slope, behind was a woman who looked like she was in charge. "You should really stop charging off like that Kiba." The woman said.

"Understood Kurenai-sensei," He answered.

Meanwhile Sokka had his boomerang out and ready to use. "Okay, who are you people?" he demanded.

The woman who they now knew as Kurenai looked at them as if they had just appeared. "I apologize my name is Kurenai Yuuhi and I'm here to protect this group. These are my students, Kiba Inuzuka and Akamaru," She pointed to the first boy and the dog. "Shino Aburame," she pointed to the second boy. "And Hinata Hyuuga," She pointed to the girl.

Sokka took a good long look at the people in front of him. Kurenai had what appeared to be some sort shirt made out of mesh with only one sleeve. The shirt was covered over with bandages with a pattern that seemed to resemble a flower stem of some kind with thorns. Her hands and upper thighs (he didn't look there long, he was smart enough to realize that would be a bad idea) were covered in bandages. Her hair was long and black but what the most remarkable thing about her were her eyes: they were red.

Kiba wore black pants and a black jacket that looked like leather to Sokka. He had brown shaggy hair, pronounced canine teeth and had what look to be red tribal tattoos on his cheeks that almost look like fangs. Akamaru was, in a word, big. His fur was white while his ears had dark brown patches. Currently both he and Akela were having a canine version of a staring contest.

Shino just looked odd. He wore a dark jacket with a high collar that was upturned, blocking the bottom half of his face. He wore another jacket over the first that was dark green color and had the hood up, covering the top of his head. He wore some kind of protective eyewear and had a satchel on his back. Sokka could have also sworn that he heard the sounds of bugs on Shino.

Hinata was certainly something. She wore a jacket that was lavender and cream, had long sleeves and it seemed to be kinda baggy; she also wore navy blue pants. She wore her blue hair long and her eyes were very surprising: they were white with a tinge of lavender.

Despite the different clothes they were wearing, they all had one thing in common: they wore a headband (Kurenai, Shino, Kiba had it on their forehead while Hinata wore hers around her neck) that had a strange symbol on it which almost looked like a leaf.

"So we know who you are, now what are you doing here? Were you following us?" Sokka asked ignoring Katara low whisper of "Sokka!"

"We were hired to protect you three." Kurenai explained.

"Who hired you?"

"A man called Arnook; I believe he is the Chieftain of the Northern Water Tribe."

Katara finally had enough. "I'm sorry about my brother, he gets paranoid around strangers." She explained.

Shino shook his head. "It is perfectly logical to be suspicious of people who you do not know claim that they are here to protect you. Your brother has nothing to apologize for."

"Alright then, I assume that you overheard our conversation?" Sokka asked Kurenai after she showed him the mission scroll.

She nodded. "You plan to go into the city and rescue someone, right?"

"Right, now the question is how do we get inside?"

"My team will be able to get in easily but I don't know if we can get you in the same way."

"Don't worry about it; I'll take care of that." Aang chimed in.

"Alright, we'll meet up inside with the resistance." Sokka decided.

"Um…Sokka, how do you there's a resistance?" Aang asked.

"Yeah, how do you know?" Katara repeated the question with a slightly snotty tone.

He looked at the both of them with a deadpan expression. "It's a big Earth Kingdom city that's completely occupied by Fire Nation troops. There's going to be a resistance in there, it's just a matter of finding them."

"No! We're going to find Bumi!" Aang shouted.

Sokka sighed. "Alright fine, but if we can't find him right away then we meet up with the resistance." He turned back to Kurenai. "Are you okay with this?"

She nodded. "That's fine; you should search for your friend during the night."

"Okay, we'll look for Bumi until dawn, and then we meet up with the resistance." He looked around. "Sound good to everyone?" They all agreed. "It might be better to leave your dog with Appa and Akela." He told Kiba.

"Why should I do that?" Kiba answered as he narrowed his eyes on Sokka.

"Because Earth Kingdom cities don't have dogs that big, he'll be an eyesore."

Kiba thought it over. "Good point." He turned to Akamaru, who had broken eye contact with Akela. "Akamaru, I need you to stay these two for now," he pointed to Akela and Appa, who was having one of his ears scratched by Hinata (and loving every minute of it) "Can you do that for me?"

Akamaru nodded and then turned back to Akela, to resume the DSC (Doggy Staring Contest). Aang, Katara and Sokka climbed onto Appa's back with Momo, Akela and Akamaru in tow. "We're off." Sokka said as Aang yip-yipped Appa into flying.

As they flew below the bridge that led into Omashu, Sokka looked at Aang. "So how are we getting inside?"

"I know a secret passage." Aang answered as they landed in front of a ledge that had a big metal pipe sticking out of the mountain.

"A secret passage, why didn't we just use this last time?" Sokka demanded as Aang tried to open the sewer grate, only to almost get swept away by green sludge-like water which made Appa fly away carrying Akela and Akamaru (Momo was sitting on Katara's shoulder).

"Does that answer your question?" Aang asked before hopping into the pipe. Sokka stepped in and almost walked away because of the smell (green sludge-like water and you're not expecting a smell?). Taking a breath and pinching his nose, he walked forward.

As they trekked through the water, both Aang and Katara tried to make sure they weren't swept down the pipe. Aang used his staff to bend the air in front of him to make a path while Katara bent the water to keep the path stable. Sokka caught the downside as he had to deal with the water hitting him in the face repeatedly by the water Katara bent. However he could tell that his sister was doing it on purpose.

When they finally got inside the city, it was already night. Aang had blasted a manhole cover to loosen it, and then opened it slightly to take a look around. When he didn't see anyone, he leapt out of the hole and was quickly followed by Katara. "That wasn't as bad as I thought." She commented.

They suddenly heard a moaning sound coming from the manhole. A green blob in the somewhat shape of a person climb out and stagger towards them. Quickly getting over their shock after realizing who it was, Katara noticed some water in a nearby barrel. She bent the water inside the barrel to hit the thing, the result was the water washing the green muck off the person to reveal a very wet Sokka. Aang quickly followed up by bending air to dry him off.

Sokka stood there quietly for a moment before realizing there were little purple octopus-like creatures on him. Screaming hysterically, he tried to pull the two on his cheeks off with no success. "THEY WON'T LET GO! HELP!" He screamed before being tackled to a nearby wall by Aang.

"Stop making so much noise," Aang told him. 'It's just a purple pentapus." While Sokka whimpered a little and cringed, Aang reached for the pentapus on his left cheek and gave it a scratch on the head. Giving an eye-smile, it lifted its legs from Sokka's face and came off easily only leaving red marks where the suction cups were.

As he rubbed his left cheek, Sokka tried the same method on the one on his right cheek. It met with the same results. As they got the third and final one off, the group heard someone call out "Hey!" Looking to where the voice was coming from, they saw three guards coming their way. Both Katara and Sokka quickly stood in front of Aang while he made a quick hat.

"What are you kids doing out past curfew?" The lead guard demanded.

"Sorry, we were just on our way home." Katara explain before they start to walk away.

"Wait," the guard said as he noticed the red markings on Sokka's neck. "What's the matter with him?"

"Uh…" Katara took a quick look at Sokka's neck. "He has pentapox, sir." She hurriedly explained as she turned Sokka around to face the guard.

The guard walked up to Sokka and reached to touch him. "Um… it's highly contagious." Katara told him. Taking his cue from his sister, Sokka put on a miserable face and began to moan. "Uhhhh it's so awful, I'm dying." He told the three guards as he walked forward. "A-and deadly," Katara finished.

"Hey, I think I've heard of pentapox," said the lead guard as he backed away from Sokka before turning his head to face another of the guards. "Didn't your cousin Chang die of it?"

"We better go wash our hands… and burn our clothes!" The other guard stated before they turned around and ran away while Sokka threw in a few coughs for good measure. When the guards were gone, Sokka turned around to see Aang scratching a pentapus on his hand. "Thank you, sewer friend." He said.

(Location: Azula's ship)

The crew and Imperial Firebenders had disembarked and had also set up camp for the night. A few of the Imperial Firebenders were on the deck, bowing on front of palanquin that held the Fire Nation Princess. On each side of the palanquin were the twins, Lo and Li.

"When tracking your brother and uncle, traveling with the Royal Procession may no longer be an option." Lo told the princess. "May no longer be wise," Li continued. "If you wish to keep the element of surprise." finished the two in perfect synchronization.

"You're right; the Royal Procession is dead weight. If I want to catch my prey, I must agile, nimble." agreed Azula. "I need a small, elite team. It's time to visit some old friends." She then looked up. "What do you think, Naruto?"

Sitting in a meditative position on the roof of the palanquin, Naruto said "It sounds like an idea, plus it'll help you with your answer."

Azula silently nodded. "Then we leave tomorrow."

Naruto leapt off the roof and onto the deck. "I'll go notify the captain. We'll send the ship home in the morning; we'll only take a squad with us when we leave." He started to leave but stopped. "I just have one thing to ask you two." He told the twins.

"Yes," Li asked and Lo continued. "What is it?"

"Do you have to take turns speaking the same sentence?" He held up a hand. "You know what? Forget it. Odds are you'll just give me an answer the same way." he left the ship to go talk to the captain.

"The nerve of that boy," said Lo but Li continued. "For him to insult us like that."

Neither of them noticed the small grin that Azula had on her face.

(Location: Omashu)

The group moved up to the next level of the city and quickly hid behind a lumber pile to avoid a patrol.

"Let's find Bumi and get out of here." Katara said.

"Where would they be keeping him?" Sokka asked Aang.

Aang thought it through. "Somewhere he can't Earthbend, somewhere made of metal." After looking out at the city to figure out where Bumi would be, they quickly moved on.

Meanwhile, on the next level down, there was guard procession that was guarding a family: a mother with her toddler son as well as her teenage daughter. "There really is no fathoming the depths of my hatred of this place." The teenager said in a bored tone while scowling slightly.

"Mai, your father was appointed governor, we're like royalty here." Her mother told her. "Be happy and enjoy it."

"I thought my life was boring in the Fire Nation but this place is unbearably bleak." Mai replied. "Nothing ever happens."

As Aang and the others tried to make their way across the level, they saw two big boulders coming down one of the ramps fast. Turning to see what on the lower level, he saw the family and the guard procession. Thinking that they would be crushed by the boulders, he used his staff to Airbend the boulders out of the way. However it caused a great deal of noise and dust, alerting the guard procession.

"The resistance!" Mai's mother cried out, pointing to Aang. Mai moved quickly, she flung out her arms releasing a good amount of small arrows at Aang, who dodged by jumping onto the lumber pile behind him. Touching the pile only once, he then leapt to the side and began to run away along with Katara and Sokka while Momo flew away.

As the two guards climbed up the latter and onto the next level, they began to chase after the group. Katara quickly used her water whip to swat them back down to the lower level. As they fell, Mai climbed up the ladder and attacked Katara. She fired more projectiles at Katara but they were blocked when she bent water into a shield of ice and then ran with Mai in pursuit.

As she chased them across the level, Aang decided to stall. Using his staff, he bent the air to cause a nearby scaffolding to collapse in front of Mai. Stopping quickly to avoid being crushed, she threw a doubled bladed knife that ricochet off the wall and towards Aang. Sensing danger, he turned and spun his staff around, intercepting the knife. Mai quickly launched another round of projectiles but before they could even reached their target, the platform where the group stood suddenly dropped down taking them with it. As it fell, another platform took its place, like they were never even there. Mai just gave a bored sigh and began head back to her family.

Meanwhile the group had landed in a tunnel. As they looked to see where they were, they noticed that they were surrounded by Earth Kingdom soldiers. After staying silent for about minute, Sokka looked at both Aang and Katara. "And the two of you thought there wasn't going to be a resistance." He told them. Aang looked sheepish while Katara threw him a dirty look.

(Location: Fire Nation circus)

"So Ty Lee is in there somewhere." Azula said as she looked at the circus being set up.

"Yes, although they're going to be moving soon." Naruto noted.

"Alright then, I'll go in and look around for her." Azula began to walk off, only to be stop by Naruto calling her name. "What is it?" she asked.

"I want you to try two things when you're talking to Ty Lee. The first is don't strong-arm her into joining us."

"What's the second thing?"

He smiled. "Try asking her to help you."

"Why would I try and do that?" She huffed.

"I'm not ordering you to ask her, I just want to you to try, that's all."

"Fine," She walked into the circus ground with Naruto just behind her. When they finally spotted Ty Lee, he hung back to see how Azula would do. "Ty Lee could that possibly be you?" she called out.

"Azula!" chirped the girl who was currently doing a handstand on a finger per hand. After getting her feet on the ground and bowing, she ran over and gave the Fire Nation Princess a hug. "It's so good to see you!" she said.

"Please don't let me interrupt your… whatever it is you're doing." Azula told her. She immediately flipped backwards into a position where she was sitting on her elbows with her feet in the air in front of her. "Tell me, what is the daughter of a nobleman doing here? Certainly our parents did not send us to the Royal Fire Academy for Girls to end up in… places like this." She asked Ty Lee as she watched a couple of the circus workers struggle with a platypus-bear only for said platypus-bear to lay an egg (she could have sworn that one of the workers had said "Oh great Agni, not another one.").

"I have a proposition for you." Azula told Ty Lee. "I'm hunting a traitor. You remember my old fuddy-duddy uncle, don't you?"

"Oh yeah, he was so funny." Ty Lee answered with a giggle.

"I would be honored if you join me on my mission."

Ty Lee flinched a little. "Oh… I, uh… would love to." She flipped herself back onto her feet. "But the truth is I'm really happy here. I mean my aura has never been pinker!"

"Ty Lee, please." Azula said almost pleadingly.

Ty Lee grew curious. "What's the matter Azula?"

Azula looked down at the ground. "There's a question that I'm dealing with and I don't know the answer to it. I think that if I have you and Mai by my side, I can figure it out."

Ty Lee walked to the princess. "Are you still having the nightmares?" she asked gently.

Azula brought her face back up and Ty Lee saw the terrified little girl who would run to Ty Lee's room every time she slept over after having the nightmare so she wouldn't be alone. "Yes." Azula whispered.

Ty Lee gave her a quick hug. "Okay then, I'll join you but after tonight's show."

"Thank you."

"By the way, where's the cutie?" Ty Lee asked as she looked around.

"The cutie?" asked Azula.

"Oh you know your bodyguard. The one who you have a small cru–" Ty Lee's mouth was quickly covered by Azula. "You promised not to talk about that!" She hissed. Turning her head slightly she called "You can come out now Naruto."

He walked out to where the girls were. "Hey cutie!" greeted Ty Lee.

"Are you becoming one of my Fangirls Ty Lee?" He asked. "A lot of them call me cutie for some weird reason."

She made a face. "Ew, no. Please remember that I was there last year when the Great Chase occurred." The three of them shuddered at the memory. Last year in the Fire Nation, Naruto had taken time in the morning to train with the domestic army. One day, a fan girl had been watching (stalking) him as he trained. Apparently the combination of Naruto taking his shirt off as he trained and the fact he was sweating sent her over the edge. A minute later and Naruto was running for his life as the one fan girl soon became a horde of them. The Great Chase lasted about 14 hours and had destroyed quite a bit of the industry area and docks because every time he tried to hide in a building, they would tear the building to shreds trying to find him. When Iroh had seen the level of destruction, he said that if he had that kind of destruction when he was invading Ba Sing Se, he would have conquered the city in a day. For quite some time afterwards, both Ozai and his generals were actually taking Iroh's comment seriously.

"What I don't understand is why they come after me, I'm no one special and I'm certainly not that handsome." Naruto wondered, making both Azula and Ty Lee to face fault and think _"He still doesn't get it?"_

"_**Sometimes this gaki's innocence astounds me." **_Kyuubi thought silently.

"Anyway, are you coming with us Ty Lee?" Naruto asked.

She nodded. "But only after tonight's show."

"Alright then, we'll be waiting." Azula told her. As she walked away she stopped and said. "You know what; I think I'll catch your show tonight."

Ty Lee flinched and lost grip of the leg she was holding. She quickly grabbed her leg again and said "Um…Yeah, sure… of course."

Naruto noticed the way she said it and nudged Azula, who got the silent point. "I promise not to do anything stupid or dangerous during the show." She told Ty Lee.

"Okay." Ty Lee replied while still being a little nervous.

(Location: Under Omashu, Resistance camp)

The group stood in front of the leader of the resistance with Team Kurenai besides them. As it turned out, they had found the resistance almost after they got into the city. After telling the resistance who they were and what their mission was, they kept tabs on Aang, Sokka and Katara.

"So is King Bumi with you guys? Is he leading the resistance?" Aang asked with hope in his voice.

"Of course not!" barked the leader of the resistance. "The day of the invasion we were prepared to defend our city, to fight for our lives and for our freedom. But before we even had a chance, King Bumi…surrendered."

The group stood silent until Sokka said "What actually happened that day?"

The leader began to explain. "It was a week after your group had left Omashu. We had gotten word that large force of Fire Nation troops were coming towards the city. As we prepared for battle, King Bumi and I took a walk through the courtyard when…" he took a breath to steady himself. "When HE appeared."

(Flashback)

"My King, we're ready to defend ourselves." One of the soldiers said as Bumi inspected the troops in the courtyard. Bumi simply nodded at the soldier and continued the inspection. As the inspection ended, they heard someone from atop the wall yell out "Somebody stop him!"

Looking up at the soldier who spoke, they only saw a brief shadow against the sun before someone landed in the courtyard and in front of Bumi. The person stood up. "King Bumi I presume?' he asked.

"Yes." Bumi replied.

"I am the Paragon of the Fire Nation and I would like to request something of you."

Bumi looked curious. "Oh? And what's that?"

"Your surrender," The minute those words left his mouth, he was surrounded by both weapons and big rocks held by Earthbenders. "What say you?" he continued.

The soldiers surrounding him looked like they were about to attack him. "Why should I surrender?' Bumi asked.

"Let's cut to the chase King Bumi. You know who I am and what I am capable of doing. I'm giving you the chance to spare your men's lives and to avoid bloodshed."

Bumi started to cackle madly. "Well when you put it like that youngster. Fine I surrender."

"Thank you, now all we have to do is wait for the leading general to hear that."

"Stand down everyone." Bumi told his troops. They did so and then they waited for the invasion force to come to Omashu. "Why do we need to tell your general that I surrendered?"

"Because I already told him that you did, so he's not bringing an army to Omashu but he's still skeptical." When Bumi heard his answer, he started to cackle madly.

(End Flashback)

"What happened after that?" Katara asked.

"The invasion force turned out to be just construction workers and colonists. They wasted no time in settling in and taking over our city." The leader shook his head. "It doesn't matter now. Fighting the Fire Nation is the only path to freedom and freedom is worth dying for."

"Actually there's another path to freedom." Aang announced. "You could leave Omashu. You're directing all your energy to fight the Fire Nation. But you're outnumbered, you can't win, now's the time to retreat so you can live to fight another day."

"You don't understand, they've taken our home and we have to fight them at any cost!" The leader told them. When he said that, Kurenai's team had a look of slight disgust on their faces.

"I don't know Yah; living to fight another day is starting to sound pretty good to me." The soldier next to him said."Yeah, I'm with the kid." Another soldier chimed in. The leader looked at the people in the camp; they were all talking about leaving and what a good idea it sounded.

"Fine, but there's thousands of citizens who need to leave, how are we going to get them all out?" The leader demanded.

"Suckers!" Sokka exclaimed. Everyone looked at him with a question in their heads. "Um Sokka…could you try that again?" Hinata voiced hers.

Sokka had a big grin on his face. "You're all about to come down with a nasty case of pentapox."

After explaining his plan to the group (while getting sarcastic remarks and dirty looks from Katara) Sokka had everyone in the resistance gather up purple pentapus. Once they gathered a good amount, they started applying them onto their skin and pulling them off leaving the red marks. Team Kurenai had gone on ahead to make sure the citizens could arrive in the designated area safely.

Soon enough, everyone was out in the open sunlight and looked like they had been hit with something bad. Sokka took a look of his handiwork. "The marks make you look sick but you've gotta act sick too." He told them. "You've gotta sell it!" Conveniently enough, an old man with a cane and peg leg walked through the crowd while groaning. "Now that's what I'm talking about." Sokka stated.

"Years of practice." The old man said before tapping his peg leg with his cane.

"Okay everyone, into sick formation!" Sokka ordered as everyone got ready. As they walked away, Aang began to go somewhere else. "Aang what are you doing? Aren't you coming with us?" Katara asked.

"No, I'm not leaving until I find Bumi." He told her. He then grabbed Momo and put him back the ground. "Sorry Momo, I'll feed you later." And with that, he leapt away to look for his friend.

As Katara joined the citizens, Sokka joined up beside her. "He went off to look for Bumi, didn't he?" he asked.

"What's it to you?" she shot back. Sokka just shook his head and moved forward.

The Earth Kingdom citizens slowly approached the front gates and freaking out the guards as well. Some were really getting into the act by foaming in the mouth or collapsing onto the ground. Finally one of the guards yelled out "Plague. PLAGUE!" before falling back while another guard bang out an alarm.

Meanwhile at the governor's mansion, on one of the balconies, the governor as well as his wife, son and Mai stood there watching the confusion. "What is going on down there?" the governor asked.

"I saw some kids yesterday who were sick with pentapox." The guard explained. "It must have spread!"

"Pentapox…I'm pretty sure I've heard of that."

"Oh this is terrible!" The governor's wife exclaimed.

"What should we do?" the guard asked.

"Drive them out of the city but don't touch them! We have to rid this city of this disease!" The governor ordered. The guard bowed and left to do his job.

"Fire flakes Dad?" Mai asked, holding the bowl out. The governor simply gave her a look out of the corner of his eye.

"Oh how awful!" Mai's mother said as she hugged her husband. Nobody noticed that the toddler had (pardon the pun) toddled away.

Meanwhile, in a different part of the city, Aang was having no luck in trying to find Bumi. He did have a stroke of luck when he found Flopsie, Bumi's pet gorilla goat. Being the kindhearted and caring boy he is (unless you piss him off, that's something else entirely) he immediately freed Flopsie and used him to look again for Bumi.

(Location: Fire Nation circus)

The night show had just begun for the circus; it was a special show because Azula had decided to attend. "We are deeply honored to have the Fire Lord's daughter at our humble circus." The Circus Master announced in a loud voice. "Tell us if there is anything we can do to make the sure more enjoyable."

Azula began to say something but caught the warning in Nartuo's eyes. "That won't be necessary." She finally said. The performers went through their routines as both Naruto and Azula watched. Soon enough, it was Ty Lee's turn to perform. "Incredible, do you think she'll fall?" she asked the Circus Master.

"Of course not." He answered.

"Don't even think about it Azula." Naruto whispered from beside her seat.

"I wasn't going to!" She whispered back. And that's when things went a little haywire. All of a sudden, every animal that the circus had somehow gotten loose and stampeded their way into the main tent.

"**Ladies and Gentleman, we present to you: Pandemonium!" **Kyuubi said in a loud voice.

"_Oh shut up and lend me some of your chakra." _Naruto silently told the fox.

"**Killjoy."** The fox muttered as he sent the chakra.

"What's going on?" the Circus Master demanded.

"I don't know sir, somehow the beasts got out of their cages." One of the circus workers told him.

"I can see that, we have to get this under control now!" Everyone hurried to contain the situation but the stampeding animals could not be controlled. While Ty Lee was still up in the air in the middle of her act, the animals raged below but then they stopped.

Everyone looked at the animals in confusion except for one person and that person was who the animals were looking at with fear in their eyes. Everyone else began to feel some sort of pressure weighing down on them, like it was almost suffocating them. **"That is enough." **Naruto growled as his voice grew deeper and his eyes turned crimson.

As Azula watched her bodyguard approached the ring, for a brief moment she would have sworn she had seen a head of a large fox snarling behind him. As Naruto got closer to the animals, they actually began to shake in fear. As he stood there watching the animals, no one knew what he was going to do. He then simply raised an arm and pointed his finger at the entrance from where they came from and said **"Move it." **They quickly complied.

After the animals had left, the pressure had disappeared. "What did you do?" The Circus Master asked.

Naruto turned around as his eyes turned back to their normal blue. "I simply showed them who the Alpha here was." He told the Circus Master, he then looked up. "You can come down now!" he called up to Ty Lee.

(Location: Resistance camp)

Aang and Flopsie walked into the camp and saw Katara and Sokka come up to them along with Kurenai. "We looked everywhere, no Bumi." Aang told them. Seeing that he was sad, Katara gave him a hug.

Sokka didn't want to do it but it had to be said. "Well what did you expect?" He asked. "Did you honestly think you would be able to find Bumi? He's the King of Omashu and a powerful Earthbender as well; they're not going to keep him imprisoned out in the open!"

"Knock it off Sokka!" Katara snapped at him.

"I'm just stating the facts; the both of you know it as well as I do."

"Your brother is right." Kurenai told Katara before turning to face Aang. "What you did was reckless and stupid. You could have been captured as you looked for your friend, how would that help him?"

"You were okay with it the first time!" Katara protested.

"Only because he wouldn't be going in alone, he had you two to help him."

Before Katara could protest again, Aang spoke up. "Kurenai's right Katara, I put myself in danger when I looked for Bumi alone. It was a bad mistake." His downcast tone made Katara hug him again. Hearing a whine coming from Flopsie, Sokka turned around and gave the sad gorilla goat a hug as well.

"We got a problem," The resistance leader said as he walked up to them. "We just did a head count."

"Oh no, did someone get left behind?" Katara asked with worry.

"No, we have an extra." The leader pointed to Momo, who was desperately trying to get away from the toddler in Fire Nation clothes currently hanging on the flying lemur's neck.

(Location: Omashu)

On the balcony of the governor's mansion, the governor's wife was sobbing her heart out in a chair with Mai standing next to her. As she watched her mother cry, Mai pulled out a hanky to give her so she could wipe her tears and blow her nose.

"So…the resistance has kidnapped my son." The governor stated as he looked out at the city. "Everything's so clever, so tricky, just like their King Bumi."

"What do you want to do, sir?" One of the guards asked. The governor just looked at him once and then looked back towards the mountains.

(Location: Fire Nation circus)

Azula stood in Ty Lee's changing room while Ty Lee sat in front of her mirror. "That was an interesting show." Ty Lee commented as she took off her headpiece.

"I had nothing to do with that stampede. It could've happened at any time during the show." Azula told her.

"If you say so," Ty Lee was skeptic.

"Ty Lee, I swear on my most prized possession that the stampede was not my fault."

Ty Lee turned to face her. "You swear on your most prized possession, huh?"

Azula nodded. "You know, if his Fangirls ever found out about that, Princess or not they will definitely try to murder you." Ty Lee said with a giggle. Azula gave a smile that silently said 'bring it'. "Hey Azula?" asked Ty Lee.

"Yes?"

"You know how I always think that Naruto has two auras?"

"Yeah, you told him that back when we first met him. He told you that he had no idea what you were talking about."

"Well, when he told all the animals to leave, that second aura got bigger and, I swear to Agni, I saw a giant fox head right behind him."

"Wait, you saw the fox too?"

Ty Lee nodded. "Do you know what it means?"

Azula shook her head. "No I don't."

"Do you think we should ask Naruto again?"

"Only if we have to," Azula decided to change the subject. "Are you ready to leave?"

"Just give me a few minutes, where are we going?"

"Omashu."

(Location: Resistance camp)

Aang, Katara, Sokka, Kiba, Shino, Hinata, Kurenai and the resistance leader all watched the toddler as he went after Momo. He felled on his bottom as the flying lemur got away but he fell in front of Sokka's club. Before the toddler could touch it, Sokka grabbed and put it out of harm's way. Seeing his toy being taken away, the toddler began to cry. Katara looked at her brother and proceeded to hit him upside the head. 'I'm not giving back the club Katara; it's a weapon, not a toy." His response made her glare at him.

As he spoke, Akela padded over to the toddler and proceeded to lick his face and nuzzle him making the child giggle. "Oohhhh you're so cute." Katara said as she hugged the toddler and gave it a kiss.

"Sure, he's cute now. But when he's older, he'll join the Fire Nation army." The resistance leader said. "You won't think he's so cute then, he'll be a killer."

"Not if you and your generation decide to set a better example. The next generation learns from the old one, so it's up to us to teach them." Kurenai told him with firm conviction. Meanwhile the toddler had wandered over to Hinata, crawled into her lap and fell asleep. Hinata simply lifted the child up into her arms and began to rock him back and forth while humming a lullaby.

"You're going to be one heck of a mom, Hinata." Kiba told her after she had finished the lullaby. "Thanks Kiba." She replied while blushing a little bit.

"I have a question." Shino announced out of the blue.

"What is it, Shino?" Kurenai asked.

"Why is it that all the animals besides the lemur have started laughing?" He pointed to Appa, Akamaru, Akela and Flopsie, who did honestly look like they were laughing.

"That reminds me, how did Akela and Akamaru get along so well? The last time I check, they were almost at each other's throats." Sokka asked Kiba.

"Don't know. When we arrived to make sure the civilians got here safely, we found all three of them asleep. The weird thing was that Akamaru was sleeping in top of Appa's head and Akela was sleeping on top of Akamaru. When we tried to wake them, they all growled at us in unison." Kiba told him while shrugging his shoulders.

"Another friendship made in Sacred Snoring." Sokka muttered then turned to Appa. "Do you have some sort of weird power that makes everyone friends after they sleep on top of you?" He asked the sky bison. Appa just rolled over onto his back and continued to laugh in his own sky-bison way.

"What's so funny Akamaru?" Kiba asked his dog. After Akamaru finished explaining what was funny, Kiba had busted out laughing as well. "Okay what exactly did he say Kiba?" Kurenai asked her student.

"He's…He's…Oh Kami this is just too funny!" Kiba said before he began laughing again.

"What is it?"

Kiba had finally managed to catch his breath. "Akamaru told me how the kid managed to get here." He then told the rest of them what had happened to Momo while they were pretending to have pentapox. After he was done telling the story, everybody had managed to start laughing. As they laughed, Momo had somehow managed to look embarrassed.

After everyone was done laughing, they heard the cry of a bird. Looking around, they saw one flying towards them. "A messenger hawk." said the resistance leader as it landed. Kurenai rose from where she sat, walked over to the hawk, open the compartment and took out the letter. After reading it over, she gave it to Aang. "You should read this out loud to everyone." She told him.

"It's from the Fire Nation governor; he thinks we kidnapped his son." Aang told them as he read. "So he wants to make a trade: his son…for King Bumi." At the last bit, Aang's eyes went wide.

"Okay then, it's a trap." Sokka said after listening to the message. "Just what I'd expected from you." said Katara as she looked at her brother.

"Nevertheless, Sokka is right. This does seem like a trap." Kurenai said to everyone.

"We need to think of something, do you guys have any ideas?" Sokka asked Team Kurenai.

"Just like my brother, always coming up with plans." Katara said aloud to everyone. "And look where they've got us."

Sokka decided enough was enough. "Katara, we need to talk. Alone." He rose up from where he was sitting and started to walk away from the group, his sister followed after him. Once they were a good distance from the camp, Katara asked "What is that you wanted to talk about?"

Sokka looked at her. "What's your problem, Katara?"

"What do you mean?"

"You have something against me, what is it?"

"I have don't have against you Sokka, you're my brother after all." She growled in a sarcastic tone.

"Stop it Katara! You've been deliberately nasty, snide, snotty and any other kind of word that describes your attitude ever since Master Pakku started training me. So I will ask again: What. Is. Your. Problem?"

"You know what Sokka? You're right; I do have a problem with you. You decided to barge in on something that you shouldn't have been anywhere in the first!"

Sokka simply raised an eyebrow. "Is this about me asking Master Pakku to train me?"

"He is not your master; you don't have the right to call him that! What you did was sacrilege! You had no business trying to learn Waterbending when you're not a Bender yourself! I'm the Bender in the family, not you!" Katara screamed at her brother.

The silence between the two grew moment by moment until Sokka quietly asked one thing. "Are you truly that childish?"

The fury went out of Katara's face and was replaced by confusion. "What?"

"Do you really think that I went to Master Pakku to learn Waterbending so I could make sure that you didn't have something that was your own? I went to Master Pakku so I can learn how to protect myself."

"Protect yourself, why would you need to do that? You have your club, machete, boomerang and intelligence." She protested.

"And what will happen in the middle of fight if I lose my club, my machete or my boomerang? I'm not a Bender and the last time I checked, intelligence was not a weapon that can actually be used on a battlefield! I asked Master Pakku to teach me so I wouldn't end up dead!"

Katara took a step back as she listened to her brother. "D-dead?"

"Yes, dead. Maybe that's what you would like see, huh Katara? Do you want to see me on the fields of a battle with a mortal wound and blood slowly seeping from my body? Do you want to watch me as I slowly lose my life? WELL, DO YOU?!"

Katara began to cry. "No I don't want that, please not that! We already lost Mom and we don't know if Dad is still alive. I don't want to lose you too."

As her sobs began to lessen, Sokka gave her a hug. "Like you said Katara, I'm not the Bender in the family, you are and that's the difference between us. Although I did learn the stances and sets for Waterbending, I'm not a Bender." He took a step back so he could look at her face. "We good?"

Katara nodded as her tears stopped. "We're good."

"Then we better get back to the others, we still need to come with a plan." The two of them walked back to where the resistance camp was.

(The next morning, Location: mountains outside Omashu)

Aang took a moment to watch the sun rise before walking down to where Sokka, Katara, and Team Kurenai stood in front of Appa. "Please remember that we are possibly going into a trap." Sokka told him as he scratched Akela's ear.

"I know." Aang replied.

"Are we ready?" Kurenai asked as she held the sleeping toddler.

"Probably ready as we'll ever be, Sensei." Shino answered.

"Don't worry guys, this'll be easy." Kiba stated.

Sokka turned to his sister. "I would like to state for the record that those words did not come out of my mouth."

"Duly noted," Katara answered, making them laugh a little and lose the tension.

"We better get going." Hinata said. They all agreed, hoped on Appa and headed towards Omashu.

(Location: Omashu)

Mai stood in front the entrance to the governor's mansion. She watched a group of Imperial Firebenders carried the royal palanquin towards her, she already knew who was inside. As the palanquin was set down and Azula stepped out, Mai bowed and said "Please tell me you're here to kill me." with no emotion what so ever.

The two of them looked at each other for a moment and then laughed. "It's great to see you Mai." Azula told her as she gave a hug. The two of them broke apart and Ty Lee gave Mai another hug.

"I thought you ran off and join the circus; you said it was your calling." Mai asked.

"Well Azula called a little louder." Ty Lee replied.

"Actually Ty Lee, I think that call got lost in the noise made by the animals when they were going on a rampage." Naruto said as he joined the girls.

"Naruto." greeted Mai with a small glare.

"Doom and Gloom." Naruto replied. "So how do you want to be killed this time: suffocation, drowning, beheading, impalement, electrocution, strangulation?"

"How does a knife through the heart sound to you?" She asked before flinging out her hand and throwing a knife at him. "Sounds kinda dull if you ask me." He answered as he caught the knife without looking at it.

Mai scowled slightly before grinning. "Always fun to have you around Naruto."

"If the two of you are done," Azula told them as she stepped forward. "I have a mission and need you both."

"Count me in, anything to get me out of this place." Mai automatically answered.

"After we're done in Omashu, I'll tell the squad leader to head back to the Fire Nation." Naruto told Azula, who nodded in agreement.

"I guess I have to go talk to your father now?" She turned to Mai and asked. When she nodded, Azula simply said "Lead the way."

Later, the governor, his wife, Mai and Ty Lee sat in front of Azula as she sat in the governor's chair. Naruto was leaning against the wall next to the door.

"I apologize." The governor told Azula. "You've come to Omashu at a difficult time. At noon, we're making a trade with the resistance to get Tom-Tom back."

"Yes, I'm so sorry to hear about your son." Azula said with sarcasm. "But really, what did you expect by just letting all the citizens leave." She stood up from the chair. "My father has trusted you with this city and you're making a mess of things."

"Forgive me, princess." The governor pleaded as he bowed.

"You stay here." She told him as she walked forward. "Mai will handle the hostage trade so you don't have a chance to mess it up. And there is no more Omashu; I'm renaming it in honor of my father―"

"No you're not." Naruto interrupted her. The shocked silence grew dangerous as she eyed her bodyguard.

"What did you say?" She growled. He simply looked at the two Imperial Firebenders who stood on each side of the chair; they took the subtle order and left quietly. "Would you give us a few minutes?" he asked the governor and his wife. They nodded and left the room as well.

"What in Agni's name do you mean I'm not renaming this city?" Azula demanded as she took a few steps towards Naruto. "You're not renaming this city for two reasons." He told her as he took a few steps forward. "One: Names are important."

"What are you talking about?"

"This is the city of Omashu; its citizens are a part of the Earth Kingdom. They take pride in the fact they hale from Omashu, you take away the name and they can't take pride in where they are born or who they are."

She scoffed. "That's nonsense."

"If you say so, Miss. Chunky Chunky Boom Boom,"

Azula just stood there as she digested what just came out of her bodyguard's mouth. "Excuse me?" She asked him in a soft quiet voice which would make the people who knew Azula start looking for places that provide good cover and hope to Agni she wasn't coming their way.

"What?"

"What did you just call me?"

"I called you by your new name, Chunky Chunky Boom Boom, a present girl of the Earth Kingdom."

"Like hell it is!" She took two steps forward and threw a fireball past his head and hitting the wall harmlessly. "My name is Azula and I am the Princess of the Fire Nation!"

He looked at her as he slowly walked up towards her, finally stopping just in front of her. "So changing the name of something or someone else is fine but changing your name or where you're from is not allowed?" He asked quietly.

"You're damn right it isn't!" She snarled, shoving her face into his. They looked at each other with their faces only inches away. Their breaths intermingled as they stared into the other's eyes. "What you just felt is what everyone feels when a name is taken from them." Naruto told her softly. "Do you really want to do that?"

Azula glared at him for a few minutes but then what he said went through her head. Sighing and stepping back away from him, she said "I guess not."

"It's a valuable lesson Azula; you had to learn sooner or later." He turned around to face the door. "I'll go tell the governor that we're going to make the trade."

"Very well," Azula agreed and then said "And Naruto, that name is never to be mentioned again."

He turned to face her. "Then don't give me a reason to use it." He told her with a mischievous grin before he started to walk to the door.

"Um…Naruto?" Ty Lee called. "You said you had two reasons but you only explained one. What was the second?"

Naruto stopped and turned back to face them looking sheepish. "Yeah sorry, forgot about that." He said as he scratched the back of his head.

"Well, what is the second reason?" Mai asked.

"The Royal Flaming Asshole doesn't deserve be named after a diaper, much less a city."

"You know, some might call that treason." Azula noted dryly

Naruto scoffed. "The day he gets off his ass and actually fights in this war, I might start respecting him, and I stress the word 'might'." He told the three girls as he turned to go and tell the governor that they were leaving.

(Location: platform at the base of statue of Ozai)

Aang with his hat on stood waiting on the platform with Katara and Sokka behind him with Akela at Sokka's feet. Kurenai stood to his side holding the still sleeping toddler while her team stood on her other side. Soon enough, they saw the other party coming up the stairs. Team Kurenai silently analyzed the group coming towards them; they figured that while the three girls could be considered a threat, they could also be dealt with. It was the cloaked, hooded one that they couldn't figure out and to any shinobi worth their kunai, it would put them on guard immediately.

"_Strange but that cloaked person smells familiar." _Kiba thought. _"I can't place him though."_

"Aang," Hinata whispered. "Be careful of them, these are not civilians, they're fighters."

"Understood," Aang whispered back. "If this turns into a fight, how do you to do want to this?" he asked Kurenai.

"Shino, keep them close by using your bugs while Kiba and Akamaru keep them occupied. Hinata, get in close and disable them using your Jūken. Katara, support Hinata with your Waterbending." Order Kurenai. "That should take care of the three girls."

"What about the fourth person?"

"I'll take care of him." Sokka told everyone while Akela growled in agreement.

"Just be careful, that guy somehow smells familiar." Kiba told them.

"Can you tell who it is?" Shino asked.

"No, he just smells familiar but I don't why."

"Alright then, be on guard with the cloaked one." Kurenai said with everyone agreeing.

By the time the conversation was over, Mai's group was coming towards them, Mai's hand gave a little flick and up above, the iron coffin that held King Bumi began to lower. "Hi everybody!" He called.

"That…is one seriously off-beat person." Kiba commented with Akamaru nodding in agreement.

"You brought my brother?" Mai asked as Bumi landed behind the group.

"He's here." Kurenai announced as she showed the sleeping toddler.

"We're ready to trade." Aang told them.

"I'm sorry but a thought just occurred to me, do you mind?" Azula asked Mai.

"Of course not, Princess Azula." replied Mai.

"**Oh boy, here ****we go." **Kyuubi said in a suffering tone.

"_Knock it off fox, we need to focus here." _Naruto silently told him. _"Do you feel that?"_

Kyuubi was silent for a few seconds. **"Yeah, I do. You catch on quick gaki."**

"_Three years under your tutelage and fighting in a war makes learning quickly a necessity."_ Naruto told the fox before refocusing on the trade

"We're trading a two year old for a king, a powerful Earthbending king. It just doesn't seem like a fair trade, does it?" Azula asked.

Mai looked at her brother as she thought it over. "You're right." She answered, steeping forward she declared. "The deal's off!"

"Well of course the deal is off, Mai." The cloaked person announced as he walked past Mai. "The deal was off before the negotiations started." He stopped about halfway towards the other group.

"_That voice sounds familiar." _Team Kurenai thought. _"But where have I heard it before?"_

"What do you mean?" Mai asked.

"It's simple really, the deal is off because we brought our piece to the table but they did not."

"What are talking about, he's right in here in my arms." Kurenai argued.

"Is he now?" the cloaked person raised his right hand and snapped his fingers. As the sound of the snap echoed, the toddler being held by Kurenai simply disappeared. "Or were you hoping to get something for nothing?"

"How did you…?"

"If you're going to try and fool me with a Genjutsu, do a better job next time."

"How did you know it was a Genjutsu?"

The person smirked. "Why should I have to tell you?"

"Who the hell are you?" Kiba demanded, pointing his finger at the person.

The person chuckled. "I guess the Inuzuka clan isn't as good at recognizing scents as they thought they are."

"How the hell do you know what clan I'm from, I don't even know you!"

The person sighed. "Such a shame, I would have thought you of all people would recognize who I am." He looked directly at Kiba. "Isn't that right, Inu-teme?"

Suddenly everything in the conversation came back to him. The fact the person knew about Genjutsu, the fact he knew Kiba was from the Inuzuka clan, his voice, his scent and the insult. There only one person who used that insult on him. "Naruto?" he asked in a confused voice, making Team Kurenai looking at him and then looking at the person in shock.

"Ding ding ding ding! The Inu-teme gets it in one." Naruto announced out loud as he lowered his hood. "How are you're doing, Sokka?" He called out to the Water Tribe Paragon.

"I'm doing fine Naruto," he answered. "But I do have a question: why are you wearing the hood? We already know who you are." He gesture to Aang and his sister.

"Actually, I had my hood up for two reasons. One: the sun was glaring into my face so I had it up to give me some shade."

"And the second?"

"To make sure that on the chance that some of my Fangirls are here that they don't recognize me."

Sokka looked a little confused. "So your Fangirls won't recognize you?" he repeated.

Naruto nodded. "A scary but true fact: if one of my Fangirls catches even one glimpse of me, I would be running for my life for about eight hours." He shuddered at the thought of them actually catching him.

By this time Kurenai had found her voice again. "Naruto, is that really you?"

"And the delegation from Konoha has found their voices." He remarked with sarcasm, making Ty Lee and Azula giggle while Mai smirked.

"What are you doing here? Your banishment was repelled!"

"And your point is?"

"Why haven't you come back?"

"Well I wouldn't have heard about it if I was here for three years, now would I?"

"But you can come home now man!" Kiba said with glee. But the next thing to come out of Naruto's mouth stunned him. "So?" the blonde asked.

"Hey, Naruto?" Sokka called, taking the silence as a moment to talk. "Back in the Northern Water Tribe, we had a Fire Nation prisoner. He called me the Paragon of the Water Tribes after I told him that you name me your Opponent. Do you have any idea what he was talking about?"

"You must be talking about Shin. It was good of him to tell you what I meant when I called you my Opponent."

"So what is a Paragon?"

Before Naruto could answer, Kiba interrupted. "That's all you have to say? So?"

"What are you talking about?" Naruto asked with exasperation.

"We have just told that your banishment has been lifted and you can return to the village. Logically you would be happy to hear that and would try to get back to the village as soon as you could." Shino said.

"Oh buzz off, bug boy." Naruto waved him off.

"Naruto, please stop this," Hinata suddenly spoke up. "Let's go home, everyone is waiting for you. You can be a shinobi again."

The silence was almost deafening, Naruto said nothing as he thought over the conversation. To Team Kurenai, it looked he was about to accept their offer. But he then started to laugh out loud. "You make sound like I hate my current job, White eyes." He told her, earning a shocked gasp from her and warning growls from Kiba and Akamaru. "And you're also forgetting that the old hag did not actually banish me, I left. So that makes me a missing-nin, therefore I don't have to go back."

"You're coming with us, Naruto." Kurenai told him. "And if you don't come willingly, then we will have force you to come with us."

"I liked to see you try." Naruto told them with a smirk. "But before everything goes to hell in a hand basket, I liked to ask Sokka a question."

"What do you want to know?" Sokka asked cautiously.

"I take it that you already studied Waterbending?"

"How did you know that?"

"Simple really, your posture is relaxed but also ready to move at a moment's notice; your sister also has the same posture and I know she's a Waterbender."

"Yeah, I've studied Waterbending and a little of Earthbending."

"That's good thinking on your part."

"Why is that?"

"Because like the Avatar, a Paragon must master all four arts, which reminds me," Naruto dug around in his cloak. "Ah here it is, catch." He tossed something at Sokka who caught it effortlessly. What he held in his hand was a medallion with four strange symbols craved on it. On the top of the medallion was an upside down triangle while on the bottom was a normal triangle. On the right side of the medallion was an upside down triangle with a line through it, on the left side was the same triangle with the line only right side up.

"What is this?" Sokka asked.

"Sorry Sokka but I'm gonna have to tell you later, your 'protectors' are spoiling for a fight." He gestured to Team Kurenai. He turned to Azula. "Do you mind if I have a little fun, Princess?"

"It makes no difference to me." She answered shrugging her shoulders.

"Things are different now, Naruto! We're not Genin anymore and you haven't had a teacher in the past three years." Kiba told him.

'Who says I didn't have a teacher?" Naruto undid the clasp on his cloak and pulled it off. Underneath the cloak, he wore a brown shirt underneath a black vest that was tied off at the waist with a steel-colored cloth-belt. His pants were of a deep red, almost crimson, color. On his right pants leg was a black flame that went from the bottom of the pants leg to just past the knee. He wore boots but didn't tuck his pants legs into them. He had a jian slung across his back but to others it seemed odd. He had slung it so that the handle of the sword was just under his left arm while the scabbard jutted out from behind his right shoulder. His appearance made no attempt to hide the muscles he clearly had, causing Katara and Hinata to involuntary blush. Despite having seen it before, Ty Lee and Azula also sported blushes (Azula was able to hide hers better but not by much).

"Sokka, allow me to show you something of Earthbending that Paragons can use. Think of it as a lesson." Naruto took a strip of cloth from his pocket and tied it around his eyes. "Now then, let's begin."

At that point, Kurenai had disappeared from sight and suddenly tree roots sprang up from the ground and quickly grew and coiled around Naruto. Soon enough, he was pinned against a tree with two roots holding him. He did not struggle against the roots as everyone watched, Azula, Ty Lee and Mai with worry, Team Kurenai with satisfaction and Aang, Sokka, Katara and Akela with curiosity.

"It's over, Naruto." Kurenai said as she appeared out of the tree above him. But before she could knock him unconscious, he made a fist with his right hand and slammed it into her face, tearing through the roots that held him in the process.

"If you're going to hold me with Genjutsu, Kurenai, at least try. That was pathetic at best." He told her as the Genjutsu failed. She recovered and leapt back over to where her team was.

"_He broke a B-rank Genjutsu like it was nothing and he didn't even see me!" _She thought to herself. "Kiba, Shino, Hinata, Containment formation!" She ordered her team.

"Understood Kurenai-sensei." replied Shino. Team Kurenai had used this formation before. Kiba and Akamaru would engage the target but not to beat him, just wear him down. Meanwhile, Hinata would get in close and use her Jūken to hit the targets tenkentsu. After the target's chakra was cut off, Shino would hold him down with his kikaichū while Kurenai would apply a Genjutsu on the target, subduing him.

"Let's go Akamaru!" Kiba leapt at Naruto with Akamaru on his side. **"Gatsūga **(Fang over Fang!)**!****"** The two of them started twisting around, spinning faster and faster until they looked like small grey tornados. As they hurtled towards Naruto, he did nothing but wait. When it look like they were about to hit him, he simply knelt down. _"Crap! We missed!" _Kiba thought. He then realized that he and Akamaru were about to hit each other but they managed to veer off so they passed each other, the idea was for them to essentially do a U-turn in mid-air and try to hit Naruto again.

But it was an idea only. As both Kiba and Akamaru passed over Naruto, he whipped out his arms and then plunged his hands into the two tornados, quickly grabbing Akamaru's tail and Kiba's leg. Tossing Akamaru up into the air, he swung Kiba down and punched him in hard in the stomach before standing back up and throwing him back over to his teammates. He then jumped upwards and round house kicked Akamaru in the side, causing him to crash back into the ground in front of Kiba. "Still the same Inu-teme, always rushing into a fight." stated Naruto as he landed on the ground.

Feeling his legs somehow going numb and hearing bugs, Naruto spoke out. "Trying to hold me with your kikaichū, Shino?" Shino said nothing, that way he wouldn't let Naruto find out that he had moved closer and off to the side a little.

"Not talking so that you'll hope I won't find out that you've changed your position?" Shino was surprised by Naruto's question. _"How did he know? I was completely silent as I moved and while he was occupied with Kiba!" _Shino thought.

"Points for trying but…" Naruto disappeared with a _POOF!_ In his place was a piece of lumber from a nearby pile. _"He used a __**Kawarimi **__(Body Replacement)!" _Shino quickly spun around to see Naruto's covered eyes looking at him. "You still fail."He said before decking Shino. "That's three down. I'm not impressed." He stated as he kicked Shino back to his teammates. He then leaned back to avoid Hinata's attack. "And now it's Miss. White Eyes' turn to subdue me."

"Please Naruto, just stop. I-I don't w-want to this." Hinata said as she attacked, her old stutter coming back.

"Uh-huh." He said in a disbelieving tone as he kept avoiding her strikes.

"I don't want to f-fight you Naruto."

"In that case, please hold still so I could beat you."

Hinata didn't say anymore, she just kept trying to hit him with her Jūken but she kept missing. Naruto stayed just out of her reach by ducking, weaving and dodging. As Katara watched the fight, she realized something. _"He's moving like a Airbender!" _Taking a quick look at Aang, she saw on his face that he had realized the same thing.

"Sounds like your friends are about to join us again." Naruto commented making Hinata take a quick glance behind and saw that her team was about to rejoin the fight. Taking advantage of her distraction Naruto swept her legs out from under her, making her fall.

Moving quickly, he grabbed her hair and pulled it back, exposing her throat which he then tightly grabbed with his other hand. "Move and she dies!" He barked out.

The rest of Team Kurenai stopped as they saw what was in front of them. "Let her go Naruto!" Kiba demanded.

"No."

"You won't do this, Naruto." Kurenai told him. "Despite what you think, you're not a killer."

"And how would you know I'm not a killer?" Naruto asked as he tightened his grip on Hinata's throat, slowly suffocating her.

Kurenai smiled. "Because you're Naruto Uzumaki and you would never hurt your friends."

Naruto sighed and released his grip on Hinata's throat, allowing her to breathe again. Just when they thought he was about to let her go, he spoke. "Mai, could I please borrow one of your knives?"

Mai simply took out one of her many knives and hurled it at him. He caught it in the air and said "Thank you." before plunging the knife into Hinata's stomach. The rest of Team Kurenai couldn't believe what they saw but it still happened. Aang and the others just flinched as they heard Hinata scream while Azula, Mai and Ty Lee let nothing show on their faces.

"What are you screaming about?" Naruto asked as she stopped screaming. "I didn't stab anything critical but if I were to dragged this to your left…" He pulled the knife lightly in that direction, making Hinata gasp in pain. "I would tear open your liver and that would kill you."

"Naruto you bastard!" yelled Kiba.

"Oh relax; I'm not going to kill her like that." He pulled the knife out and tossed it back to Mai. "It takes too long. I know a faster way to kill her." He then proceeded to form a Rasengan with one hand. "Have you ever seen what a Rasengan does to a face? It's not pretty." He asked them. "Maybe I should show you what it does?" He brought the Rasengan closer to Hinata's face.

"Alright Naruto, you win." Kurenai said in defeat. "What do you want us to do?"

"Turn around and leave, the King stays with us."

"What about Hinata?"

"I will let Hinata go so that we know one of us can act in good faith."

Kurenai was silent for a few seconds. "What happen to you Naruto? What happened to the loudmouth, knuckleheaded kid who would shout about being Hokage one day? What happened to the kid that we all cared about?"

"He grew up. Spending three years fighting in a war and protecting someone from assassinations will do that to a person." He released Hinata and let the Rasengan fade away.

As soon as Hinata reached her, Kurenai turned to face Aang and the others. "We're leaving."

"But what about Bumi?" protested Aang "We can't just leave him, can we?"

"You knew this could happen, Aang. We took a gamble and we lost." Sokka told him. "Right now, it's best if we get out of here."

"Very nicely done Naruto. You did well against them." Azula told him as he rejoined them.

"It wasn't hard. They were predictable, that's all. I faced tougher enemies out on the battlefields." He replied as he took the cloth off his eyes.

"I know what you did, youngster." King Bumi said aloud. "I also know that only the best Earthbenders can use that technique and you're not even a Bender."

Naruto looked at the King. "What makes you think that Earthbenders came up that technique?"

"The first Earthbenders were taught by the badgermoles, who else could invent such a technique?"

Naruto smiled. "King Bumi. Just because the first Earthbenders were taught by badgermoles doesn't mean that they weren't the only ones the badgermoles taught."

"Fair point youngster, fair point." cackled Bumi. At this point, Mai gave a signal and the iron coffin holding Bumi was being taken back up. "See you all later!" he called out as he gave off a mad laugh.

Aang watched as Bumi was being pulled upwards, he couldn't take it anymore. "Bumi!" He shouted as he raced across the platform.

"Get back here Aang!" Sokka called but Aang ignored him as he leapt off the scaffolding. As he opened his glider and began to fly, his hat came off, showing his arrow tattoo.

As they watched this whole spectacle, Naruto simply turned to Azula and said. "I told you it was going to be him."

"Yes you did and now it's my lucky day." Azula replied before raced up the scaffolding after her target.

"Well, I've had my share of fun." Naruto turned around and started to walk away. "It's your turn girls." He told Mai and Ty Lee, who rushed towards Sokka and the others.

"We need to get out of here!" Katara said.

Sokka was already blowing on the bison-shaped whistle. "Way ahead of ya." He told her, looking at Team Kurenai he asked. "Can you guys move?"

"Yeah we can." Kurenai answered.

"We need to get out of here and you guys can't like that. Katara give us some cover while I get them out. Akela, stay with Katara and help her out." Sokka ordered.

"Akamaru, you do the same but stay close to her." Kiba told his dog.

As they tried to get to the ladder, Sokka was tripped by a fist coming from under the platform. He skidded to the edge but stop just as his head was hanging out over the edge. Jumping out from a hole, Ty Lee went after him. Katara was about to stop her when Mai flung a couple of knives at her. She quickly bent her water to tear off some of the woods planks on the platform. They leapt up just in time to block the knives. Using her water, Katara shoved the planks back at Mai before bending her water into a whip and sending at Ty Lee. Grabbing her ankle, she quickly dragged her back, allowing Sokka to escape.

Then they heard a yell coming from above. Bumi's iron coffin with Aang on it fell past them. Taking notice of where they were going to land, Aang acted quickly and bent the air below them into a cushion so that they landed safely on the slide. Azula watched them speed away for a second before jump into a cart and went after them.

"Just like old times, isn't it Bumi?" Aang asked as they flew done the slide.

"Aang! I need to talk to you!" Bumi shouted but the wind muffled his words so Aang heard something a little different.

"It's good to see you too!" He replied, and then he noticed that Azula had caught up with them.

Meanwhile with Katara was fighting against Mai (The dogs were keeping a close guard around her so that Mai couldn't get close and Ty Lee had disappeared from Katara's eyesight). She bent water while Mai used projectiles. After bending backwards to avoid a water whip, Mai shot a needle from her foot. Katara quickly bent her water into ice to block the needle and Mai used that to charge forward.

Katara melted the ice back into water and shot at Mai who had just flung her arm. The water engulfed her arm and was bent back into ice, effectively trapping her arm. However Katara's victory was short-lived. Ty Lee appeared from behind and rushed Katara while also sweeping the legs from out under Akela and Akamaru.

Taking advantage of the Water Tribe girl's surprise, she jabbed several points in Katara's arms and then leapt away. Once that happened, the ice surrounding Mai's arm melted and felled on the ground. Not sure what exactly had happened, Katara tried to bend the water only for it to rise up sluggishly and then fall down again.

"How are you're going fight without your Bending?" Mai asked mockingly before pulling out a three bladed knife. But before she could throw the knife, it was knocked out of her hands by Sokka's boomerang.

"I seem to manage!" Sokka declared from atop of Appa. The sky bison quickly landed in front of the two girls and blasted air at them so hard that they flew away. Katara as well as the dogs got on board; Katara joined her brother on Appa's head while Akela and Akamaru joined Team Kurenai in the saddle.

Soon enough, Appa flying down the city with everyone on board looking for Aang. Katara saw him first. "There he is!" She said, pointing to a particular slide.

"We can catch him!" Sokka brought Appa down closer to the slide while Aang was trying to defend himself from Azula's fire.

"Hang on Bumi! Our ride's here!" As Appa got right alongside the slide, Aang bent the air to lift Bumi's iron coffin up over Appa. Sokka and Katara tried to grab hold and bring it down but it sailed over their heads. Both Aang and Bumi smashed through a different slide before landing in the first one again. Azula quickly bent her fire into a wheel and sent it after them.

Watching the fire wheel come after them, Bumi gave a grunt of effort and lifted his chin, causing a small column of rock to shoot up and stop the fire. It was also gave them the added bonus of stopping Azula by smashing her cart, making her jump out of it and land on her feet. After skidding to a stop, she watched the two of them race away.

"You could Earthbend? All along?" asked a stunned Aang.

"Well," King Bumi replied. "They didn't cover my face." As they go near the end of the slide, he moved his chin and caused another column to shoot up at the end. Aang jumped off as the iron coffin landed on top of the column.

"I don't understand. Why didn't you free yourself? Why did you surrender when Omashu was invaded? What's the matter with you, Bumi?" Aang demanded.

"Listen to me, Aang. There are options in fighting called Jing. It's a choice of how you direct your energy."

"I know! There's positive Jing when you're attacking and negative Jing when you're retreating." Aang told him while sounding like a little know-it-all brat.

"And neutral Jing, when you do nothing!"

"There are three Jings?"

"Well technically there are eighty five, but let's just focus on the third. Neutral Jing is the key to Earthbending. It involves listening and waiting for the right moment to strike."

"That's why you surrendered." Aang realized. "Isn't it?"

"Well, I also surrender because that youngster Naruto asked so nicely, but it's also the reason why I can't leave now."

Aang looked disheartened. "I guess I need to find someone else to teach me Earthbending." He said as he turned to face away from his old friend.

"Your teacher will be someone who has mastered neutral Jing. You need to find someone who waits and listens before striking."

Out of nowhere Momo landed on Aang's shoulder, making him turn to face Bumi again. "Hey Momo." He greeted.

"Momo's mastered a few Jings himself." Bumi said "Goodbye Aang, I'll see you when the time is right." He then pushed his coffin back onto the slide and Earthbent the rock to push him back up the slide, laughing madly while Appa showed up for Aang.

As Bumi continued up the slide, he suddenly noticed that someone was sitting the rock he was Earthbending. "Hello again, King Bumi." greeted Naruto.

Bumi stop the rock. "Hello youngster, do you need something?"

"I know what you're planning to do, Bumi. When that occurs, I would like to ask you to do something."

"Oh? And what's that?"

"That you don't kill any of the Fire Nation troops stationed here."

Bumi barked out a laugh. "Why should I do that?"

"Bumi, when I took your city, I did it without taking any of your men's lives. All I'm asking is that you extend me the same courtesy."

"Well…alright, you have a fair point."

"Thank you." And Naruto disappeared with a _POOF!_

"_What an unusual youngster." _Bumi thought as he continued up the slide. _"But certainly keeps you on your toes!"_

(Location: Aboard Appa)

The atmosphere was a little tense as they headed back to the resistance camp. No one really talk to Aang, finally deciding to break the silence he asked. "Are you all mad with me?"

"We're not mad, we're disappointed." Sokka answered, making Aang a bit nervous.

"We will talk about this later." Kurenai said. "For now, let's get back to the resistance."

They all nodded in agreement and continued on their way. When they landed just outside of the camp, they noticed that it was too quiet. "They should have noticed us landing." Sokka noted.

"Let's move quickly, something might have happened." Kurenai ordered. They hurried to the camp and when they saw what was going, they didn't like it. All the civilians were gagged and bound while all the warriors and Earthbenders were all on the ground and not moving. And sitting on a rock, in the middle of the camp and playing with the toddler, was Naruto.

"It took you guys long enough." He said when he noticed them.

"What did you do, Naruto?" Hinata asked in shock.

"Huh? Oh you mean them?" He gesture to the people on the ground. "Don't worry, they're only unconscious, by the way my congratulations to you, Kurenai."

"Congratulations?" Kurenai looked suspicious.

"When you trapped me in that Genjutsu, I looked for your chakra so I would know where to attack. I was quite surprised when I found you. Now that I think about it, you looked like you're almost glowing. I just surprised that Inu-teme here hasn't figured it out yet." He pointed to Kiba.

"What was that, you bastard?" Kiba growled but Naruto ignored him.

"Why are you here?" Katara asked with caution.

"I'm just here to get Tom-Tom here." He bounced the toddler on his knee, making him giggle. "Also to answer any questions Sokka has."

Sokka grew confused. "What do mean by questions?"

"Well, we were kind of interrupted last time; now I can give you a little time to answer some of your questions."

"Alright, then what is thing and do these symbols mean?" He showed Naruto the medallion.

"That's an easy one; it's the Medallion of the Paragon of the Water Tribe. They show that the person who wears it is a Paragon. There were only four Paragon Medallions created." He reached into his shirt and drew out a similar medallion. The difference between the two was the pattern; the top of Naruto's medallion had the right side triangle while Sokka's had the upside down triangle on the top.

"Well what do the symbols mean?"

"They are the ancient symbols for the four elements. Yours starts at the top with Water and goes clockwise with Earth, Fire and Air."

Sokka took a closer look at Naruto's medallion. "I'm guessing that yours is Fire, Air, Water and Earth?"

"You catch on quick."

"It's the Avatar cycle." Katara realized.

"It is also the Paragon cycle."

"Why did you make me a Paragon?" Sokka continued with his questions.

"Because when I met you, you had the two requirements that were needed to become a Paragon."

"What do you mean by requirements?"

"The first requirement is easy but the second one is a little more difficult."

'What's the first requirement?"

"You're not a Bender."

The collective word that everyone said was. "Huh?"

"To have even the chance of being a Paragon, you cannot be a Bender."

Sokka decided to continue. "What's the second requirement?"

Naruto smiled. "The guts to never give up." He answered.

"What?"

"Think of it like this, back in the Northern Water Tribe, if I had actually tried to take Aang, what would you have done?"

"I would've fought you myself." Sokka answered.

"Even if you knew I could've easily killed you?"

"You were going after one of my friends; if I was going to the Spirit World, you would be coming with me."

Naruto's smiled turned into a full blown grin. "And that's why you're a Paragon and my Opponent."

"What is an Opponent?"

"It's something that only a Paragon can give and only to another Paragon. When I named you as my Opponent, I was basically saying that while we may have different opinions and might fight against each other often, I'd trust you to watch my back when I need you to because we share the same ideals."

"So even if we disagree on a lot of things, we would work together when the situation called for it because of our ideals?"

"That's about it in a nutshell. If you want it simpler than that, I basically called you my rival."

"Makes more sense now, I only have one question left."

"Fire away."

"What does a Paragon do?"

'Basically, we keep an eye on him." Naruto pointed at Aang.

"Me? Why me?" he asked with surprise.

Naruto looked at him. "Let me ask you something, Avatar Aang. Have you ever heard about Avatars that have gone power-mad or just insane?"

"No because that would never happen."

Naruto laughed. "You've never heard of them because every time an Avatar has gone mad or tries to conquer the planet, the Paragons have stepped in."

"What are you talking about?"

"The four Paragons are there to watch and monitor the Avatar in case he does go mad with power or just lose his sanity. When that happens, the Paragons will kill the Avatar."

While everyone else had a completely shocked look, Sokka look thoughtful. "Paragons also have a power over the Avatar State, don't they?"

"Yes they do. A Paragon has the ability to cut the link between the Avatar and the Avatar State. I'm guessing you've already used that ability?"

Sokka nodded. "Well that's all the time I have for you, now I must be going." Naruto told them as he stood up from the rock with Tom-Tom in his arms.

"Where do you think you're going, Naruto?" Shino asked.

"I'm leaving, bug boy. Isn't it obvious?"

"And you do think you can go? You are surrounded and you have just been in battle. You are tired and you plan to leave with someone. It is logical for you to surrender now."

Naruto gave a mischievous grin. "Two things, bug boy. Number one: I didn't even break a sweat when I beat you guys. Number Two: Remember when I said that you were trying to get something for nothing?" Before they could answer, both he and Tom-Tom disappeared with _POOF! _Left on the rock was a note. Sokka picked it up and read aloud to the group. It said:

I guess I'm better then you when it comes to that.

Naruto

Aang looked around at everyone. "What do we do now?"

"Let's get the civilians untied as well as wake up the warriors and Earthbenders." Sokka decided. "After that, we leave Omashu."

"In the meantime, my team and I need to make a report." Kurenai said. "The Hokage must be told of what has happened."

(Location: Omashu)

Azula sat within the palanquin as Mai and Ty Lee walked beside it. "So we're tracking down your brother and uncle, huh?" Mai asked.

"It'll be interesting seeing Zuko again, won't it Mai?" Ty Lee's eyes had a slight mischievous glint in them. Mai looked away and smiled for an answer.

"It's not just Zuko and Iroh anymore." Azula told the two of them. "We have a third target now."

They walked in silence for a little bit before Mai asked another question. "Where's Naruto?"

"He told me that he was going to see your parents, he'll meet us at the camp." Azula replied.

(Night, Location: Governor's mansion)

The governor held his wife as they stood on the balcony looking sadly out to the mountains. "Sir, Lord Naruto would like to speak with you." A guard spoke from behind them.

"Bring him forward." The governor told the guard.

Soon they heard footsteps coming behind them. "My lord." greeted Naruto.

"What is it that you want?"

"I brought you something that I think you would like."

"What is it?" the governor asked not bothering to turn around. Then he and his wife heard a cooing sound that they knew very well. Turning around, they saw Tom-Tom in Naruto's arms. "Here you are." Naruto said as he knelt down and put the toddler on the ground. When he noticed that his parents were there, he began to walk toward them.

"Tom-Tom!" Cried his mother as she rushed forward, picked him and hugged him. The governor gave them both a hug. "Thank you so much." The governor said as tears ran freely down his face.

Naruto smiled as he bowed his head. "It was nothing." He told them. He walked to the edge of the balcony. "I'll be sure to tell Mai that her brother is safe." He jumped over the railing and into the night, leaving the family to enjoy this moment.

(Location: Azula's camp)

Naruto walked into the camp. He notice Mai and Ty Lee were sitting at the fire. "Hey cutie!" chirped Ty Lee when she saw him walk in.

"Hey Ty Lee." He greeted back. Walking up to Mai he said. "I got something to tell you, Doom and Gloom."

"What is it?" Mai asked.

"Your brother is back with your parents."

"And I should care why?"

"Because despite how you act, I know that you care about your little brother. Family is family."

Mai looked troubled for a minute but it disappered quickly. She then gave him a smile, a genuine one. "You're right, thank you Naruto."

He looked at her for a moment. "Did you just use an emotion?"

Her smile disappered as she fingered a knife. "Don't push your luck."

Putting his hands in mock surrender, he said "Alright." Putting his hands down, he looked over at Ty Lee. "I take it she's in her tent."

"Yeah she is."

"Okay then." He walked over to the tent that Azula was in.

As he stepped in, he saw that she sitting in a meditative pose in front of three candles. "So you're back." She said.

"Yeah," he answered. "You know, it's been awhile since I've seen you do that exercise."

"Well, it was one of the things you taught me."

He gave a small smile. "When in doubt, go back to the basics."

Azula nodded her head.

"But that was when you are in doubt about your ability to fight. And since you never doubt your fighting skills, what are you doubting?"

She sighed. "It's not so much doubt as it is worry."

"What's worries you?"

"I have both of my friends here with me but I still don't have my answer. What if I never find it?"

She felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning around, she saw him standing behind her. "Don't worry, this is one of those things that take time." He told her. "Just be patient, okay?" She nodded in agreement.

"Alright then," He removed his hand and took a step back. "Have you decided who to go after?"

"Yes, we're going after the Avatar."

"Understood. I took the liberty of getting us three mongoose dragons; they should be here in the morning."

"Three?"

"Yes, for you, Ty Lee and Mai."

"Where's the fourth one?"

"What do you mean?"

"I highly doubt that you will be able to stay with us if you're not riding one as well."

He grinned. "Princess, if anything, those mongoose dragons will have to take rest periods in order to stay with me at my top speed." He turned around and started to walk out. "I'll see to it that the squad goes back to Omashu before leaving for the Fire Nation."

"Naruto." called Azula, making him stop at the tent flap. "Those people today, the ones that were shocked to see you. Who are they?"

He didn't say anything for a few minutes, he just stood there in silence. "My past." He finally answered before leaving the tent. _"What are you hiding from me, Naruto?" _Azula thought.

As Naruto went to set up his sleeping bag, he heard the fox say **"You're going have to tell her who they are sooner or later, kit."**

"I know Kyuubi; I just hope it's later." He replied under his breath.

(Location: Konoha)

"Kami, do I need a drink!" Tsunade said aloud as she went through the paperwork on her desk. She pushed back away from her desk and looked out the window. The afternoon sun shined down on the village. _"It's times like these that make me think of him." _She thought. _"Where are you, Naruto?"_

"Lady Tsunade!" yelled Shizune from the hallway before finally bursting through the doors. "What's the matter Shizune?" Tsunade asked, worried that something had happened.

Shizune held out a scroll. "This just came through the transport seal. It's from Kurenai's team and was marked urgent."

Tsunade took the scroll, opened it and began to read. After a few minutes with her eyes still on the scroll, she said. "Shizune, get Teams Asuma and Guy in here ASAP."

"Them? They just got back from a mission, why do you need them now?" Shizune asked.

Tsunade simply showed her the open scroll. She stood completely still, reading and re-reading the first sentence. "I'll go get them right away." She said before leaving the office.

Tsunade put the scroll down and reached for her hidden stash of sake. If one were to take a look at the open scroll, this would have been the first sentence:

Lady Hokage

Uzumaki Naruto has been found.

**End**

**Author's Note: **Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me about this story. I would like to address two of them.

First, to the reviewer Urfan: I thank you for your review and would like to know where I can find any of your stories. That way, I can criticize the way you write your stories. If you haven't written any stories, please do so before criticizing other peoples work. In the meantime, please take your harshly critical review and shove it where the sun don't shine.

Second, to the reviewer Sinless14: I'm sorry but Toph will not be a Paragon. However your suggestion has given me an idea for the history of the Paragons, so thank you for your review.

For those of you who didn't like what the Paragons do, I just have one question: are you telling me that in the giant flock of Avatars, there hasn't been a few black sheep?

I am going to write The Swamp next but I'm also going to put Naruto and his group in there as well.

For those of you who were wondering about the clothes, yes I did describe their Shippūden clothes. With Naruto, he's basically wearing what Zuko wore in the latter half of season 3 with different colors. He is also wearing Jin Kazama's pants from Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection with the colors switched.

Also, the symbols on the Paragon Medallions are real. They are the alchemical symbols for Water, Earth, Fire and Air if I use Sokka's Medallion for an example.

What Kurenai has will be revealed in the next chapter (Although if you've read Naruto, then you who know what it is); the cloaked spirit will be shown again as well as his name.

For those of you out there who are worried that I'll never get back to my Naruto/Matrix story don't worry. After I write the next chapter, I plan to alternate between the two stories.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	4. Memories and Questions

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 4: Memories and Questions

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/ spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/ spirit talking"**_

(Location: Konoha)

Both Team Asuma and Team Guy stood in the Hokage's Office. Tsunade turned to look at them. "I'm grateful that you all got here quickly." She said.

"What's the problem, Lady Hokage?" Asuma asked.

"As you very well know, a month ago Team Kurenai set sail for what we have always known as the Bending Countries. They were given an A-rank mission to protect someone."

"We know that part. So why did you call for us?" Chōji asked.

"When they met up with the person and his group, they were going to rescue a friend from out of a city by trading him for someone else." She sighed. "When they went to do the trade, they encountered Naruto Uzumaki." She watched as everyone digested the information and remembered what had happened when the Fire Daimyo arrived at Konoha. She had sent a messenger hawk to him just before he left the Capital for Konoha. She requested that when he arrived at the village, he order an investigation into Naruto Uzumaki.

When he arrived at Konoha, the Fire Daimyo did just that. He ordered that everything about the young shinobi was to be looked into. That meant his records were to be studied and interviews of people who knew him were to be made (with the exception of Team 7, as both the Fire Daimyo and Tsunade thought those would be biased). The entire process took about two weeks, during which it was discovered that the records for each mission Naruto was on was falsified. They were made to look as if Naruto did little on the mission while Sasuke took most of the credit. The Fire Daimyo brought this to the attention of Tsunade who immediately called a council meeting and had asked that he attend.

When the council meeting began, she told both the Shinobi council and the Civilian council about the falsified records and then demanded the Civilian council to explain their actions. They objected, saying that she had no way of proving that they had actually falsified the records and that was when she pulled out her trump card. She showed them the mission record for her retrieval. In it, it stated that Naruto was attacked and knock unconscious by two Akatsuki members. They would have taken him away had it not been for the intervention of Jiraiya and Sasuke. After chasing the two away, the three of them continued looking for Tsunade. As they did that, Jiraiya had taught Sasuke the Rasengan while doing nothing to help Naruto. The record continued on like that, praising Sasuke while barely mentioning Naruto,

When she had finally finished reading, Tsunade told them that she remembered that mission differently. She remembered Sasuke being sent back to the village after being injured and that it was Naruto trying to learn the Rasengan. She also told them that no shinobi was stupid enough to tamper with a mission record that had to deal with a potential Hokage. She then ordered Inoichi to read each and every Civilian councilmen's mind. He did so and the end result was discovering that not only had they falsified the records, they had also lowered the standards for the Academy behind the Sandaime Hokage's back as well as bribing the teachers to torment and ignore Naruto as well as tamper with his grades (the only teacher who refused to take a bribe was Iruka Umino). They had also force Tsunade to banish Naruto because if she didn't, they would release some unpleasant photos of her when she was out wandering the countries to the village (She couldn't tell anyone about it or they would release the photos anyway).

As soon as Inoichi reported this, Tsunade stripped the councilmen of their positions and status with the full backing of the Fire Daimyo, new council members would be picked out later. Later the Fire Daimyo officially declared that the ruling for Naruto's banishment was void because of the Civilian council's blatant hatred for the young shinobi and their strong-arming of the Hokage.

After he had left the village, Tsunade had brought the Konoha Eleven to the hospital. She took them to a big file room. She took a file off the shelves and put it on the table in front of them. She told them that they wouldn't leave the room until they had read every single file, if it took more than a day, food would be delivered to them. She then walked out the door, closed it and locked it. Not understanding why she had done this, they decided to start reading the file in front of them.

However, they discovered that the file was about an incident where Naruto had been attacked while on his way to the Academy. He was left with two broken arms and a broken leg. They remembered that day, Naruto had arrived late that day and the teacher had yelled at him for that. As punishment, he made Naruto do a hundred push-ups and if he stopped for any reason he had to start over again. Sakura, Ino, Kiba and Sasuke with the rest of the class had laughed at him as he tried to do the push-ups but kept collapsing, the others just ignored him (Hinata being shy and not doing anything to stop the punishments does count as ignoring him, so get over it).

After reading that file, they were sick to their stomach but they just grabbed another file, thinking that the first one was the only one on Naruto.

It didn't take them long to find out that all the files were of Naruto and this was a big room. It took them a week to read all of the files. When they had been let out of the room, the first thing they did was rush to the bathrooms and throw up. After that was done, they went straight to Tsunade and demanded why she had made them read all of those files.

Her answer was this. "So that you could glimpse at the hell that boy has been through."

She then told what had really happened to the Kyuubi the day he attacked Konoha. After that explanation, the Konoha Eleven made it a priority to find Naruto every time they went on a mission.

"What happened?" Shikamaru asked bring her attention back to the group in front of her. "Did he join with Team Kurenai?"

"Come on Shikamaru, it's Naruto we're talking about here. Of course he joined up them." Ino told her teammate.

"YOSH! Ino is most correct. Naruto would've rejoined with his comrades and tried to youthfully rescue their friend!" Guy cried out.

"I agree with Guy-sensei, Naruto definitely would've tried to join with Team Kurenai, especially if Lady Hinata was there." Neji stated.

While everyone began to agree with Neji said, Tsunade stayed silent. "…He didn't join them, did he?" Shikamaru finally asked, silencing everyone else in the room.

She sighed. "The Bending countries have been in a war for the past century. It was instigated by one of the countries, called the Fire Nation, when they completely annihilated another of the countries, the Air Nomads." Everyone was shocked at this. "Apparently, their motive for this was to prevent the rebirth of someone called the Avatar."

"I'm guessing that the Avatar survived?"

"Yes, the report states that the Avatar fled the Air Temple where he lived at when he learned he was to be taken away. He was caught in a storm in the middle of the ocean and encased himself in an iceberg. He stayed that way for a hundred years."

"I know this is relative to the mission that they were on but what's have to do with Naruto?" Asuma asked.

"When they went to go to the trade, they met up with the other party. The other party consisted of the Fire Nation princess, her two friends…and her bodyguard: Naruto Uzumaki."

The expression on everyone's face was obvious: denial, complete and utter denial. "That can't be right! Naruto is not so unyouthful that he would join with that kind of country!" Lee argued.

"Lee's right! We're talking about Naruto. He would never join the Fire Nation, not of his own free will." Tenten said.

Tsunade shook her head. "Not only did he join the Fire Nation of his own free will, he's been fighting in their war for three years now."

"I take it that Team Kurenai tried to get him to come back?" Shikamaru didn't like where this was going but the questions had to be said.

"They did and he refused. They tried to take him by force."

"What happened?" Chōji asked despite not wanting to hear the answer.

'He defeated them easily. He broke through a B-ranked Genjutsu and took out Kurenai with a single punch. He did the same with Kiba and Akamaru as well as Shino."

"What about Lady Hinata?" Neji demanded.

"She also tried to attack him but from what the report says, he didn't fight back until he distracted her. He grabbed her by the neck and threatened to kill her if they continued to fight. To make his point clear, he stabbed her in the stomach and formed a Rasengan, threatening to use it on her face. Needlessly to say, afterwards the trade negotiations fell through and Team Kurenai with their charges had to leave the city and the surrounding areas."

"So you called us in to have us help out Kurenai's team." Asuma said, figuring out why she called them in.

"Yes, I'm upgrading this mission to S-rank and I'm sending you all to help Team Kurenai. Your primary mission is to help with the protection of the Avatar. Your secondary mission is to try and locate Naruto Uzumaki."

"Is anything else we should know about Naruto?"

"According to Hinata, his chakra control was so strong and subtle; she could not see his chakra unless he had used a jutsu."

"That should be impossible." Neji objected.

"Lady Hokage," Shikamaru spoke. "The Rasengan that Naruto created, did he create a clone to help make it?"

"No, he formed the Rasengan with only one hand."

"Then I think it's safe to say that his chakra control has at least improved.

While everyone thought that over, Ino asked a question. "Shouldn't Lord Jiraiya be able to track Naruto via the Toads?"

Tsunade shook her head. "He tried as soon as the banishment was declared void and repelled. He asked the Toads to Reverse-Summon Naruto to Mt. Myōboku. When they attempted to do it, it was revealed that, somehow, Naruto had put a Block on his name in the Summoning Scroll."

"A Block, What's that?" Tenten asked.

"A Block is something someone with a Summon Contract uses when he doesn't want to be found but would still be able to contact them. To put simply, the only time the Toads will be able to find and/or Reverse-summon Naruto is if he summons them first and if he stays in the same area."

"And he hasn't summoned them in over three years and possibly will be constantly on the move." Shikamaru noted.

"That's all the information I have for you. While you are out looking for Naruto, be sure to also look for intelligence on him. Now I want you all to reconvene here in twenty minutes so that you'll be able to reach the Bending Countries."

"But Lady Tsunade, it took Team Kurenai a month at sea to get there. How are we supposed to get there without leaving the village?"

"We have already figured out a way. We have recently place a seal in the mission records room. The seal allows messages from far away, such as other countries across the sea, to come in quickly. If we add enough chakra to the seal, we'll be able to send you all through to Kurenai and her team. Dismissed!" barked Tsunade. They all left the room, except for one person.

"What is it, Guy?" She asked the spandex-wearing shinobi.

"Why wasn't Team Kakashi notified about this?" He asked in return.

"Why do you think?"

"Lady Tsunade, they should at least be told. This is their teammate we're talking about and―"

"And that is exactly why Team Kakashi wasn't notified. The primary mission is to protect the Avatar, not find Naruto. If they had the chance to abandon the Avatar and go after Naruto, you and I both know they would do so in a heartbeat."

Guy remained silent, so Tsunade continued. "It's for the best Guy, now go pack for the mission. Also, you are not to tell anyone else about this conversation." He nodded once and left the room. Tsunade leaned back in her chair and sighed. "How long were you listening, Jiraiya?" she asked out loud.

The air besides the window twisted and shimmered, revealing Jiraiya standing there. He answered "Since you said that he was the bodyguard to a princess."

"How is it that he kept up with his training? There are no shinobi in the Bending Countries!"

"My spy network is only in the Elemental Countries but I think I know who taught the gaki."

"Who is it?" Tsunade demanded.

"You know as well as I do. There's only one who could've taught him."

Tsunade's eyes went wide at the thought. "How would the Kyuubi be able to teach Naruto anything?"

"He was sealed inside your grandmother and Kushina. He was bound to pick up a few things over time."

"It was probably more than a few things."

"If Naruto was taught by the Kyuubi during three years of war…" Jiraiya left the sentence hanging but both of them shared the same thought. _"Dear Kami, he'd be a shinobi that hasn't been seen since the Shodaime Hokage and Uchiha Madara during the Clan Wars."_

(Location: Earth Kingdom town)

Zuko glared at the sword user that was walking away from them. "I hate him." He growled, his fists tightening.

"Hatred is something that should not be given lightly, nephew." Iroh told him. "That man did nothing to you, so you have no reason to hate him."

Zuko shook his head. "You misunderstood uncle; I don't hate him in particular. I hate his kind."

"His…kind?" asked a somewhat mystified Iroh

Zuko nodded. "The kind of people who think they're invincible and can do whatever they want if they have a sword in their hand. The novices who think they're masters just because they know a complicated technique." He took a breath to calm himself. "They're just amateurs, the lot of them. That guy included."

Iroh looked interested. "How is that man an amateur?"

"He had no stance to speak of and only knew how to swing back and forth. He felt the need to attack you just so he could show off."

"Zuko if I had just met you as a stranger and heard what you've just said, I would've thought you were a swordsman rather than a Firebender."

"…Thank you, uncle."

"I never did find out how you took an interest in swords."

He looked out at the town as he remembered that day. "Naruto talked me into it."

(Flashback Three years ago, Location: Ember Island)

Zuko stood on the beach, panting in exhaustion. Hearing footsteps on the sand, he turned around and Naruto coming towards him. "Hey Zuko!" greeted Naruto.

"What do you want?" he growled, irritation evident in his voice.

"What's the matter?"

"Nothing's the matter."

"Right, that's why you're standing on a deserted beach, panting in exhaustion. You've been practicing your Firebending again, haven't you?"

"What's it to you?! You're not even a Firebender, so why should you wonder whether I'm practicing my Firebending or not?!"

"Alright, no need to bite or burn my head off." He held his hands up in surrender.

Zuko took a breath. "Sorry, I'm just mad."

"What happened?"

"Azula decided to get all the kids on the island together and have a Firebending contest. Every time I tried to do what she did, I failed and got laughed at as a result."

"So they basically called you a dobe?"

"…Yeah."

"Oh don't let that get you down Zuko." Naruto put an arm around him. "While you could be a dobe in one thing, you could also be a genius in another."

Zuko grew confused. "What are you talking about?"

"Why don't you try something that isn't Firebending?"

"Like what?"

"I don't know." Naruto's face had a look of extreme concentration. "Why don't you try swords?"

"Swords?" asked Zuko.

"Yeah, try using a sword."

"And where am I going to find a teacher to show me how to use one?" Zuko asked with sarcasm lacing his voice.

"Actually, I think I saw a guy with a sword the next beach over. Come on, you could ask him to help you!" Naruto grabbed his hand and raced off, bringing Zuko along for the ride.

(End Flashback)

"After that, he dragged me over to where the swordsman was and I introduced myself to Master Piandao. He seemed curious when I asked if he could show me how to use a sword. He decided to teach me swordsmanship and I took to his teachings like a turtle-duck to water." Zuko finished his story.

"I see, so that is why you detest the swordsmen like that man." Iroh said.

Zuko simply nodded.

(Location: Azula's group)

"Okay people, the rest period's over." Naruto stated.

"Could we please take it slow this time, Naruto?" Ty Lee asked with a whine.

"Yeah, I'm not one for killing our rides." Mai stated as she looked at her mongoose dragon.

"Fine." answered Naruto both with annoyance and exasperation.

"Oh relax; it's not a fate worse than death." Azula told him as she got into her saddle.

"Look I'm just trying to make sure we stay with the Avatar. The last sighting we had was that the sky bison flying towards a giant swamp, which was four hours ago. Plus I'm going as fast as the mongoose dragons are and I'm not breaking a sweat."

"Then it won't hurt to slow down. We're at the swamp's edge so we have to move slower now."

"As you wish, lead on, Princess." He told her. They then proceeded into the swamp.

(Location: Aboard Appa)

They flew across the giant swamp. On board, everyone was doing their own thing. Aang was steering, both Katara and Sokka were reading a Waterbending scroll, Akela was sleeping against Sokka's side and Momo was looking over the edge of the saddle. Both Kurenai and Hinata were doing the same thing, only they were looking for anything that could attack them. Shino was meditating and Kiba was double-checking his equipment while Akamaru watched the clouds.

Aang stared at the swamp below, he couldn't exactly say but something was trying to talk to him and it was coming from below.

Sokka stop reading as he noticed something. Looking at Aang, he asked "Hey, are you taking us down for a reason?" Aang said nothing, just kept looking down. "Aang!" called Sokka, finally getting his attention. "Why are we going down?"

"What?" Aang asked. "I didn't even notice." He then realized that Appa was indeed going down.

"Are you noticing now?"

"Is something wrong?" Katara asked as she and Hinata joined Sokka.

"I know this is going to sound weird but…I think the swamp is calling to me." Aang told them.

"Is it telling you where we can get something to eat? Because I'm hungry." said Kiba.

"No, I…I think it wants us to land there."

"No offense to the swamp but I don't see any land there to land on." Sokka told him.

'I don't know. Bumi said to learn Earthbending I would have to wait and listen. And now I'm actually hearing the earth, do you want me ignore it?" Aang asked.

Hinata activated her Byakugan. "I'm not seeing any chakra signals down there." She noted.

"Perhaps it is best if we keep going." Kurenai suggested.

Akela woke up, took one look over the edge of the saddle and then looked at Sokka, giving him a look that could easily be interpreted as "Why are we going down? Is he nuts?!"

"Okay, if it's such a bad idea." Aang said. "Bye swamp." He yip-yipped Appa into flying higher in the sky, making them go farther. As they flew away, they heard something coming up behind them.

Kiba took a look behind and then quickly whipped his head back around. "I don't want to cause panic, but there is a tornado right behind us!"

Sokka looked to double-check. "Aang, throw in another yip. We gotta move!"

They tried to out fly the thing but it kept getting closer and closer to them. Soon enough, it was so close that it began to pull Akela in. Sokka quickly grabbed onto his wolf's hind legs but was also pulled off the saddle. His feet were grabbed both Kiba and Shino. As they tried to bring them back down, Akela turned his head and looked back at them. Sokka immediately knew that look. "Now is not the time for you to fart in my face, Akela!" He warned.

Seeing the danger his friends were in, Aang quickly jumped into the saddle and bent together a big sphere of air that encompassed Appa entirely. While both Sokka and Akela landed safely in the saddle, Appa flew into the tornado.

Aang did his best to hold the sphere together but the twisting fury of the tornado as well as the difficulty of holding that big of an air sphere together, made him lose his concentration. The air sphere collapsed and everyone went flying. The humans and one animal went one way; the rest of the animals went another.

Thankfully the humans managed to land in the drink (if water in a swamp can qualify as that). Aang managed to on his feet while the others did not. "Where are Appa and Momo?" He asked.

"And where's Akela?" Sokka asked as he looked around with worry.

"Hey, have you've seen Kiba?" Hinata asked.

"No need to worry, I'm right here." Kiba announced as he lay in the water. "Did you really have to land on me, Akamaru?" The dog barked in the affirmative. "Then please get off."

(Location: Azula's group)

"Hey, did you guys hear that?" Ty Lee asked.

"Hear what?" Mai asked with boredom lacing her voice.

"It sounded something crashed."

"Ty Lee, what could've crashed in the middle of a gigantic swamp?" Azula asked with exasperation.

"Well, let's see…" Naruto began counting on his fingers.

"It was a rhetorical question, Naruto." This time, it was with annoyance.

"I know."

"Then why are you still counting?"

"Because I like riling you up, it's a perk of being your bodyguard." He grinned at her, prompting her to throw a fireball at him, which he avoided by ducking. "But in all seriousness, right now there is only one thing I can think of that could've crashed." He grew serious as he looked at Azula. "And that's sky bison."

She nodded in agreement. "Let's keep moving." She ordered. They continued to travel deeper into the swamp.

(Location: Appa's group)

Appa was currently caught in a big tangle of vines. Both Akela and Momo were still in the saddle. Hearing Appa's cries of frustration, the flying lemur hopped out of the saddle and began to chew through the vines. After getting through a few of them, the sky bison was free but fell to the ground below. After landing with a splash that got everyone wet and after everyone shook their fur dry, Appa took off. But again, he got caught again in a tangle of vines. As Momo chewed the vines, Akela was on his stomach, covering his eyes with his paws. He then proceeded to, somehow, tell Appa off.

(Location: Aang's group)

Aang had disappeared into the trees to see if there was any sign of the other animals. While everyone else waited below in the water, Katara noticed something. "Sokka, you've got an elbow leech."

Sokka freaked out. "WHERE?! WHERE?!"

"Where do you think?"

"Why do things keep attaching to me?!" he demanded as pulled the leech off and threw it away. "Akamaru now is not the time to look for lunch." Kiba warned his dog as he became interested in the leech.

Aang flew back down on a vine. "You couldn't find them?" Katara asked.

"No." he answered as he landed. "And the tornado…it just disappeared."

Feeling a presence, they all looked towards the swamp, like something was beckoning them to go deeper.

"Let's keep moving." Kiba said before taking out a kunai and began to hack through some nearby vines.

"Maybe we should be a little nicer to the swamp." Aang suggested.

"What do you want me to do? Say please and thank you as I cut through them?"

"Kiba, maybe you should listen to Aang. Something about this place feels…alive." Katara said.

"You've got a point." Sokka told her. "But we also have to find Appa if we don't want end as something's dinner." He pulled out his machete and began helping Kiba cut a path through the vines.

They soon began to make headway into the swamp. After a while, it began to grow dark in the swamp as night had finally approached. As they walked along a giant tree root, Katara called out "Appa! Momo!"

"Akela, you out there?" yelled Sokka.

"There is no way they can hear us or see us. It's the same for us." Kiba told them.

"That's easy for you to say. You've got Akamaru." Sokka pointed out. He then sighed. "Look, let's just make camp for the night." They heard something pop and saw a small plume of smoke coming from the water.

"What was that?" Katara asked in a nervous voice.

"It's just swamp gas." Sokka pointed out before they all inadvertently smelled said gas. Needless to say, it didn't smell good. They then heard something that was the rough equivalent of banshee shrieking. After jumping together and holding each other (while Team Kurenai looked like they were ready to fight), they noticed that said shrieking was coming from a small fat bird. "I think we should build a fire." Sokka stated before heading over to some smaller roots and began hacking off parts.

"Sokka, the longer we're here, the more I think you shouldn't be doing that." Aang told him.

"Do you have any better ideas?" He asked. "If it helps you sleep tonight, just think that I asked the swamp and it said that it was fine." The answer he got was a scowl from Aang.

Soon enough, they had a fire going in the remains of a big, hollow tree trunk. "Does anyone else get the feeling that we're being watched?" Katara asked.

"Come on, we're all alone out here." Kiba told her. He then began to swat at a fly that was buzzing around his head. The fly then flashed a huge light in front of their faces. It temporarily blinded them while also waking up every animal that were in the surrounding trees.

"Except for them." stated Aang as he looked at how many eyes were watching them.

"Kiba, please stop talking." Shino told his teammate.

"Yeah, I'm done for a bit." Kiba agreed.

(Location: Appa's group)

The swamp was full of noises that kept Momo awake, while both Appa and Akela were sound asleep. Momo kept scurrying back and forth across Appa, making his own noise and trying to make the noises stop. Finally, the noises got so loud, they woke up Appa and he gave off a roar that was the equivalent of a man yelling "WOULD YOU SHUT THE HELL UP?!" out a fourth story window in the middle of the night at loud people. The noises decided to stop after that.

(Location: Azula's group)

"Finally!" said Ty Lee as she lay down on the tree root "Time to sleep!"

The girls all took to their bed rolls, happy to sleep. Azula then notice Naruto was still watching the swamp. "Naruto, nothing will attack us."

"You don't know that." He told her.

"You're right, but I do know that no creature will attack us if the fire is going and we've put a good amount of sticks on and around the fire. So just go to sleep."

"That fire will run out eventually."

"Oh just go to sleep Naruto."

He just sighed as he watched her fall asleep. "I might as well."

"**Hey kit, just be glad you can willingly be a light sleeper." **Kyuubi told him.

'_Years of experience and practice fox." _He told the Biju silently before lying down so that his face was looking at the fire and falling asleep.

"_**Yeah…I know." **_Kyuubi thought to himself.

(Location: Aang's group)

Aang, Sokka and Katara slept back-to-back-to-back while Kiba, Shino, Hinata and Kurenai slept by themselves with Akamaru sleeping next to Kiba. The fog had seemed to grow thicker as they slept and from the fog, came vines.

The vines slowly crept up to the group and began to wrap around them. When the vines had wrapped the group so that they couldn't get loose, it gave them a rude awakening by dragging them into the fog.

Sokka reacted immediately by whipping out his machete and stabbing it into the root underneath him. Katara and Hinata were dragged off together while Aang and Kurenai were dragged off together in a different direction. The same went for Kiba, Shino and Akamaru.

Sokka cut himself loose from the vines and stood up. He looked around nervously to see where the vines were coming from. They suddenly appeared in front and tried to grab him. He turned around and began to run but a trip sent him crashing down the root and into the water. He then ran off to avoid the vines that were still coming after him.

Both Katara and Hinata were struggling against the vines that had them. Managing to get a hand near her water pouch, she quickly bent the water to slice the vines off, allowing her to get free. She fended off the vines while also freeing Hinata. Once the both of them were free, they ran off into the fog.

Both Kiba and Shino had managed to grab hold of a kunai and started cutting off pieces of the vines. After freeing Akamaru, they also ran deeper into the fog.

Aang and Kurenai were tied together and were trying to break free. After managing to get his hands loose, Aang bent the air that was between him and Kurenai and the vines to form an air sphere, thus getting them loose from the vines. They took to the trees but a vine had grabbed Aang and dragged him back down to the ground. Kurenai jumped down, grabbed a kunai and cut off the vine while Aang air-blasted the rest of it off his leg. After taking a giant leap, courtesy of an air-blast right beneath them, both Aang and Kurenai landed another root that was a ways away from the campsite. They also realized that they had lost sight of the others.

"Guys?" called out Aang as he looked around.

(Location: Azula's group)

The sudden loss of warmth on Naruto's face woke him immediately. He took look at the camp fire and immediately got out of his bedroll. "Everyone, wake up!" He ordered in a loud voice.

"What is it, Naruto?" Azula asked, immediately waking up.

"The fire is out."

"So? You woke us up because of that?" Mai asked, if one paid attention, one could tell she was annoyed.

"Look at the fire, Mai." They all looked at it. It was out but only some the sticks were burned, another thing was the fact the fire pit was completely wet.

"Well, we are in a swamp. Maybe some of the water managed to hit the fire and doused it?" Ty Lee suggested.

"We're on a giant tree root that is about 10ft above the water line. Also if the water managed to douse the fire, there would be a runoff." He pointed out.

Before anyone could say anything else, the water below them suddenly surge up. Splitting into four different streams, it hit them and forced them off the root while washing away the mongoose dragons. Each of them were pushed deeper into the swamp but in four different directions.

After a while, the four water streams stopped and then fell back into the water below. "Now, all I have to do is make sure they find where I live and I'll be satisfied." Someone who had watched the whole thing said as he stepped out of the shadow of a nearby tree.

(Location: Katara and Hinata)

"Aang! Sokka!" Katara called out as she and Hinata made their way through the swamp.

"Kiba! Shino! Kurenai-sensei!" Hinata looked around with her Byakugan active but for some reason it was being blocked. "It's no use using it." She muttered to her as she deactivated it.

"Don't worry Hinata, we'll find them." Katara told her before looking out at the swamp. She then saw a person but their back. "Hello? Hello? Can you help us?" She asked as she and Hinata made their way over.

As they got closer, Katara thought the person looked familiar. "Mom?" She asked before finally recognizing who the person was. "Mom!" She cried before running over to her, with Hinata behind her. "I can't believe…" But as she grabbed her mother's shoulder and tried to look at her, it turned out that her 'mother' was just a tree stump. Katara knelt down and began to cry; Hinata watched all of this and was reminded of her own mother. "Kaa-san." She whispered as tears fell from her face as well.

The both of them then felt a hand on their shoulder. Turning around they saw Hinata's mother standing behind them. 'Kaa-san, is that you?" Hinata asked.

The woman only smiled in response before a small cloud of fog passed in front of her. When it passed, Hinata's mother had disappeared but they could hear her voice saying **"Do not worry, it'll be alright." **

(Location: Kiba, Akamaru and Shino)

"Guys! Where are you?" Kiba shouted as he, Akamaru and Shino walked through the swamp. "Are your kikaichū getting anything, Shino?"

"No, they can't seem to get past the fog barrier." Shino answered.

Just then, Akamaru went shock still and began to whine. 'What is it, Akamaru?" Kiba asked as he looked in the same direction. What he saw made him go still. "That's not possible." He said before rushing over to a particular tree.

"What is it Kiba?" Shino asked as he followed but when looked in the same direction, he too was shocked.

Standing beneath a gigantic tree was a man but Kiba knew this man quite well, he just hadn't seen him in long time. "Dad?" asked Kiba with hope in his voice.

Shino was surprised at what he saw but it something else that his attention. Sitting underneath a different tree, across from Kiba's dad, was a little girl that looked to be about five years. "Shina?" asked Shino.

Both Kiba's dad and the little girl opened their mouths to say something but both Kiba and Shino took that moment to blink. When they opened their eyes again, what they thought were people turned out to be just oddly shaped roots.

"You still think about him?" Shino asked after a quiet moment.

"Every day, you?" replied Kiba.

"The same…It's been so long since they left us." The three of them then heard their voices saying **"We never left you."**

(Location: Sokka)

"AANG!" yelled out Sokka as he hacked his way through some vines (the non-moving kind, mind you) "KATARA!" Muttering curses against the swamp and the vines (maybe he has something against them?) he continued to forge his own path but managed to trip over one of the vines, making him land in the water.

After lifting his face out of the water, he noticed a shaft of sunlight and in the middle of that shaft was a vision of Yue. He walked up to her. "I'd like to say that I'm hallucinating or something like that. But I'm not, am I?" He asked her quietly.

"**You didn't protect me." **The vision told him angrily.

He replied "Only because you didn't let me protect you."

The anger on her face disappeared. She smiled and floated down, so that it looked like she standing in the water as well. **"I know." **She told as she cupped her hand to his cheek.

He tried to touch her hand with his own, but it past right through it. He closed his eyes, trying to fight back the tears. When he opened them again, Yue was gone. Just as Sokka was about to continue on, he saw someone out of the corner of his eye. "Who's there?" He demanded as he whipped around, pulling out his boomerang.

In front of him stood a man, his hair was shaggy and white while his eyes were red. He had three red markings, two underneath his eyes and one on his chin. He wore blue metal armor with a white fur collar over a black suit of some sort. What drew Sokka's attention was the metal plate that protected his forehead and cheeks, on it was the same leaf symbol that Team Kurenai had on their headbands.

"**You've got a good heart, young man." **The man told him.

Sokka narrowed his eyes at the man. "You're…not alive, are you?"

The man grinned. **"Well, I was alive at one point. Around the same time as Arnook's father was alive as well."**

"What do you want?"

The man grew serious. **"What I want is for you to keep an eye out for him."**

Sokka had a look of confusion. "Him?" he asked.

"**You know who I'm talking about." **It was the last thing the man said before he disappeared back into the fog.

"_What's was he talking about?" _Sokka wondered before he drew his machete and moved on. _"Now's not the time to worry about it."_

(Location: Aang and Kurenai)

"Katara!" yelled out Aang as he and Kurenai made their way through the swamp. "Appa!"

Kurenai kept looking around for anybody else. "Aang, look over there." She pointed to a large rock that jutted out of the water. On top of the rock were two girls with a boar that had wings. One girl wore a fancy dress while the other wore a formal kimono with a symbol on it.

"Hello?" called out Aang. "Who are you two?" The two girls just giggled and took off in different directions while the flying boar just flew off.

"Hey! Come back!" Aang told them as he leapt after the one in the dress while Kurenai chased after the one in the kimono. While Aang was lead on a weird and direction-confusing chase, Kurenai was able to catch up to her target much faster.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?" Kurenai demanded as she faced the girl in the kimono. The girl just smiled and slowly walked closer to Kurenai. As she readied herself for a fight, Kurenai realized something. The symbol on the kimono was one she knew: it was the symbol of the Sarutobi clan.

"Who are you?" Kurenai asked again, this time with curiosity.

The girl now stood in front of Kurenai. She simply brought her hand up and touched Kurenai's stomach. Though she could see the hand touching her, she couldn't feel it. The girl spoke and what she said floored Kurenai: **"…Kaa-san."**

Kurenai took a couple of steps in shock. _"Kaa-san? What does she mean by…?" _Then it all came back to her.

(Flashback)

"My congratulations to you, Kurenai," said Naruto.

"Congratulations?" Kurenai looked suspicious.

"When you trapped me in that Genjutsu, I looked for your chakra so I would know where to attack. I was quite surprised when I found you. Now that I think about it, you looked like you're almost glowing. I just surprised that Inu-teme here hasn't figured it out yet."

(End Flashback)

"_If it's true, then who…?" _Then she remembered the symbol on the kimono. _"Dear Kami, I have to tell him." _When she looked back at the girl, she was gone and Aang stood in front of her. "Are you okay, Kurenai?" He asked.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine." She answered. "Did you see where they went?"

"There she is!" Aang pointed to the girl in fancy dress who just giggled and ran away. Aang went after her and Kurenai followed.

(Location: Appa's group)

Appa, Momo and Akela watched the humans in the boats that were in front of them. Appa considered getting closer until the tall, thin one in the middle boat said that they were going to be eaten. At that point, Appa essentially did a U-turn and started running away. While Momo hung on for dear life, Akela was barking for all his worth. If anyone besides the Inuzuka clan (and Kakashi) could speak and translate canine, they would basically tell you that the wolf was a back seat driver.

(Location: Ty Lee)

Ty Lee jumped through the trees at a fast pace. She had lost track of where she was and was trying to get back to the campsite. "Where is everyone?" She wondered out loud. She then landed in the water below.

"Mai! Azula! Naruto! Are you guys out there?" She yelled. When she didn't hear an answer, she kept moving forward through the swamp.

She then saw someone standing with their back to her. Ty Lee didn't know how, but she could tell that the person was female. She wore a green kimono that was armored and wore bracers on her arms and a sword on her waist. Her hair was brown and braided into a ponytail.

"Uh…excuse me? Do you know where my friends are?" Ty Lee asked as she approached the woman.

The woman turned around to face Ty Lee. She wore white make-up that covered her face entirely with both red and black accents around her eyes and also wore a metal headdress. She looked at Ty Lee for a moment and then she pointed off to the left.

"Thanks!" Ty Lee chirped and ran off in the pointed direction. But then she stopped as the details of the woman came back to her. Quickly turning back around, she saw that the woman had disappeared. "Was that…me?" She asked.

"**It could be, young one." **A voice from behind her said. Whipping around and being ready to strike, Ty Lee saw an old man facing her. **"If you want it to be." **He told her.

He wore a red gown-like robe that tied off with a white sash. He wore a white coat as well as a white scarf over the robe and a funky looking hat. It was red except for small white part in the front; on the white part was the symbol for fire.

"Who are you?" She asked cautiously.

"**Someone who tried to take care of Naruto when he was younger. Despite my best efforts, I had failed." **He said as his face grew sad. **"It's good to know that there are people who still consider him to be a friend. He will need that."**

Ty Lee was about to ask more but then she blinked and the man was gone. Deciding to wonder about him later, she once again ran off in the direction that was pointed out to her.

(Location: Mai)

Mai walked silently through the swamp, trying to make her way back to the camp. Though she would never tell this to anyone, being alone in the swamp unnerved her.

"Does anyone else live here?" She asked out in a bored but slightly scared voice. _"Where are there? I wasn't sent that far away…was I?" _she thought.

Then, in the distance, she saw two people standing side-by-side. As she approached them, she saw that the man on the right was an old man while the one on the left was young. Another thing that she noticed about the old man was the fact he wore the headpiece of the Fire Lord.

"Excuse me." She called out, the young man turned to face her. He wore a military uniform that she had never seen before. He wore a dark red coat over what seem to be a white uniform that consisted of pants and shirt. The reason she could tell that it was military was because it was crisp and clean, like it was ready for a parade.

"Have you seen my friends around?" She asked, her face an emotionless mask.

The young man nodded and pointed behind him, in the direction the old man was facing.

"Thank you." Mai took a closer look at the young man, his face looked a little familiar but she couldn't place it. "So who are you two?" she asked.

The old man turned to face her and Mai took a step back and fell in shock. Standing in front of her, as an old man, was Zuko. She could tell, not just by his scar (which was almost unrecognizable due it being faded and wrinkled), but by the fact she knew it was his face. Then she realized why the young man looked so familiar, despite looking a little different, she could see Zuko in the young man. That meant the two of them were related somehow.

As Mai got up out of the water, she saw that the old Zuko and the young man were gone. "What was that?" She asked out loud, not expecting an answer.

"**A possibility." **A voice told her. Spinning around and drawing out a knife, she saw someone. Standing on a tree limb above her was a masked person. He wore a short kimono on the outside and shirt-like piece of clothing on the inside as well as split skirt. His hair was long and black but you couldn't see his eyes because his mask hid them so well.

"Who are you?" Mai asked.

The person reached for the mask and pulled it off, revealing a feminine looking face. **"Someone who told him that only when you are protecting someone precious to you is when your true strength is shown."**

"Him?" asked Mai.

The person smiled. **"The one who calls you Doom and Gloom."**

Mai answered "Naruto." with a little annoyance and looked away.

"**You know he calls you that to shows he cares about you. He considers you to be one of his precious people."**

Mai turned back to look at the person but he had disappeared. She shrugged and moved on.

(Location: Azula)

Azula moved through the swamp like she wanted to find her friends and get out of here. "Where are they?" She asked to herself as she walked forward. As she passed by a giant tree, she saw a child in the middle of a clearing. The child was crying where he stood.

"Are you okay?" she asked the child. He turned around and Azula look at him in surprise. Standing in front of her, complete with whiskers and blonde hair, was Naruto as a child.

"**No! Stay away. I didn't do anything wrong!" **He cried as he backed away from her.

"Hey, I'm not going to hurt you!" Azula protested.

"**That's what they all say!" **he felled to the ground and began to cry. **"What did I do? Am I really a demon? Why do they keep hurting me?"**

She couldn't take it anymore. She walked up to the child, knelt down and gave him a hug. She didn't know how, but she could feel him. **"Let me go!" **he protested as he struggled against her grip.

"It's okay Naruto." She told him. "It will be alright, no one is going to hurt you."

He finally stopped his struggling. **"…Thank you." **He said before she felt him just disappear from her hug. She stood up and back away from the spot where he was. "Please great Agni, please tell me that wasn't what I think it was."

"**It was." **She spun around to where the voice was coming from. Standing in front of her was another surprise. ""N-Naruto?" she asked. The man looked like Naruto, only older and without the whiskers.

The Naruto lookalike shook his head. **"No, I'm not him but I am responsible for the hell he's been through." **

"What do you mean 'responsible'?"

"**Your friends are that way." **She turned to where he was pointing and then turned back but he had disappeared.

"_I should go find everyone else." _She ran off in the direction offered. _"But I will find out who that man is and his connection to Naruto."_

(Location: Naruto)

"Damn it all to Kami and back!" Naruto swore as he leapt through the trees. "I knew that it wasn't going to be that easy for us!"

"**Don't sell yourself short, kit. You were awake the second the fire went out** **and became immediately alert."** Kyuubi told him.

"And yet, we were still separated! It's my duty to protect them and now, I don't even know where they are!"

"**Control yourself, Naruto Uzumaki!" **The fox barked out like a commander on the field of battle. **"What was one of the first things I drilled into your head?"**

Naruto landed on a root of a tree that was almost submerged in the water. "Your emotions do not control you, you control them." He recited.

"**You're letting your emotions take control over your actions. Now calm down, take a breath and then start looking for them again."**

Naruto did so and began his search again. Five minutes later, he spotted someone standing on a root and facing a tree while also standing in its shadow. "Excuse me." He called out as he landed on the root. "Have you seen my friends? They're three of them and they're all girls. One doesn't show emotions, another has a bubbly personality and the third one sometimes acts like she owns the world."

"**Sometimes?!" **demanded the fox.

"_Shut up furball!"_

"**Your friends are that way." **The man pointed off to the right.

"Thanks." He was about to head off but was stopped when the man spoke again. **"Do you know his name?"**

Naruto turned back to look at the man but once again, could only see his back. But this time he could actually see that the man wore a white cloak that had nine magatama in rows of three and what looked to be a sterilized ripple pattern in the shape of an eye. "What are you talking about?" he asked.

"_**Is that who I think it is? But he's dead!" **_Kyuubi silently thought.

"**I am here to give you some advice, Naruto Uzumaki. No matter how hard you run or fight against it, your past will come back to you. The question is: what will you do when it catches up."**

"Who…are you?" Naruto asked carefully.

Although he couldn't see it, he knew that the man was smiling. **"I was like you once. I faced impossible odds and it looked like there was no hope. I drew a line in the ground and swore never to step back across it until the fight was done. I had held my ground when others had turn tail and ran and I was victorious. After all…" **He slowly began to turn his head. **"Your stubborn furry friend knows me quite well." **Naruto didn't see much of the man's face but what he did see was the glowing, purple eye that held a ripple pattern.

He took a step back. _"I don't know why…but it feels like I should respect this guy but also be afraid of him as well." _By the time his thoughts were back in order, Naruto realized that the person had disappeared. "Where'd he…I don't have time. I need to locate the others." He said as he took off in the offered direction. "Hey Kyuubi, what was that guy talking about when he asked if I knew your name?" he asked the fox.

"**It's something I'll tell you at a much, much later date." **Kyuubi answered.

(Location: Aang and Kurenai)

They went after the giggling girl but could never stay with her. She was always one tree away. As they looked through the trees and bushes, they finally saw her just standing on a root.

"Who are you?" Aang asked before rushing at the girl. But as he got close, it turned out to be Katara. He crashed into her, which sent them straight into Sokka. They crashed onto a U-shaped root; standing just below the root was Kiba, Akamaru and Shino.

"Guys, you're here! Have you seen Hinata or Kurenai-sensei?" Kiba asked.

"We're right here, Kiba." Kurenai answered as she and Hinata landed on the root.

"Thank Kami! We've been looking all over for you!"

"So have we." Hinata told him.

"We're chasing two girls." Aang replied.

"Girls?" asked Katara.

"Yeah, Kurenai and I saw two girls. We went after them but lost one of them. We kept after the other girl who kept giggling or laughing."

"So you saw someone as well?" Shino asked.

"Yeah, did you see anyone?"

Shino and Kiba looked at each other. "I saw Shina." Shino answered.

"I saw my dad." Kiba told them

While Kurenai and Hinata looked sad, Aang and the others looked confused. "Okay, you saw your dad." Sokka said, pointing at Kiba. Then he pointed to Shino. "But who is Shina?"

He remained quiet for a few minutes. "Shina was…my twin sister. She had contracted a rare disease when she was five. She died less than a week later."

Everyone else was quiet. "…I'm sorry." Katara finally answered.

"It is alright, I take it that you two saw someone as well?" He asked her and Hinata.

"We saw our mothers." Hinata told them. They all then turned to Sokka.

"Why are you looking at me for?" He demanded.

"Well, right about now you would be saying that there was a perfectly logical reason for all this." Aang pointed out.

"Well, I liked to say this was all because we were scared and hungry but I don't think that's the case here."

"So you did see someone?" Katara asked.

"I saw Yue… and someone else." He looked at Kurenai. "He wore some sort of face guard with your village's symbol on it."

"Was there anything else about him that stood out?"

"He wore a suit of armor made from blue metal plates. He wore a white fur collar, his hair was white and his eyes were red. He said that he was alive around the time as Arnook's father, so odds are he's dead."

Kurenai looked shocked. "Sokka…you just described the Nidaime Hokage."

Having been told about Konoha's leadership, he looked confused. "Why would a dead leader from your village want to talk to me?"

"Well the Nidaime Hokage was a master of Water style ninjutsu, it was said that he was able to produce water from either himself or the air."

"That's informative and all, but it doesn't help me." He thought through the facts. "Wait…Are you telling me that he contacted me was because I'm from the Water Tribe and he was essentially a Waterbender?"

"It's the best one I've got."

"Did he tell you anything?" Hinata asked.

"He told me to keep an eye out on someone."

"Who? Was it me?" asked Aang.

"Aang, the entire planet does not revolve around you." Sokka told his friend in a blunt manner. "I think he meant Naruto."

"If you say so." conceded Aang, slightly offended at what he said. "But all our visions led us here right here."

"Okay, so where is here? The middle of the swamp?" asked Katara.

"Yeah, the center." Aang said as he turned around and noticed a tree where the definition of "Huge" would be on the small side. "It's the heart of the swamp; it's been calling us here. I knew it."

"Yeah, a tree was calling us." Kiba said. "Next, you'll be telling us that we were being hunted by some sort of monster made of vines."

At that moment, there was a big splash of water and a big, green monster made of vines appeared behind them. In the moment of shock and surprise, Sokka looked over at Kiba and said "You just had to say it."

(Location: Ty Lee)

She ran through the water just before crashing into someone familiar. "Mai!" She cried in joy as she hugged her.

"Nice to see you too Ty Lee, now please get off." Mai told her they both were in the water.

"Sorry." She apologized, as the both of them stood up they heard a voice above them. "If you two are done…" Azula called out from atop a root.

"Thank Agni I found you, Azula." Ty Lee said as she climbed up the roots with Mai behind her. "I guess that old man did point me in the right direction."

"Wait, you saw someone too?"

"Yeah, actually I saw two people."

"Same here but I saw three people." Mai told them.

"Who did you see?" Ty Lee asked.

"I saw an old man wearing the Fire Lord's headpiece with a young man that was probably his grandson."

"But how did you know that it was his grandson?"

Mai took a breath. "The old man…was Zuko and the reason I say that it was his grandson was because I could see Zuko in him."

"That's only two, who was the third?" Azula asked.

"The third person was a stranger to me but it sounded like he knew Naruto."

"Hey, the old man that I met said he knew Naruto as well." Ty Lee put in.

"Well what happened with you?" Mai asked.

"I first met this woman in a green kimono with armor and face paint." She grew quiet at this point.

"What is it, Ty Lee?" Azula asked.

"The woman…looked like me. It was like I was looking into a mirror but with a ten-year difference. Then she disappeared and the old man showed up."

"So what did you see, Azula?" Mai asked, looking at her.

Azula looked away with a sad face. "I saw Naruto but as a child."

"Oh, what was the cutie like?" Ty Lee was very curious; Naruto didn't really talk about his life before they found him on Ember Island.

"He was terrified of me. He thought that I was going to hurt him. He kept asking what did he do wrong and if he was really a demon."

"Dear Agni, what did he go through?"

"I don't know but after he disappeared, another person showed himself. He looked like Naruto without the whiskers and was older. He said that he was responsible for what happened to Naruto. But before I could anything else out of him, he told me where you guys were and then disappeared"

"What are you going to do?"

"What _we_ are going to do is not tell Naruto about what I saw, no arguments." She told them, putting emphasis on the word "We".

They then heard a _Thump! _behind them. "There you three are!" exclaimed Naruto said as he walked towards them. "I guess that guy was right."

"What guy?" Mai asked.

"That's not important, right now we need to get out of this swamp and regroup."

"No! We are not losing the Avatar!" Azula protested.

"We've already lost the Avatar as well as the mongoose dragons. We don't have any idea of where we actually are or where the Avatar is. We need to leave the swamp."

"When I was heading this way, I think I passed near an edge of the swamp." Ty Lee offered.

"Take the lead, Ty Lee." Naruto ordered. They began to leave but then Naruto noticed that Azula hadn't moved. "Azula, it's for the best."

"We need to capture the Avatar, nothing else matters!" She argued.

Naruto's face turned cold. "So you are willing to risk your friend's lives to go looking in a swamp for someone who is possibly on the other side or not even in it at all? You're willing to do that and potentially sacrificing the means to your answer?"

Azula tried to come up with a defense but Naruto's rhetorical questions had left her without one. "Which way did you come in from, Ty Lee?" She asked with a sigh.

"This way!" she answered cheerfully.

(Location: Aang's group)

They split off just as the monster swung its arms at them. Then it reached for Sokka as he ran through the water. It grabbed him and began to drag him back. Kurenai grabbed hold of Sokka's arms and tried to pull him out of the vines. The vines proved to be too strong as Kurenai was dragged into the vines as well.

Aang saw what was happening and quickly bent the air into a slicing wave and sent it at the monster. It cut off the end of the monster's arm (there were no hands on this thing) letting Kurenai and Sokka to fall back into the water. The monster retaliated by flinging his other arm at Aang and whacking him away.

Sokka and Kurenai tried to cut themselves loose via a machete and a kunai respectively. However, they then noticed that the vines were floating out of the water and reattaching to the damaged arm. The monster swung his arm again at Sokka and Kurenai but this time, Shino had knocked Kurenai out of the way, so the monster grabbed Shino and Sokka.

"Shino, is there any chance of you using your bugs?!" Sokka demanded.

"The vines are holding me too tightly, my kikaichū cannot get out." Shino answered.

The monster began to glide through the water away from the rest of the group. It was quickly stopped when Hinata landed in front of it.

"**Hakke Kūshō **(Eight Trigram Vacuum Palm!)**!****"** She shouted as she put her palm out in her front of her and gave a thrust. The monster was pushed back and was momentarily distracted; allowing Kiba and Akamaru get in close.

"**Gatsūga **(Fang over Fang)**!" **He yelled as he and Akamaru drilled through the arm that held Sokka and Shino. As soon as they fell to the ground and had gotten clear, Katara bent the water into ring-like shapes and sent them at the monster.

As she a continuous barrage at the monster, slicing off chunks while it tried to reattach the vines, Sokka noticed something about the monster. "There someone in there!" he announced to the group. "He's bending the vines!"

Katara threw one last water ring at the monster, slicing off the top half of the wooden mask that passed for a face as well as the top part of the monster itself. For a brief moment, it looked a small tower that was made out of vines. But that moment was over when vines from the water tried to restrain Katara. That idea was stopped by Aang as he landed in front of the monster and blasted it with air. As the vines disassembled, they could briefly see the person who was manipulating the vines before he was covered again by said vines.

"Why did you call me here if you just wanted to kill us?" Aang demanded.

"Wait!" The person cried before the vines fell down, revealing a middle-age man with grey hair and beard. He wore a green loincloth with leaves in the front. "I didn't call you here."

The group all gave each other a look and then faced the man again. "We were flying over and I heard something calling to me, telling me to land." Aang told the man.

"He's the Avatar, stuff like that happens to us a lot." Sokka explained. In the back, Kiba muttered "Tell me about it."

"The Avatar." The man repeated. "Come with me." He gestured behind him and walked toward the center of the swamp (AKA the very, very, very, VERY,huge tree). The group just lowered their weapons and followed him.

As they climbed the tree, Katara asked "So, who are you then?"

"I protect the swamp from folks who want to hurt it." He explained. "Like these two with their knives." He gestured to Sokka and Kiba.

Kiba looked sheepish while Sokka asked "So there is nothing mystical about this swamp then, huh?"

"Don't worry, the swamp is a mystical place, it's sacred." He told them before sitting down. "I reached enlightenment right here under the banyan-grove tree. I heard it calling me, just like you did."

"Yeah it sounds real chatty." Kiba said.

"Knock it off Kiba." Kurenai told her student.

"Sorry Sensei." He replied.

The man continued. "See, this whole swamp is actually one tree spread out over miles. Breaches spread, then sink and take root and then spread some more, one big living organism, just like the entire world."

As they tried to take in what he said, Aang looked at him. "I get how the tree is one big thing but…the whole world?" He asked.

"Sure, you think you're any different from me or your friends or this tree? If you listen hard enough, you can hear every living thing breathing together, you can feel everything growing. We're all living together, even if most folks don't act like it. We all have the same roots and we are all branches of the same tree."

"But what did our visions mean?" Katara asked.

"In the swamp, we see visions of people we've lost, people we've loved. Folks we think are gone but the swamp tells us they're not. We're still connected to them, time is an illusion and so is death."

"So that's what they meant when they said that they never left us." Kiba told Shino, who only nodded in agreement.

"But what about my vision? It was two people I had never met." Aang asked.

'You're the Avatar, you tell me."

Aang concentrated. "Time is an illusion. So…they'll be people I will meet."

The man nodded. When Kurenai heard this, she brought her hand down to her belly.

"Hey what about me?" asked Sokka. "I met someone I had never met before and has also been dead for quite some time."

"That is unusual." The man acknowledged. "What do you think made him come to you?"

"Well, it sounded like he knew someone that I share a job with."

The man squinted in thought. "What do you mean?"

Sokka then reached inside his shirt and pulled out his Paragon Medallion. The man's eyes widen in surprise. "I'm sorry; I didn't know you were a Paragon."

"It's okay; I'm still new at it. How do you know about the Paragons?"

"Well legend has it that the first Paragons were the first ones to attain enlightenment under the banyan-grove tree. It was here they found their last teacher, who taught them the two abilities that only a Paragon can have."

"Well that's informative. Now we just need to find Appa, Momo and Akela."

"I think I know how to find them." Aang placed a hand on the tree and began to concentrate. "Everything is connected." He then saw Appa being caught in a net by people who wore clothes that were similar to what the man wore. He also saw Akela being caught in the net as well. "Come on! We have to hurry!" he told the others before speeding off into the swamp with Katara close behind. After a little while, he saw the boats that the men were in, he also saw Appa and Akela trapped in the net and also saw Momo's tail sticking out of a bag. He quickly sent an air-blast at the boats, breaking one of them and sending the two people in it flying into the water.

Jumping out of the bush and landing on a root in front of the boats, he cried out "Appa! Akela!" As Katara joined him, he sent another air-blast at the person (a short, chubby man) who held the bag containing Momo, sending him into the water as well and letting Momo free.

"We're under attack!" Another person (a tall, thin man) exclaimed before bending the water around him, sending a wave at Aang and Katara who pushed it back. After a few moments of fighting each other via the wave, Katara realized something. "Hey, you guys are Waterbenders!"

"You too?" asked the tall thin one. "That means we're kin."

Katara looked a little put off by that remark. As the three of them let the wave collapse, Sokka and Team Kurenai as well as the man approached Aang and Katara.

"Hey Huu, how you been?" The tall thin man asked the man.

"You know, scared some folks, swung some vines, the usual." The man now known as Huu said.

"Huu?" asked Shino as the rest of the group looked at the guy.

"I think it's best to take it in stride, Shino." Hinata told him.

(Location: Azula's group)

"I think we're almost there." Ty Lee told the rest of the group as they walked into a clearing.

"Well, that's good to know." Mai commented dryly.

"Look, there's some dry land right ahead." She pointed out. As they approached the dry land, they saw that there was a hut on it as well as a fire going with knives lying next to it on the ground

"It looks like there's someone already here." Naruto noted.

"Hello?" Azula called out. "Is anyone in there?"

Suddenly from behind them, the water surged forward and hit them in the backs, knocking them to the ground and putting them in a daze. Before they could react, someone had tied their arms behind their backs and their legs together with rope.

"Well there we are." A voice said. They looked up and saw a man in ragged, Northern Water Tribe clothing standing above them. "I was beginning to wonder if you ever show up. But then again, when I separated the four of you I knew it might take a while."

"You were the one who separated us?" Ty Lee asked.

"I did just say that, didn't I?"

"What are you going to do with us?" Mai asked in a seemingly bored tone of voice.

"Why my dear, the four of you are going to be my dinner. I always do enjoy a feast." The man said with a mad giggle.

"You're a cannibal." Naruto stated with cold outrage shining in his eyes.

"Aren't we all? I just happened to like a different kind of meat." He gave off a mad laugh.

Before he could do anything else, Azula had free herself from her bonds and jumped up. "Did you really think that rope would be able to hold me?" She taunted arrogantly.

The man didn't say anything, only to thrust out a hand and bent the water into a whip-like shape. He attacked Azula with the whip, only for her to dodge him. But he got her the second time, the whip wrapped around her leg and pulled, making her fall to the ground. He then noticed that the others had gotten free as well, so he bent the water again and froze their arms and legs.

"Oh I do enjoy the feisty ones." The man said as he let the water whip dissipate and fall the ground as he walked over to Azula. "You know what? I'm going to have some 'fun' with you." Before she could lunch a fireball at him, he bent down and jabbed several points in her arms.

"Y-you're a Chi-blocker too?!" Ty Lee cried out in fear.

"Why yes, I am. It helps take care of Benders who refuse to hold still." He then knelt down in front of Azula who now had a growing look of horror on her face. "Now my dear, where were we?"

"You keep away!" She yelled before kicking him in the chest with both feet, pushing him back. Regaining the use of her arms, she got up and tried to get away but he grabbed her legs and pulled her back down to the ground. She landed face first right next to the fire and the knives.

Deciding enough was enough; the man reached down and flipped her over onto her back. "Now stay put, you'll like it and soon you'll be begging for more." He told her as his hands reached for her pants.

It was then Azula acted. In her right hand was a knife she had managed to grab. Moving in speeds that only desperation could give, she slashed the man's throat with the knife. Blood gushed out of the throat as the man choked to death on his own blood, the last look he had on his face was one of shock and surprise.

Azula quickly freed Ty Lee, Mai and Naruto from the ice that was holding them. As they stood up and messaged their frozen limbs, she stared numbly at the corpse that lay on the ground. "We better keep moving." Naruto told them. "The edge of the swamp is just over there." He pointed off onto the distance; they could see the trees thin out and lead into solid land. They began to move away but Naruto noticed that Azula was stilling staring at the body. "Azula, are you okay?" He asked.

"Huh, what?" she asked coming back to reality. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

"I said I was fine, Naruto!"

"Very well, let's get moving."

They made their way out of the swamp, it was then Ty Lee saw something. "Hey, aren't those our mongoose dragons?" She asked, pointing to a hill in front of them. Sure enough, the mongoose dragons were sunning themselves there. On the backs of the mongoose dragons were the packs they had strapped on.

"Isn't that helpful?" Naruto commented dryly.

(Location: Aang's group)

That night, after being introduced to the Foggy Swamp tribe by two of its members, Tho (the short chubby one) and Due (the tall thin one) they were led to the village and given dinner.

"How you like that possum chicken?" Due asked the group.

"Taste just like artic hen." Sokka answered. "So why you were guys interested in eating Appa and Akela? You got plenty of those big things wandering around." He pointed to the catgater behind Tho and Due.

"You want me to eat old Slim? He's like a member of the family." He told them before tossing a fish at the catgater.

"Nice Slim." Sokka tossed the insect in his hand at the creature. It just bounced off his snout, making him growl at Sokka. While Sokka flinched a little, both Akamaru and Akela raised their heads and growled back at Slim, making him shut up.

Due laughed. "Oh he don't eat no bugs, that's people food."

"Hey Due, could you please not talk about bugs? Shino can hear you." Kiba asked, pointing over to his teammate. When Shino had discovered the fact that the tribe ate bugs, he almost had a fit of hysterics. His teammates managed to calm him down but now every time he saw someone eat an insect, he would flinch, dropped his head and muttered the words "The horror!"

"What's the matter with him?" Due asked.

"He's kind of a…Bugbender." Hinata explained, trying to find the best way to explain to them.

"Sorry about dinner then." Due told Shino who nodded in response but then saw the giant bug that Sokka ate and shuddered.

"Where'd you say you was from?" asked Tho, looking at Katara.

"The South Pole." She answered.

"Didn't know there was Waterbenders anywhere but here." He told her. "They got a nice swamp there, do they?"

"No, it's all ice and snow."

"…Hm, no wonder you left." He said after he and Due looked a little wide eyed.

"You know Sokka, I'm surprised." Katara told her brother. "You haven't even tried to say that there was nothing mysterious about the swamp."

"Well I like to say that but I can't. Something is out there in the swamp; I just don't know what it is." He answered.

They then heard the cry of a screeching bird but as they turned to the noise, they saw a vine rise up and smacked the bird away. After watching this play out, Sokka just turned to the rest of the group and said "I rest my case."

Kurenai then felt a tingling sensation in her hip pouch. Opening it up, she saw that the seal tag with the kanji for "fly" was glowing. Standing up, she walked away from the group, which her students noticed. "What's the matter Kurenai-sensei?" Kiba asked.

"I think we're about to receive a message from Lady Hokage." She slapped the seal down on the ground and backed away. Suddenly the area was filled with smoke and they heard a _POOF! _

The smoke cleared and Teams Asuma and Guy stood before Kurenai, who had a look of surprise on her face. "Why are you guys here?"

It was Asuma who answered her. "Nice to see you too, Kurenai." He replied.

"Who are they?!" Sokka demanded as he reached for his boomerang.

"It's okay, they're friends." Hinata told him.

"Aang, Katara, Sokka, this is Team Asuma." Kurenai introduced.

Asuma stepped forward. "Hey, the name's Asuma Sarutobi. These are my students, Shikamaru Nara," He pointed to the boy with the lazy expression on his face and spiky black hair in a ponytail. "Chōji Akimichi," He pointed to a (let's say big-boned) boy with brown spiky hair that went down to his waist. "And Ino Yamanaka." He pointed to a girl with long blonde hair done up in a high-ponytail.

Asuma wore a black suit similar to the one the Nidaime Hokage wore when Sokka saw him as well as a dark green jacket of sorts over the suit. He wore a sash at his waist that had the symbol for fire on it. His black hair was short and spiky. He also had a beard that connected with his sideburns but no mustache.

Shikamaru wore the same thing as Asuma minus the sash. He also wore mesh armor underneath the suit and his jacket was lighter shade of green. He wore studs in his ears and his headband was attached to the sleeve of his suit.

Chōji wore a red suit that had plated armor on it; on the chest was the kanji for "food" (although Aang, Sokka and Katara did not know that). He had swirl marks on his cheeks. He also wore studs in his ears and the cloth of his headband was red.

Ino wore a purple, sleeveless blouse and a purple apron-skirt over a shorter skirt that was black with fishnet shorts underneath that. She wore fishnet warmers on her elbows and knees. She also wore studs in ears but didn't seem to wear a headband.

"And this is Team Guy." Kurenai finished.

Guy stepped forward. "Hello to you all, it is very youthful to meet you! I am Konoha's Green Beast, Might Guy! These three youthful people are my students, Rock Lee," He pointed to bowl-style haircut boy. "Neji Hyuuga," He pointed to a boy with black hair that reached the middle of his back and eyes that looked similar to Hinata's. "And Tenten." He pointed to a girl with brown hair that was done up in buns.

Guy was something to look at. He wore a green spandex jumpsuit with orange leg warmers. His headband was worn around his waist like a belt and a jacket the same color as Asuma's, only his was unzipped. He probably had some of the biggest and bushiest eyebrows that Aang, Sokka and Katara had seen in their lives.

Rock Lee was the spitting image of his teacher. He wore the same suit and legwarmers but he wore bandages around his hands and wrists where Guy did not. He also had the same haircut and the same eyebrows. His forehead protector was worn like a belt as well and he wore a jacket the same color as Shikamaru's but unlike his teacher, he had it zipped up.

Neji was (thankfully) wearing something quite differently than Guy or Lee. He wore a white shirt that had loose sleeves and white pants. Over his pants was a navy grey apron. Unlike his teacher or teammate, he wore his headband on his forehead.

Tenten wore a white blouse with a high collar that had a red fastener. She also wore red pants that looked a little puffy. She had on black, fingerless gloves and on her back was a big scroll. Her headband was also on her forehead and the cloth was also red.

"Hello, my name's Aang." He introduced himself. He then introduced the rest of the group, including Appa, Momo and Akela.

"Asuma, I need to talk to you." Kurenai told him. "Alone."

"Okay." He replied and the followed her away from the small village.

"So, how've you guys been?" Choji asked as he walked forward and sat down with the group.

"We've been doing okay." Hinata answered.

"Lady Hinata, are you alright? We heard from Lady Tsunade about the encounter with Naruto." Neji asked.

"I'm fine Neji."

"So how are the two of you related?" Katara asked.

"Neji is my cousin."

"That's nice and all, but I have a very important question for Hinata." Ino interrupted.

"What is it, Ino?"

"Was Naruto hot?"

That one question floored everyone there but both Katara and Hinata had blushes on their faces. "Ah, so he is hot. How much of a hottie was he?" Ino pressed, her eyes gleamed with mischief.

"That was your important question?!" Chōji demanded.

"What? I wanted to know!" she protested.

"This is troublesome. Ino, you realize that Naruto is potentially an enemy, right?" Shikamaru asked.

"Forget about potentially being an enemy, Naruto is our enemy." Kiba out right stated.

"Kiba, that is most unyouthful of you!" Lee shouted.

"My youthful student is correct, that is most unyouthful!" Guy said.

"I'm stating the facts. He threaten to kill Hinata if we didn't back off and I'm pretty sure he would've killed her if we hadn't." Kiba defended himself.

"But then you would've tried to kill him yourself, right?" Tenten asked.

"You're right Tenten. We would have and I'm fairly certain that if we had, he wouldn't have hesitated to kill us."

They sat there quietly thinking over what Kiba had said, until Hinata noticed something. "Where are Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke and Sakura?"

"Don't know. Lady Tsunade only called us in for the mission." Ino replied. As she said this, Guy had looked away with an expression of unease on his face. He quickly brought his attention back to the group but both Sokka and Shikamaru had noticed what he did.

"Speaking of the mission, has there been any change to it?" Shino asked.

"Lady Hokage has upgraded the mission to an S-rank. Our primary mission is still to protect the Avatar but our secondary mission is to try and find Naruto." Neji filled Team Kurenai in.

"So how are we going to do that?" Kiba asked.

"We're still figuring it out. We didn't come up with a definitive plan until we got your input." Shikamaru explained.

Before they could any further, they heard a cry of "WHHHHHAAAAAAATTTTTTTTT?!" coming from the swamp. A few minutes later, Both Kurenai and Asuma came back to the group.

"What was all that, then?" Due asked.

"Kurenai just told me something that was… probably the most surprising thing I've ever heard." Asuma explained with a slightly dazed look.

"What was it?" asked Tho.

"I'm…um…I'm pregnant." Kurenai told them with a small blush on her face.

For about a minute, the only thing that was heard the sound of crickets. Then there was again a cry of "WWWWWHHHHHAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTT?!" from all three Teams. Both Hinata and Neji activated their Byakugan to validate what Kurenai said.

"S-she telling the truth." Hinata announced as she and Neji deactivated their Byakugan.

"No kidding!" Kiba exclaimed. Both he and Akamaru checked Kurenai's scent. Sure enough, it was the scent of a pregnant mother.

Guy immediately hopped up from where he sat. "YOSH! It seems that your Flames of Youth have melted the Ice Queen's heart!" he shouted with tears falling from his face. "To celebrate this most youthful moment, I will do 400 laps around this swamp!"

"Yosh Guy-sensei!" cried out Lee as he jumped up, tears also falling. "If we cannot do that, then we will do 800 laps as well as 1200 push-ups!"

"LEE!" Guy grabbed Lee into a tight hug, which Lee returned.

"GUY-SENSEI!"

"LEE!"

"GUY-SENSEI!"

"LEE!"

"GUY-SENSEI!"

"LEE!"

"GUY-SENSEI!"

As they hugged each other, somehow the image of a setting sun appeared behind the two.

"DO NOT LOOK DIRECTLY AT THEM!" Neji and Tenten warned everyone in perfect synchronization.

After finally managing to get the hug-fest to stop, everyone started to ask Kurenai and Asuma questions. Everyone that is, except for Sokka. "Sokka, what's the matter?" Aang asked as he noticed Sokka was still sitting down and had look of concentration on his face.

"Something caused made that tornado and force us to land, Aang and it wasn't a weird occurrence of the weather." Sokka told him. "I just want to know what it caused it."

Before Aang could say anything, they heard a voice. **"I caused it." **Looking around, the two of them noticed that time had seemed to stop. Everyone else was frozen and standing on the opposite side of the fire was a cloaked person.

"You?!" asked Aang in a stunned voice.

"**Hello to you too, little Avatar." **replied the spirit.

"Who are you and what did you do?" Sokka demanded.

"**I froze you two in a moment in time so we could talk."**

"That's nice but you didn't answer my first question. Who are you?"

"**I've been called many things over the years, but recently I prefer to be called 'Sifu'." **He looked at Sokka. **"And I know the Paragons and the Avatar rather well."**

"How?" asked Sokka with suspicion.

"**Because I was the last teacher of the first Paragons, and I have known every Paragon since."**

Both Aang and Sokka look at him with surprise**. **"Wait a minute; Huu said that the Paragon's last teacher taught them the two abilities that only they knew. What are they?" Aang asked.

Though they couldn't see it, they knew that Sifu was smirking. **"Trying to give yourself an edge against them, little Avatar?"**

While Aang tried to defend himself, Sokka asked "One of those abilities is being able to cut off the link between the Avatar State and the Avatar, isn't it?"

Sifu's only response was to nod. "So what is the second ability?" Sokka asked.

"**Well, let me put it to you like this: it's a form of Bending that only a Paragon can have."** Sifu looked at the two of them. **"Is there anything else?"**

"Yeah, why did you train the Paragons?" demanded Aang. "Can't you see that they're a threat to the world's harmony?!"

"**Don't you mean a threat to you, little Avatar?" **He asked with cold fury lacing his voice. Aang took a step in fear as he heard that voice. **"I'll tell you why I trained them, because it was necessary then and it's still necessary now."**

Before Aang could say anything else, Sokka cut in. "Sorry about that Sifu, he gets like that sometimes."

Sifu sighed. **"Trust me Sokka; it seems like every Avatar I meet gets like that when they find out about the Paragons."**

"That's another thing: just how old are you?"

Once again, Sokka and Aang couldn't see it but they knew Sifu was smiling. **"I am one of the few spirits out there that Koh is afraid of. You see, to me he is nothing but an immature little brat." **Before they could ask anything else, he continued. **"I think it's time you went back to your friends." **

He disappeared and just like that, time started to flow again. Aang and Sokka sat on the ground on the ground, watching their friends begin to move again.

(Location: Azula's group)

The four of them sat around a campfire with the mongoose dragons sleeping nearby."So what do we do now?" Ty Lee asked.

"We head for Yu Dao; it's the closest Fire Nation colony as well as the closest military base." Naruto told them.

"You okay with that, Azula?" Mai asked.

"Yes." She answered curtly.

"Are you alright, Azula?" Ty Lee asked cautiously.

"Yes, I'm alright."

"Because ever since we left the swamp, you've been kinda―"

"I'm alright Ty Lee, drop it!" she barked out. After a second of silence, she took a breath. "I'm going to bed." She told them before heading into the tent that she had.

"She is not alright." Naruto said after she went into the tent.

"So what are you going to do about it?" Mai asked.

"Right now, I'm going to do nothing." He told them. "So what happened to you two in the swamp?"

"What about you? Did you meet someone?" Ty Lee asked.

"Yeah I did. I didn't really see the guy; I only saw his back and a side of his face." He looked at the two of them. "Who did you guys see?"

"Well, I think I saw a future version of me and Mai saw an old Zuko and his grandson but we also met people who sounded like they knew you."

Naruto immediately paid attention. "Who were these people?"

Both Ty Lee and Mai describe the two people to him. _"Why would they see Jiji and Haku?" _he wondered to himself.

"Hey Naruto." said Mai.

"Yes Doom and Gloom?" he replied.

She ignored that. "Those people we saw, who are they to you?"

He sat there silently for some time. Finally he answered. "…I knew them once, a long time ago."

"Are they…are they dead?" Ty Lee asked.

Naruto simply nodded. No one spoke for a while until Mai said. "I think it's time we all went to bed."

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." Ty Lee agreed as she hopped up. Both she and Mai went into the small tent that the two of them shared, leaving Naruto who had no tent of his own. He just opted to sleep by the fire.

As he laid out his spare bed roll, he noticed someone out of the corner of his eye. Standing up and quickly turning around, he came face-to-face with a fair-skin woman with red hair and dark grey-blue eyes. While Naruto didn't know who she was, Kyuubi's jaw had dropped. _**"What the…! She's dead and we're not in that Kami-forsaken swamp! How is she here?!" **_

"Who are you?" Naruto demanded as his hand went for his jian. The woman gave a sad smile and lifted her hand to touch Naruto's face. But as she did that, the jian came about an inch out of its sheath. "I'll ask again: who are you?"

The woman opened her mouth to speak but before she could, a single leaf flew across Naruto's eyes which distracted him. When his eyes refocused, the woman was gone.

"Who was that? Any ideas, Kyuubi?" asked Naruto as he sheathed his jian.

"**I'm not sure." **Kyuubi lied, for he knew that person and he knew her very well. **"I'd have to go through my memories to double-check."**

"If you say so, in the meantime," the blonde said as he got in his sleeping bag. "Good night fox."

"**Good night gaki."**

* * *

The sound of Azula screaming woke him up immediately. Tearing out of the bed roll, he ran into her tent. There he saw her thrashing around in her sleep. "Azula, wake up!" He told her as he grabbed hold of her.

Her eyes snapped open. "Let me go!" She cried as she tried to get out of his grip.

"Calm down Azula." He told her. "It's me, Naruto."

When she heard his name, she began to calm down.

"Was it the same dream?" He asked. She shook her head.

"No…no this time it that man from the swamp." She told him.

"What happen?"

"I had slashed his throat but he didn't die. I tried to run, but no matter where I ran to, he always seemed just behind me. He had finally caught up and…and was about to…" She couldn't finish the sentence.

"He was about to do what he was going to do to you in the swamp?" He quietly asked.

She nodded. "That's when you woke me up." She looked at him with scared eyes. "Why? Why can I still see him?"

He pulled her into a hug. "You just killed someone for the first time. Nothing really prepares you for it."

"So…you had nightmares too?" she asked as she remembered that day.

"Yes." He looked at her. "Do you want me to stay?" He asked her.

She simply nodded, as he move to sit across from her, she asked "Um, Naruto? Could I…could I listen to it?"

Naruto had a small blush on his face but nodded. He stood up and removed his boots. He undid the cloth-belt and let the vest fall off his body by simply rolling his shoulders back. He took off his shirt and stood in front of Azula. She had seen it before, but what she saw still made her blush a little.

Three years of constant training and fighting had definitely changed his body. His muscles were lean, like a runner but also hard. When she saw his six-pack, she wanted to touch and feel them so bad that it wasn't even funny. He wore his Paragon Medallion but he also wore a small, beautiful, green crystal. She knew for a fact that his Fangirls would die just to see him as he was now.

He laid down on the ground again next to her and pulled her in close. "Good night, Azula."

She got closer, melding her body to his, laid her head on his chest and listened. She listened to the gentle beating of his heart. To her, it was a piece of music that soothed her and lulled her to sleep.

"Good night, Naruto." She replied, already getting sleepy. Soon afterwards, both of them were fast asleep in each other's arms.

(Location: Azula's dream)

She was going down the Royal Gallery when she felt a presence behind her. Turning around, she saw the same man she had seen in the swamp. "You!" She exclaimed.

The man simply nodded. "Why are you here?" she demanded.

"**We came here to talk to you."** He told her.

Azula looked confused. "We? What do you mean by 'we'?"

"**He means me."** A voice told her. Stepping out from behind the man was the same woman that Naruto had seen.

"What do you want?"

"**He considers you to be one of his precious people, never lose sight of that." **She told Azula. **"Please protect him as much as he protects you."**

Azula narrowed her eyes. "You're talking about Naruto." They both nodded. "What is he to you?" She asked them.

They began to fade but she heard the man say one more thing before they disappeared that stunned her. **"It's only natural that we would care about our son. What parent wouldn't?"**

(Location: Earth Kingdom town)

The man with the swords walked down an alley in the middle of the night. Hearing a door creak, he spun around and drew his swords. "Who's there?" He demanded as he waved his swords around.

Hearing footsteps coming from behind him, he turned around again but he was too slow. He was quickly disarmed and thrown at some nearby crates. Looking back, he saw someone in black garb standing above him. The person reached down and took his swords. It was then he saw the person's face or rather, the blue mask that covered his face.

The man looked at him with surprise "The Blue Spirit." He said.

The Blue Spirit began to walk closer to the man. "What do you want from me?" he asked nervously.

**"Humiliation." **The Blue Spirit answered.

"But I've never done anything to insult you!" The man protested but the Blue Spirit now stood directly in front of him. "Please don't kill me!" the man cried as tears fell from his face.

The Blue Spirit put the two swords into the sheath on his back and then grabbed the man, bringing him face to face. **"So there's nothing like a fat man dancing for his dinner, huh?" **He growled. **"Well, there's also nothing like a coward begging for his life."**

Before the man could even respond, the Blue Spirit punched him in the face, knocking him out. As the man collapsed on the ground, it awoke the surrounding houses. But by then, the Blue Spirit had disappeared.

**End**

**Author's Note: **Thank you all for the reviews you have sent me.

I'm going to say this right now: I am skipping Avatar Day but I am going to mention parts of it in the next chapter.

I will state this now for the record in case anyone decides to complain: no actual cannibalism was shown here.

I am not a Hinata hater but I'm telling the truth. She did nothing to help Naruto out while they were in the Academy. You don't like, then that's your problem.

Now I'm not going to have all the teams going with Aang at the same time, that would get a little complicated. How it's going to work will be explained in the next chapter.

There was a reason I had to come up with someone for Shino and it all has to do with this question: have you seen Shino get emotional over anyone? Hence why I came up with Shina and had her die when both she and Shino were five.

For those of you who are mad that Team Kakashi isn't on the mission don't worry. They'll find out about it later but they will not be on the mission itself.

Now I know I said that I would on my Naruto/Matrix story after this chapter but I have got so many ideas going through my head about this story. My Naruto/Matrix story is being put on the backburner but don't worry, I plan to finish that story as well.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	5. Seeing and Listening

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 5: Seeing and Listening

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Azula's group)

"Are we there yet?" Mai asked out loud.

"Yes Mai, we're there." Azula answered. They were walking up a staircase that was carved into the mountain and as they reached the last step, they saw the walls of Yu Dao.

"It took us long enough to get here." Ty Lee said as she looked at her mongoose dragon with an annoyed look. When they reached the base of the staircase, the mongoose dragons had been worn out because of a day of hard riding. So they had dismount and walked up the staircase alongside them.

"Can we head inside now?" Mai asked.

"That's a good idea." Azula agreed, they were about to move forward but stopped when Naruto held out his hand. "Wait a moment." He told them.

"What is it, Naruto?"

"We're about to get a visitor."

She looked confused. "What are you—?" Before she could finish the sentence, they heard a whistling sound and then saw something crash in front of Naruto's feet. Looking up, they saw that someone garbed all in black. They could tell that the attacker was female due to the fact that the clothing did not hide her curves and she had not covered her hair, which was brown and done in a female's hairstyle.

"You're getting better but you still can't hit me." Naruto told the attacker as she pulled the chain in her hands and retrieved the object in front of Naruto's feet, which turned out to be a spiked meteor hammer.

The attacker growled, swung the chain a little and hurled the meteor hammer at him again. He ducked his head to dodge it and then the attacker threw the other end of the chain, which was also a spiked meteor hammer at him. He did a little jump and as he was in mid-air, he shot out his hands and landed in a perfect handstand.

Shifting his weight forward, he let his body fall to the ground. As he was about hit the ground, he tucked his body in and rolled forward. He then leapt forward out of the roll and charged at the attacker.

The attacker reacted by bending the earth in front of her to form a barrier. Naruto didn't slow down; as soon as he reached the wall he put one foot on it and immediately started to run up it. He cleared the top in less than five seconds. Drawing out his jian, he stabbed it into the top of the barrier. He then proceeded to use it as a handle to swing over to the other side of the barrier, disappearing from Azula's, Mai's and Ty Lee's sight.

Pulling the jian out of the barrier as he landed, he got in close to the attacker and swept her legs out from under her. As her back hit the ground, she felt the jian's tip touching her throat. "Lower the barrier." He told her, his voice void of emotion.

She did just that. As the barrier collapsed Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee rushed over to where Naruto was. "Are you okay Naruto?" Ty Lee asked.

"I'm fine." He replied.

"What are you waiting for Naruto? Kill her!" Azula commanded him.

He looked at her and then smiled. "Now why would I do that?" He asked her as he sheathed his jian. He held out his hand to the attacker.

She took it and he helped her get up. "I'm going to get you one day, Naruto." She said with determination shining in her eyes as she pulled down the mask covering the bottom half of her face.

He laughed. "That's the spirit."

"Who is this Earthbender, Naruto?" Azula asked.

"Azula, Mai, Ty Lee, this is Kori Morishita." He introduced the attacker.

"Hello, it's nice to meet to you all." She greeted them.

"Why was she trying to kill you?" Ty Lee asked.

Both Naruto and Kori gave a laugh. "Kori wasn't trying to kill me. She's been trying to beat me in a spar ever since I was first posted here."

"Why didn't the soldiers stop her, I can see them up there." Mai told him as she pointed up to the gate.

"They know what she's been trying to do. Also, her dad is the mayor of this place." He pointed behind him at the town to emphasis his point.

After a minute of silence, it was Azula who spoke. "We should enter the town and introduce ourselves to Mayor Morishita then."

Naruto nodded in agreement. As they approached the gate, he turned to the others. "Let me take care of this." He took a few steps forward and looked up at the guards above the gate. Taking a deep breath, he opened his mouth and proceeded to bellow. "ATTENTION TO ALL MILITARY PERSONNEL! YOU KNOW DAMN WELL WHO'S TALKING RIGHT NOW, SO PAY ATTENTION! I AM CURRENTLY STANDING IN FRONT OF THE GATES WITH PRINCESS AZULA AND HER TWO FRIENDS. IF THESE GATES ARE NOT OPENED WITHIN FIFTEEN SECONDS, I WILL BE TAKING OVER THE MORNING TRAINING EXERCISES AND EVERYONE WILL ATTEND, NO EXCEPTIONS!" He lifted his head up to look at the sun. "I AM TIMING YOU, STARTING NOW!"

Never had Azula, Ty Lee or Mai seen a gate being opened that fast. Not only was the gate open quickly, there was also an honor guard waiting for them on the other side. "IT'S GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN, LORD NARUTO!" They all chorused together.

"It's good to see you all again as well." He told them as the group walked through the gate and into the town. The honor guard was about to fall in behind them when he spoke again. "However, you took sixteen seconds to open the gate. So I will see you all on the training field at four in the morning."

Never in her life, did Azula think to see thr men and women of the Fire Nation army, the strongest and mightiest army this side of the planet has ever seen, cry like babies when they heard what came out of Naruto's mouth.

(Location: Gaoling)

Aang, Sokka and Katara stood in a marketplace with Momo on Katara's shoulder and Akela at Sokka's side. Team Guy stood nearby, keeping an eye out for any potential threats.

After the meeting with Sifu and talking about Kurenai being pregnant, the Teams from Konoha had finally gotten down to brass tacks. They eventually decided that the Teams would remain separate but would work together. One Team would guard Aang and the other two Teams would try to locate Naruto or get information on him. Seeing as Team Kurenai had already done the part of protecting Aang and his group, Guy volunteered his team to do it next.

The first village they came across after the swamp and an encounter with some unique Fire Nation men on komodo rhinos was not an incident they liked to remember. Apparently, that particular little village didn't really like the Avatar. After getting into a trial that was weird, dumb and was rigged to an extent that even Guy and Lee could tell, Aang had transformed into Kyoshi and had essentially confessed to killing the village's founder, who was a tyrant. The mayor was all set to have Aang executed but Sokka had stepped in and revealed a trump card. He pulled out a scroll he brought with him from the Northern Water Tribe that was titled _Basic Laws of the Nations_. He announced that even though Chin village had a bad judicial system, they still had to obey the basic laws that the four nations followed. One of those laws was that a Paragon could overrule a court's decision if he felt it was unlawful. With that said, he declared the ruling of the case was void because of their prejudice against the Avatar.

The mayor grumbled but complied but then something strange occurred. Kyoshi, who still had control over Aang's body, noticed what Sokka had said and saw the Paragon Medallion he had when he showed it to the mayor. She immediately tried to attack him. She blew past Team Guy and Katara but was stopped when Sokka had, without trying to, cut the link between Aang and the Avatar State. The same Fire Nation troops appeared again but this time; Team Guy was ready for them and easily beat them. After the celebration that night, they decided to quickly leave the town that Sokka had stated "Was the worst village they had ever visited."

Now they were Gaoling and in the marketplace but not for supplies. "It's pricy but I really do like it." Sokka said as he looked at an expensive green bag with a strap.

"Then you should get it." Katara told him. "You deserve something nice."

"I do, don't I?" Sokka rhetorically asked her. "But no, it's too expensive. I shouldn't."

"Alright then don't." Katara walked away with Aang behind her. Sokka was about to follow when he changed his mind and got the bag. Akela just rolled his eyes at Sokka's antics. Meanwhile Neji stood against a wall next to Lee. "I can't believe he's agonizing over a simple bag." He muttered.

"But it's a bag with a most youthful shade of green!" Lee told his teammate, and then got serious. "Besides, would you rather go with Tenten when she discovers a sell on weapons?"

The two of them shuddered at the memory of Tenten's last weapon shopping spree. Needless to say, the next time that happens they were bringing body armor with them.

Tenten notice the shudder. "You guys okay?" She asked.

"We're fine." They answered in unison.

Meanwhile, a guy had come up to Katara and Aang. "Hey, you kids like Earthbending? You like throwing rocks?" He handed them a small piece of paper. "Then check out Master Yu's Earthbending Academy."

As the man walked away, Aang looked at the paper. "Look, there's a coupon on the back! The first is free."

"Who knows, this Master Yu could be the Earthbending teacher you've been looking for." Katara told him as she and Sokka (bag in hand) also looked at the paper. Sokka turned his head to ask Team Guy what they thought but when he saw the stony expressions on their faces, he decided not to.

(Location: Yu Dao)

"Kori!" cried the mayor as his daughter entered the building with Azula's group behind her. "Where have you been? You know that you had a meeting with a son from the Akatonbo family today."

Before she could reply, Naruto spoke. "So that's your excuse this time? You wanted to avoid a guy?"

Kori's cheeks blushed with embarrassment. "It wasn't like that!" She told him.

"Uh-huh." He replied, not believing a word of it.

"Naruto, is that you my boy?" Mr. Morishita asked as he recognized the person talking to his daughter.

Naruto looked at the man "Nice to see you again, Mayor Morishita."

The Mayor walked up to Naruto and proceeded to give him a bear hug. "It's good to see you again, my boy!"

"Sir… I need…air!" Naruto wheezed out.

The mayor realized what his hug was doing, so he let go. "Sorry!"

"Sir…there are days…when I think…you try to kill me with those hugs!" Naruto told him as he gasp for air.

"Nonsense, if I wanted to kill you, you would be dead."

After Naruto got his breath back, he gave the mayor a mischievous smirk. "Correct me if I'm wrong sir, but isn't that what your wife said to you just before she asked you out on a date?"

The mayor's face blanched. "Why did I ever tell you that story?"

Before Naruto could continue, Kori interrupted the two of them. "Father, we have guests."

The mayor then looked at who was behind Naruto. "Princess Azula!" he exclaimed before bowing down before her. "I am terribly sorry for ignoring you."

"That is…quite alright." She told him. "These two are Ty Lee and Mai." She introduced the two girls.

"Hi!" Ty Lee chirped.

Mai just gave a wave of her hand in greeting.

"My family is honored to have you in our house, Princess." The mayor told Azula.

"Yes, I saw that when your daughter tried to attack my bodyguard." She replied.

"Hey, he saw me coming." Kori protested.

"Quiet little girl, the adults are speaking."

"I'm older then you are. I am sixteen!"

Naruto could see the lighting shooting from the two girl's eyes. "We should probably go and unpack the mongoose dragons." He told the group. "I'll go ahead."

He began to head for the door. Ty Lee then said "Mr. Mayor, what did Naruto do when he was assigned here?"

"Why do you even care?" Mai asked in a bored tone.

"I'm just curious; wouldn't you want to know what Zuko did at his first assignment?" When Mai didn't answer, Ty Lee turned back to the mayor. "So, what did he do?"

The mayor shrugged. "I assigned him to be my daughter's guard."

Both Azula and Naruto went stiff as boards but for different reasons. _"Of all the things he could've said, he went with that!?" _Naruto thought in a small panic.

"**If I remember correctly, he did promise to get you back after that prank involving the fish, the market trip and the line of dancing girls. Maybe this is his payback." **Kyuubi offered.

"_But that was two years ago!"_

"**Some people are just patient when it comes to get revenge for pranks."**

Naruto decided to take a chance and looked behind him. When he did, he didn't know how, Azula gave him a look that said "Explain, now." He could feel the tension getting very, very thick. At that point, he decided to beat a hasty retreat from the room.

(Location: Gaoling)

Aang decided to try out Master Yu's Academy. He didn't think much of it and told the rest of the group that after the so-called lesson was over. Team Guy silently agreed with him. They had listened in when they heard the Master offered to put Aang in the next belt if he had paid for an entire years' worth of lessons. Team Guy at this point was ready to destroy the Academy. They hated places like this, where you could buy a ranking if you enough money. Sokka managed to calm them down before they did something stupid.

"I think the Boulder's gonna win the belt back at Earth Rumble VI!" They heard one of the other students tell his friend as they passed.

"He's going to have fight his way through the best Earthbenders in the world to even get a shot at the champ." The other guy replied.

Aang perked up when he heard the word Earthbender. "Excuse me but where is this Earthbending tournament exactly?" He asked the two as he ran up to them.

"It's on the island of nonya, non-ya business!" The first one told him. The two of them began to laugh as they walked away.

"I gotta remember that one." Sokka noted as he watched the two leave.

Katara shared a look with Tenten and they both nodded. "We'll take care of this." She told Aang. "Hey, strong guys wait up!" She called out as she went after the two guys. Tenten was right behind her.

Meanwhile, Sokka was looking at the bag he bought. "What was I thinking? I don't need a new bag. Why did you let me buy this?" He dropped the bag on the ground and looked away. Momo had been sitting on Sokka's shoulder up until that point; he jumped into the bag and proceeded to get comfy. As Momo did this, Akela watched him and as he did, he began to give a smile but Sokka noticed what he was doing. "Akela, we've had this talk. You can't eat the flying lemur." He warned.

By this time, Katara and Tenten were running back to the group. "You ready to find an Earthbending teacher?" Katara asked. "'Cause we're going to Earth Rumble VI."

"How'd you get them to tell you?" Aang asked.

"A girl has her ways." Tenten simply stated while tossing a kunai. If one was to look into the alleyway where the two students went, they would find that the two students were frozen to the wall and had icicles stuck in the wall just below the one place no man wants to be hit or stab in.

(That night, Location: Earth Rumble Arena)

The group headed into the giant cave that held the Earth Rumble arena."Hey, front row seats!" Aang announced as they sat down. "I wonder why no one else is sitting here." As soon as those words left his mouth, a huge boulder crashed into the seats right next to Sokka.

"I guess that's why." He answered.

They turned to face the ring. A man in the middle of the ring bent the earth around him to create a shower of big rocks. He then bent the earth beneath him to raise him up onto a pillar and then bent it back down into the ring.

"Welcometo Earth Rumble VI! I am your host, Xin Fu!" He declared.

Katara gave a bored sigh. "This is just gonna be a bunch of guys chucking rocks at each other, isn't it?"

"That's what I paid for." Sokka answered.

"Indeed! This should be a most youthful event to watch!" Lee chimed in.

"The rules are simple!" Xin Fu continued. "Just knock the other guy out of the ring and you win." He leapt up to a ledge as a bell went off.

Standing in the ring was now a big, heavily-muscled man with a badger-mole tattoo on his back and a really big man who was missing his front teeth (both top and bottom).

"Round 1: The Boulder vs. the Big Bad Hippo!" Xin Fu announced to the cheers of the audience.

"Listen up, Hippo." The Boulder called out as he pointed to his opponent. "You may be big but you ain't bad. The Boulder's going to win this in a landslide!"

"Hippo mad!" was the Hippo's reply, stomping a foot into the ground and causing a crack.

The Boulder quickly bent a chunk of the ring at the Hippo. It slammed into the Hippo causing a bit of a dust screen. It cleared away, showing the Hippo looking no worse for wear and with a big rock in his mouth. He proceeded to bite down on the rock, shattering it and began to chew on the piece that was in his mouth. He then spat it out and began to jump up and down, causing the ring to act like a see-saw.

"Unbelievable ladies and gentlemen, the Hippo is rocking the boat!" Xin Fu announced.

The Boulder staggered back across the ring and almost fell off. To save himself, he bent a flat piece of rock out of the side of the ring to balance himself. Grabbing hold of the piece, he whipped his body forward and hurled the piece of rock at the Hippo.

The Hippo turned to glare at the Boulderwho jumped away from the edge. The Boulder got into a stance and slowly but surely, bent the ground beneath the Hippo upwards. It caught the Hippo by surprise and the Boulder used that to hurl the rock, with the Hippo on it, out of the ring.

"The Boulder wins!" Xin Fu announced.

As the Boulder drank in the applause of the crowd, Katara looked at Aang. "How about the Boulder?" She asked. "He's got some good moves."

"I don't know." Aang replied. "Bumi said I need a teacher who listens to the earth. He's just listening to his big muscles." He looked over at Sokka. "What do you think, Sokka?"

"I think we should keep watching but the Boulder is looking like a good candidate." Sokka answered. He then noticed Aang and Katara giving him a weird look. "What?"

"Well, you made gave your opinion in calm manner and with an analytical eye." His sister noted.

"Yeah, it's really not like you." Aang told him.

"What? Were you expecting me to be on my feet and cheering like a hardcore fan that lost his mind?" He asked the two of them.

"Yes." They both answered.

"Don't worry, Lee's about to take care of that." He pointed to the spandex wearing shinobi.

Tenten looked at her teammate "You alright, Lee?" she asked.

"This is so…" Lee muttered before standing up with tears flowing freely from his eyes. "It's so very, very YOUTHFUL! OH HOW I WISH COULD BE AN EARTHBENDER, THAT WAY I COULD JOIN THIS MOST YOUTHFUL COMPETITION!"

"Would you calm down? You're attracting attention!" Neji hissed.

After they had finally managed to get Lee to calm down, the matches continued and the Boulder dominated them. He went through like they were nothing. The Fire Nation Man, the Gopher, the Gecko and the Headhunter, all were easily beaten by the Boulder like it was nothing.

Finally, the lights in the cave had dimmed, save the one shining on the Earth Kingdom emblem in the middle of the ring. "Now, the moment you've all been waiting for, the Boulder versus…your champion, the Blind Bandit!"

A light shined down upon a girl in green shirt and pants with a white tunic over them and a studded belt around her waist, she also wore dark green bands around her waists and her ankles. She wore a headband in her hair that green and yellow with a white puffball attached just above each ear. She held up the championship belt above her head as the crowd cheered her on.

"She can't really be blind. It's just part of her character, right?" Katara asked. The girl eyes were a light green color but were also unfocused, like she was just looking straight ahead.

"I think she is." Aang answered as he looked at her.

"But then how can she fight?" Neji asked. Sokka then remembered something that happened in Omashu.

(Flashback)

"Sokka, allow me to show you something of Earthbending that Paragons can use. Think of it as a lesson." Naruto took a strip of cloth from his pocket and tied it around his eyes. "Now then, let's begin."

(End Flashback)

"I think I know how." Sokka told them.

Before anyone could ask him, the Boulder spoke out. "The Boulder feels conflicted about fighting a young blind girl."

"Sounds to me like you're scared, Boulder." The girl taunted.

The Boulder gave a slight scowl. "The Boulder is over his conflicted feelings and now he's ready to bury you in a rockalanche!"

The girl pointed at him "Whenever you're ready, the Pebble." she insulted him and then laughed. Aang's eyes went wide; he had heard that laugh before. He had heard it back in the swamp.

"It's on!" The Boulder announced. They had a bit of a stare off (which was kinda redundant when one of them is blind). The Boulder made the first move by stepping forward. He brought his right foot down and brought the other foot up. The girl went into her stance and waited. When the Boulder began to bring his left foot down the girl just simply kicked the ground, sending a line of rocks at the Boulder but not directly at him. As the Boulder brought his foot down, it landed on the rock-line which then curved to the left.

The end result was the Boulder doing the splits (which, apparently, he can't do). "OOOOOOOOOOO!" the Boulder cried out in pain (you would too if you can't do the splits). The girl quickly followed up with a hand chop motion causing three rock columns to jut out of the ring behind the Boulder, hitting him hard and sending him out of the ring.

"Your winner and still the champion, the Blind Bandit!" announced Xin Fu. The girl smiled and raised a fist as the crowd cheered.

"How did she do that?" Katara asked.

"She did the same thing Naruto did at Omashu." Sokka told her.

"She waited and listened." Aang said with a smile.

Xin Fu leapt back into the ring. "To make things a little more interesting, I'm offering up this sack of gold pieces to anyone who can defeat the Blind Bandit!"

The entire cave was dead silent. "What, no one dares to face her!?" Xin Fu demanded.

"I will!" A voice ranged out. Xin Fu turned to where the voice was coming from and saw Aang coming up the steps and into the ring. Xin Fu didn't say anything; he just leapt to his ledge.

The girl looked in Aang's general direction. "Do people really want to see two little girls fighting out here." She taunted.

"I don't really want to fight you. I want to talk to you." Aang told her. He took a step forward and the girl smirked. She then bent the ground beneath Aang to form into a column that jutted out of the ground. Aang leapt off the column and landed off to the side.

"Someone's a little light on his feet." The girl stated as she swerved to his general direction. "What's your fighting name, the Fancy Dancer?"

Aang just grinned in response. The girl took advantage of that and tried to throw Aang off by shooting up the ground from underneath him. Aang just leapt forward off the rock.

The girl had a small look of confusion. "Where'd you go?"

Aang landed a good distance behind her. "Please, wait!"

"There you are!" She turned around, bent a chuck of rock out of the ground and hurled it at Aang. He responded by bending the air into two streams, one deflecting the rock and the other sending the girl off the ring. That move shocked everyone in the arena.

While the crowd was cheering, Aang went after the girl who was leaving the arena. "Please listen!'' He pleaded. "I need an Earthbending teacher and I think it's supposed to be you."

The girl continued to walk away. "Whoever you are, just leave me alone." She opened up a hole in the wall, walked through it and closed it just before Aang reached her. As the group got the winnings and Sokka took the belt, Aang remained downcast.

(Location: Yu Dao)

It was six in the morning and Azula was feeling irritated. She didn't know why she felt irritated, she was a princess and a princess never gets irritated.

"Why am I so frustrated?" She asked out loud as she paced around the room she was given.

"Do you really want that answered?" Mai asked as she leaned against the door frame. Ty Lee stood just outside against the wall.

"What is it?" Azula asked.

Mai shrugged. "She wanted to ask you something." She pointed to Ty Lee, who bounced forward.

"You wanna go see Naruto train the soldiers?" She asked with a grin. "I think they're done with the warm ups and the run."

Azula looked at her for a minute. "Fine," She finally answered.

Ty Lee's grin got even bigger. She grabbed both Azula's and Mai's hands and charged off.

(Location: Yu Dao training grounds)

The training grounds were in a small valley that was next to Yu Dao. It was circular in shape, had practice fields for both weapons training and Firebending. It had two entrances, one led back to Yu Dao and the other led into a trail that split into two separate directions. However if you went in one direction, you eventually came out through the other one. It was used for exercise runs and for punishment. If you were punished, you had run a number of laps on the trail under a time limit.

If you knew where to look, just near the entrance to Yu Dao was a path that led up to a ledge that encircled the training grounds.

"How did you find this?" Azula asked.

"Somebody just told me." Ty Lee answered.

They crept to an edge that had a natural barrier, if they knelt down no one would notice that they were there.

"Why am I even here?" Mai wondered.

"Because you were bored, that's why." Ty Lee told her.

"Shush! Here they come!" Azula hissed to the other two. Sure enough, the Fire Nation military was coming in through the trail entrance with Naruto in the lead. As soon as they hit the practice fields, they stopped.

"Well now, wasn't that refreshing?" Naruto asked them. The large amount of people behind him just groaned.

"Oh come on, it wasn't that bad." Naruto told them.

"You call doing forty laps on that trail with weights after an hour and half of push-ups, sit-ups and Agni know what else not bad!?" One of the men, who looked to be an officer judging by his armor, demanded.

Naruto just looked at the person, who looked to be a year or two older than him. "You're green, aren't you?"

"He's fresh out of the Military Academy, Lord Naruto. This is his first posting." One of the foot soldiers supplied.

"Ah," Replied Naruto. "Well that says a lot." He looked at the officer. "What's your name, boy?"

The officer had a look of rage. "My proper rank is lieutenant and you address me as such!"

"I asked you for your name, not your rank." Naruto told him. "What's your name?"

"My name, you filthy little peasant, is something you will never hear."

Naruto did not even look outraged at being told off. "I'm a filthy little peasant, am I?"

"He's going to get now!" Ty Lee whispered gleefully and it seemed like the rest of the non-officers were silently agreeing with her.

"Yes, you are a peasant who does not know how to talk to his elders or betters. I don't know why the foot soldiers think you're a lord but they are obviously mistaken. Once I'm done with you, I'll fix that attitude."

"Done with me? Are you going to challenge me to an Agni Kai?"

The lieutenant scoffed. "I know all about you. You think you're some hotshot because you manage to beat the princess in Agni Kai when you're not even a Firebender. Well I have news for you, I could beat you easily."

"Oh? You think you can beat me when the princess of the Fire Nation couldn't?"

"She's a woman, so her Firebending is pathetic. I could beat you without even breaking a sweat."

At this in point in the conversation, unbeknownst to them, both Mai and Ty Lee had to restrain Azula. "Let him go. I'm going to kill him!" She demanded.

"If you do that, Naruto will know we're here and we don't want that, remember?" Ty Lee reminded.

"I don't care! That fool will burn!"

"Relax, Azula. Naruto will take care of it." Mai told her.

She had finally calmed down. "He'd better."

"So you think that you can defeat the one person who was able to beat your own princess, who is a well-known Firebending prodigy and will be able to do that easily?" Naruto asked.

The lieutenant smirked. "I already told you, it would be easy. You know what? After I'm done with you, I'll take over your position with the princess and make her my slave. I'll make you watch as she pleasures me."

The general thought among the non-officers and officers who actually had a brain in their heads was this. _"He's fucked."_ The other officers agreed with him on some points but not all of them.

Naruto just smiled but to those who knew Naruto, that particular smile was the one Naruto gave when he was going to humiliate someone in a very bad way without the use of pranks. "Alright everyone, break's over. You know what comes next."

Everyone got back up on their feet and formed a loose circle around Naruto. "Now, since Mr. Delusions of Grandeur here decided to open his mouth, he will have the honor of throwing the first punch."

The lieutenant sneered. "This won't take a minute to win."

"If you say so, well then…" Naruto waited for the guy to take a stance. "Whenever you're ready," He finished.

The lieutenant stepped forward and launched a fireball at Naruto. It sailed over his head as he duck and moved forward. Just as the lieutenant realized he missed, he was on the ground with Naruto standing above him with a foot on his stomach.

"Wha…?" he tried to ask but Naruto interrupted him. "I said you had the honor of throwing the first punch. I never said anything about me letting you actually hitting me. Oh and by the way…" He pressed his foot down, making the lieutenant gasp in pain. "If you ever talk about Princess Azula like that again, I will find out and I will kill you."

"Okay, okay! I'm sorry!" The lieutenant cried.

Naruto took his foot off before looking at the lieutenant. "No you're not." He slammed his foot back down on the lieutenant's stomach, causing him to roll over and dry heave. Naruto took that opportunity to grab his head and slammed it into the ground, causing a crack to appear in the ground.

"Does anyone else want to insult the princess like that?" He asked everyone around who all shook their heads in the negative. "Good, now back to what we were doing."

The girls now watched as the entire military group proceeded to try and attack Naruto. Oddly enough, he was holding his own without the use of any **Kage Bunshin **or any other kind of jutsu (except taijutsu).

"He's seems to be doing fine, can we go now?" Mai asked after watching fifteen minutes of the fight.

Azula took one last look as her bodyguard swerved, ducked, blocked and fought back before saying. "Yes."

They headed back down to the entrance to Yu Dao. As they came down, they saw someone else heading back to Yu Dao. "Who's that?" Ty Lee asked.

The person turned around, noticed them and began to run. Azula reacted quickly by leaping at the person and knocking them down. "Who are you!?" she demanded.

"Get off of me!" The person demanded before bending a chuck of rock from the ground and throwing it at Azula. Azula rolled off to dodge and came up into a fighting position. When she looked at her opponent, she saw that it was Kori.

"What are you doing here?" She asked.

"I could ask the same of you." Azula replied.

Kori blushed. "N-none of your business!" she stammered.

Ty Lee gave a mischievous grin. "You were watching the guys, weren't you? You were watching them get all hot and sweaty and hoping they take of their shirts so you look at their bodies."

"N-no I wasn't."

"Yes you were."

"No I was not!"

"Would you stop lying? You were right there." Mai told her.

"Alright fine!" she stated. "I was there to watch the guys, okay!" She turned around to walk away. "I'm going back to the village, good bye."

She started to leave but stopped when Azula said. "You didn't come here to watch the _guys_, you came to look _a guy_ didn't you!?"

"So? What's it to you?' Kori asked without even looking at Azula.

"You were watching Naruto!" She glared at the older girl with jealously in her eyes.

'So what if I was watching him? I love him!" Kori stated as she turned around to face Azula.

Azula just stood with a shocked look. "You w-what?" she asked.

"I love him, I love Naruto."

"He is my bodyguard!"

"He was my bodyguard first and he actually cares about me!"

Azula snarled, she looked like she was about to attack Kori. "Get out of my sight!"

Kori simply turned back around and headed back to Yu Dao. "Um…Azula?" asked Ty Lee. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, why do you ask?" Azula growled as she stared at Kori's back.

"Probably because that was the first time we have ever seen someone who wanted the same thing as you." Mai told her.

She threw a glare back at the two of them. "I'm going back to Yu Dao."

As they watched her leave, Mai looked at Ty Lee. "She's taking it well."

Ty Lee nodded in agreement. "I just wondered how long it will be until she confronts Naruto. You know she's a little possessive of him."

"Yeah, I remember what happened."

Last autumn, a Fire Nation noble's daughter had offered Naruto the job of being her bodyguard right in front of Azula during a formal party. He declined and she had made some non-too subtle questions about his I.Q. and whether Azula had found him in a kennel or just off the streets. Azula challenged her to Agni Kai on the spot. After that, the noble's daughter had to be treated for second degree burns all over her body (It would have been third degrees had Naruto not told Azula to calm down).

"Do you think Naruto knows?"

Mai looked at her friend. "Knows what?"

"About Kori," Ty Lee answered.

Mai began to walk back to Yu Dao. "If he doesn't already know, he'll find out soon."

Ty Lee followed her. If they had stayed a little longer, they would've heard someone sneezing and a chorus of voices saying "Agni bless you, Lord Naruto!"

(Location: Gaoling)

The group headed down a street to the Earthbending Academy.

"I gotta admit, now I'm really glad I bought this bag." Sokka told them. "It matches the belt perfectly."

"I cannot believe he can say that." Neji said.

"But he is right." Lee told him.

"Yosh! Lee is most correct." Guy announced.

"That is a big relief." Katara deadpanned.

"If we want to find the Blind Bandit," Aang said. "The Earthbending Academy is a good place to start."

As they walked through the entrance of the Academy, they saw the two same boys from before doing an exercise.

The two looked up. "Oh great, you again." said the first one.

Katara threw a glare and Tenten reached for her holster. The two guys yelped and flinched back.

"Yeah, I didn't think so." Katara said.

"Nicely done," Sokka complemented. Akela barked in agreement.

"Hey, you're the kid who beat the Blind Bandit." The second boy said.

"We need to talk to her." Aang told them. "Do you guys know where she is?"

"The Blind Bandit's a mystery, she shows up to fight and then disappears." The first boy said.

"Let me handle this." Katara told a downcast Aang, she went up to the second boy. "You're not telling us everything!"

"N-no, I swear it's true! No one where she goes or who she really is." He told them.

"That's because we're asking about the wrong person." Aang realized. "In my vision, I saw a girl in a white dress with a pet flying boar. Know anybody like that?" He asked the two boys.

"Well, a flying boar is the symbol of the Beifong family. They're the richest people in town, probably the whole world." The first boy told them.

"_I know a few Hyuuga elders who would deny that kind of statement with a passion." _Neji thought.

"Yeah but they don't have a daughter." The second boy chimed in.

"Flying boar is good enough for me. Let's check it out." Aang told them before heading out of the Academy.

"Yeah, you'd better leave." The first boy whispered.

"Hey! I've got my eye on you two." Katara told them as she left.

"If I were you, I'd listen." Sokka told them. "You don't want to end up like that last guy."

"What last guy?" they asked but Sokka had already left.

(Location: Beifong estates)

They crouched down on a small ridge just outside the main gate. Above the gate was the family symbol.

"That's the flying boar from my vision, come on." Aang told them before they crawled away from the ridge.

"We should be careful." Neji said but Aang had already left.

"Sorry about that." Sokka apologized. "He's excited."

"It's alright."

"Look I have an idea. Aang is probably going to try and go over the wall. If we don't get in, you guys try knocking on the front door?"

Team Guy just looked at him. "And how exactly is that supposed to work?" Neji asked with a mystified expression.

"Hinata once told that the Hyuuga clan was a noble family. You're part of the same clan, so you'll be able to talk like a noble." He looked over to where Aang was running off to. "I better go and catch up, Akela, stay." He told the wolf.

As Sokka left, both Lee and Tenten looked over at Neji. "You think you can do this?" Tenten asked.

"If Hiashi-sama finds out about this, I am a dead man." He answered.

Meanwhile Aang, Katara and Sokka had gone around to the side, over the wall and into the garden. They tried to move quietly but the earth beneath them suddenly heaved upwards, sending the three of them into the air. Both Aang and Katara managed to land on a bush but Sokka landed face first on the ground.

Aang had landed on his back. He tilted his head back and in his upside down vision, he saw the girl he was looking for in a familiar dress. "What are you doing here, Twinkle Toes?" She demanded.

"How'd you know it was me?" He asked.

"Don't answer to Twinkle Toes, it's not manly!" Sokka told him.

"You're the one whose bag matches his belt." Katara pointed out as she got back on solid ground.

"Touché sister," He replied.

"How did you find me?" The girl asked.

Aang started to explain as he got off the bush. "Well, a crazy king told me I had to find an Earthbender who listens to the earth and then I had a vision in a magic and…" As he tried to explain, the girl's face got more and more skeptical.

Katara stepped before Aang's explanation got any weirder. "What Aang is trying to say is the Avatar, and if he doesn't master Earthbending soon he won't be able to defeat the Fire Lord."

The girl put her hand in front of Katara's face. "Not my problem. Now get out of here or I'll call the guards." She said as she walked away.

"Look, we all have to do our part to win this war and yours is to teach Aang Earthbending." Sokka told her.

The girl stood with her back to them in silence for a few seconds. Then she turned around and, in a voice that sounded little and weak rather than her usual confidence, she cried out. "Guards, guards help!"

As the three of them ran out of there and back to a wall, the guards ran in. "Toph, what happened!?" One of them asked.

"I…thought I heard someone. I got sacred." The girl now known as Toph told them.

"You know your father doesn't want you wandering the grounds without supervision Toph." The guard told her as they led her away.

Aang scowled but then had a thinking look on. He grinned and then climbed down the wall. "I've got another idea." He told the other two before heading back to where Team Guy was.

"Hang on Aang." Sokka said as they got back to the ridge. "We tried an idea of your and it didn't work. Now it's my turn."

While Aang pouted, Katara looked at her brother. "What's your idea?"

Sokka pointed to the main gate, which Team Guy was approaching.

"Halt!" One of the guards demanded. "Who goes there?"

Neji stepped forward. "Greetings, I am Neji Hyuuga of the Hyuuga clan. These are my teacher and my fellow students." He gestured to the rest of the team.

"What do you want?"

"We heard of the Beifong family when we passed through Gaoling. Seeing as it was almost dark, we had decided to pay our respects and ask the master of this estate if we could sleep here tonight."

"The Hyuuga clan?" repeated the second guard. "I've never heard of them."

Neji gave a bow. "My apologies, the Hyuuga clan is not from the Earth Kingdom. My teacher is taking us on trip around the world to study different styles and methods of fighting."

"Then why are you talking and not your teacher?"

"Because my teacher does not really know how to speak to nobility, since I was raised as a noble before becoming his student, I know how." Neji explained, meanwhile in his head he was thinking _"I'm such a dead man!"_

"We will let Lord Lao know of you and your request." The guard told him.

At this point, Sokka decided to walk up to the gate. "There you guys are!" He greeted Team Guy. "Sorry, but the market didn't have what you guys were looking for."

"That's okay, are the others still at the market?" Tenten asked, deciding to play along.

"No, they should be right behind me."

Taking that as their cue Aang, Katara and Akela appeared from the bush.

"Who are they!?" The guards demanded.

"Not to worry my good sirs." Neji told them. "These are also our traveling companions. The bald one with the arrow tattoo has a station that's apparently of great importance." He looked at Aang. "Tell me, what was the title you were given again?"

Aang looked confused for a minute but then caught on "The Avatar." He said.

The guards looked flabbergasted.

(Location: Yu Dao)

That night, Naruto, Azula, Ty Lee and Mai sat down to dinner with Mayor Morishita and Kori. "Please dig in!" The mayor said.

"Sir, if you don't mind me asking," Naruto said. "But where is Mrs. Morishita?"

"My wife went to go see her family, she'll be back soon."

"Hey Naruto," Kori said. "How do you think this war will end?"

"It will end with the Fire Nation winning, obviously." Azula answered.

"You don't know that, Azula." Naruto told her. "The Avatar could very well defeat the Fire Lord. But even if he does that, this conflict will not be over."

"What do you mean, my boy?" Mayor Morishita asked.

"If the Avatar wins, he'll declare the war over. The he'll try to 'restore balance to the world'." He said using air quotes. "That will mean that, eventually, he'll set his sights on the Fire Nation colonies."

"Us?" the mayor asked. "Why would he look at us?"

"The Avatar is a child; he believes that for the harmony to be restored there has to be four separate nations. When he looks or hears about the colonies he doesn't see two different nationalities working together, he sees Fire Nation people on Earth Kingdom land."

"But that's absurd!" Kori shouted. "I am Earthbender but I am also a Fire Nation citizen, not just one or the other!"

"For once, I actually agree with her." Azula said.

"I know you two see it that way but the Avatar doesn't. If he wins, odds are he'll try to have the colonies removed."

"He can't do that! This is my home!" Kori slammed her fist on the table.

"Kori!" the mayor said. "Behave yourself!" He turned to Naruto. "What do you think will happen?"

Naruto sighed. "I can only think of two outcomes. The first is that we are all dragged into another war that could be much worse than the current one."

"What's the second?"

"That instead of four separate nations, they all become one."

The table was silent for a few seconds. "Well, I guess we just have to hope for option two then." Ty Lee said.

"Or the Fire Nation could destroy the Avatar and win the war." Azula stated.

"You seem pretty confident that the Fire Nation will achieve victory." Kori pointed out.

"Well of course, we are the greatest nation there is."

"And yet you're not even fighting."

"I am the Princess of the Fire Nation, I don't need to fight."

"Nice excuse."

Azula threw her a look. "And what's your excuse for not fighting."

"In case you haven't noticed, I'm an Earthbender. I can't exactly fight with the army."

"You're right; you wouldn't be of any help to the Fire Nation army."

"At least I would try to help my nation!" Kori yelled as she suddenly stood up from her chair, sending crashing to the floor.

"But you can't, can you? You're stuck in this colony wishing away on things trying to fight or hoping that one boy will finally notice you." Azula said as she too stood up.

"_Azula, what are you doing?" _Ty Lee and Mai thought as they watched this scene play out.

Both Kori and Azula looked like they were ready to attack each other. Then everyone there heard a chair being moved back. Turning their heads, they saw Naruto standing quietly. "Azula, Kori." He said looking at the two of them. "Come with me."

He turned around and walked away into a corridor, the two girls followed him. Once they were a good distance away, he turned to face around. "What's going on between the two of you?" He asked.

"What do you mean?" Azula asked.

"Ever since this morning you've both been like you want to kill each other. So I'll ask again: what's going on between the two of you?"

"Well, why don't you explain yourself first, Naruto."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean why you never told me about her and you being her bodyguard!?" She snarled pointing at Kori.

"It was only for a month Azula, and it was my first assignment. Yes, I do visit when I can but that's not what's got you mad, is it?"

"If you were only there for a month and only visited afterwards, HOW IS IT THAT SHE IS LOVE WITH YOU!?" yelled Azula.

The silence was almost suffocating after what she had said. "What?" Naruto asked.

"You heard me."

He turned his head to Kori. "Is this true?"

She nodded her head. "I love you Naruto, I've loved you since you were my bodyguard."

He dropped his head and gave a sigh. Raising his head, he said. "Kori, I do love you…but I don't love you in that way. I'm sorry."

Kori looked like she was about to cry. "I think you three had enough excitement for one day." A voice from behind them said.

Naruto turned around. "Mrs. Morishita! You're home early."

"Yes, I left my family early when I had heard that you had come to visit Naruto. But I see I've come at wrong time."

"No ma'am, if anything you came at the right time."

"Indeed." She went over to her daughter. "I shall take Kori to her room."

"I'll be right along. I have to make sure Azula gets to her room." He turned and gave her a look that said "Not a word out of you."

The two groups then left and went their separate ways.

(Location: Beifong estate)

After an introduction to both Lord Lao and Lady Poppy (Toph's parents) Aang, Katara, Sokka and Team Guy joined them at dinner. They were initially worried about Akela but Sokka reassured them that he was well behaved.

During the dinner, Aang told them that he still needed to find an Earthbending teacher. Lao suggested Master Yu but Aang tried to subtly tell him that Toph was supposed to teach him. The end result of that was food was flung everywhere while both Aang and Toph had a staring contest. At that point, Poppy asked if they wanted to move to the living room for dessert.

"I'm sorry about that." Neji apologized. "Sometimes Aang gets a little excited and does something rash."

"That's quite alright." Poppy answered.

"Tell me, Master…Guy was it?" Master Yu asked.

"That is correct." Guy answered. During their time there, he had made an effort not to show his youthfulness. Instead he tried to act like a serious teacher in front of their hosts.

"What is it exactly that you teach your students? Seeing as the four of you are not Benders, I wonder what there is to teach them."

Both Guy and his students could hear the condescension in his voice. "I have trained Tenten in the usage of weapons and have helped Neji with his family's martial art style. Both are considered to be geniuses."

"And what of your third student?" asked Master Yu. "If you did not call him a genius, then it obviously means that he isn't one."

At this point, both Neji and Tenten had to subtly restrain Lee from attacking Master Yu. "I have trained Lee in my own style, the Gōken. He is a genius, a genius of hard work. Personally I believe that a genius of hard work can beat a genius at their own game at any time."

Master Yu chuckled like it was all somewhat amusing. "Please, if he is not a natural genius, then he cannot beat one. That is his fate."

At this Neji smirked. "Master Yu, what you just said reminded me of someone I knew."

"Oh? And who was that?"

"Myself." Looking at the confused looks he was getting from everyone except for his Team (and Toph) he continued. "A couple of years ago I was like you once. I believed that fate controlled everything. That it was inescapable and everyone had a destiny. I was full of pride but I was also full of hate at the role that destiny had given me. I lashed out at people because of my hate."

The room was silent. "What happened?" Lao finally asked.

"My hatred had grown too much. In a tournament that our village hosted, I lashed out at a member of my own family and had almost killed her. I felt no shame at what I had done. Then a boy, one I had deemed a failure, swore an oath on her blood to win against me when we would face each other in combat."

"A blood oath?" asked Aang. "Wasn't that a bit…much?"

"Not to him it wasn't. Soon the day came when we fought each other. I struck him down again and again, trying to tell him that fate and destiny couldn't be broken. But no matter how many times he fell, he would always get back on his feet and continued to fight back. Finally I asked him why he kept trying to defy his destiny to lose at my hands."

"…What did he say?" Sokka asked.

"He said 'Because people called me a failure. I'll prove them wrong.' it was at that point he beat me. After the match was over and I couldn't move, he came over to where I was on the ground. He said that if a failure like himself could successfully change his destiny; think of what a so-called genius would be able to do. After that I had renounced my belief in fate and destiny."

"What happened to the boy?" Poppy asked.

Neji along with the rest of Team Guy had a look of sorrow. "A few months later, he left the village behind with no explanation and no intention to return. One of the reasons we are on this journey is so that we can find him and ask him why he left."

"What was his name?" Toph asked.

"Naruto…Naruto Uzumaki." The answer made Aang, Katara and Sokka share a look. One of their enemies, quite possible the most dangerous one, had that kind of effect on Neji?

"As interesting as that story is," Master Yu said. 'What exactly is your point?"

"Fate does not control you. If Lee is a genius of hard work, then he is a genius of hard work. There's not a doubt in my mind that if he could, he would be able to beat me."

As Master Yu took this all in, Sokka noticed that in the corner of the living was a semi-elaborate shrine. In the middle of the shrine was a jar that looked very, very old. "Excuse me, but what is the shrine for?" He asked.

Lao looked at what he was talking about. "That shrine holds the ashes of the first Beifong."

Sokka walked closer to the shrine, the Medallion he wore around his neck hanging out for all to see. His movements were slow, almost like he was in trance. He approached the jar and was about to touch it when he suddenly flinched back. He then heard a voice in his head saying. **"Are you crazy!? If you do that, you'll die!" **Then he heard another voice, a female one. **"If I don't do it, then everything we've done to stop him will be for nothing!"** The voices were faint, like an echo. They weren't talking to him, it was more he was listening to a fading memory that wasn't even his.

"Young man, are you alright?" Lao asked.

Sokka came back to reality. "Huh? Y-yeah, I'm fine."

Lao then noticed what hung around his neck. "You are a Paragon?"

Sokka look down at his Medallion. "Yes. Do you have something against them?"

"Not at all, what do you know about the history of the Paragons?"

"Nothing really," He looked back at the jar. "Was the first Beifong a Paragon?"

"No, not just that, our ancestor was the first Paragon of the Earth Kingdom."

Both Aang's and Sokka's eyes went wide. "So…your ancestor was there at the beginning," said Sokka.

Lao simply nodded. "Do you know why the Paragons were created?" Aang asked.

"I'm sorry but no. While the history of the Paragons is just as long as the Avatar, the actual facts about why they were created or what they did has been lost."

"I heard voices…" Everyone turned back to Sokka. "I heard voices in my head; they were talking about trying to stop someone. I think it has something to do with the first Paragons."

The silence in the room was almost deafening. "Perhaps it's time we all went to sleep." Poppy suggested. Everyone agreed with her.

Later on in the room they were given, Aang was bidding Appa goodnight while Katara sat on the bed and Sokka sat against it with Akela at his side while Momo sat in the bag. Team Guy had been given a separate room.

Feeling a presence behind him, Aang turned around and saw Toph leaning against the doorframe. He gave a small cry of panic and went into an Airbending stance.

"Relax." Toph told him. "Look I'm sorry about dinner. Let's call a truce, okay?"

Aang put his hands down. "Follow me." Toph ordered, she left the room and Aang followed.

She led them out into the garden, while Aang walked on the bridge she walked on raised edge of the bridge. "Even though I was born blind, I never had a problem seeing." She explained. She jumped down to the ground. "I see with Earthbending, it's kinda like seeing with my feet. I feel the vibrations in the earth and I can see where everything is, you, that tree, even those ants."

Aang looked around for the ants that were mentioned until he finally saw them. "That's amazing." He told her.

"My parents don't understand. They've always treated me like I was helpless." She said as they walked near the wall.

"Is that why you became the Blind Bandit?"

"Yeah," She answered.

"Then why stay here where you're not happy?"

"They're my parents, where else am I supposed to go?"

"You could come with us."

"Yeah, you guys get to go wherever you want. No one telling you what to do, that's the life…it's just not my life." She then turned to her right, then knelt down and placed a hand to the earth. "We're being ambushed!" She grabbed Aang by the hand and ran off.

As they ran, a dirt trail appeared behind them. It quickly caught up and then cut them off. Popping out of the tunnel that caused the trail was someone Toph knew: the Gopher from Earth Rumble VI. Before they could fight back, the two were trapped in cages, specifically metal cages. As Aang looked out through the bars (Toph was a little short to do that) he saw people he did not expect.

"I think you kids owe me some money." Xin Fu told them with the rest of Earth Rumble VI members behind him.

(Location: Yu Dao)

Kori lay on her bed with her mother sitting next to it. A knock was heard coming from the door. Mrs. Morishita went over to the door and opened it slightly revealing a person's face. "Naruto," She said.

"Ma'am," He greeted. "Can I come in?"

"Young man, I have half a mind to take you outside, give you thorough beating and then bury you in the earth."

"You have every right to do so ma'am but I would like to talk to Kori before you do that."

"You broke her heart."

"And now I want to explain myself, she deserves that."

Mrs. Morishita was silent for a few minutes. "Yes, she does." she agreed and opened the door.

"Thank you ma'am," He told her as he walked in. "Can you do me a favor and go talk to Azula?"

"The Princess?" she asked as she narrowed her eyes. "Why?"

"She's gone too long without a lecture."

"…Very well, I will go talk to her."

As Mrs. Morishita left, he turned to the bed. "Kori?" he called.

"What do you want?" was the response he got.

"I wanted to talk to you."

"I don't want to talk to you."

"Tough, I'm going to talk and you're going to listen."

"Why should I!?" She demanded as she took her face away from her pillow, he could see the tearstains on it.

"You need to hear what I have to say." He walked over to the edge of the bed and sat down. "Why are you in love with me?"

"What?" she asked with confusion in her voice.

"Why are you in love with me?" he repeated.

"I…I don't really know why. You're best at everything, you're smart and you look so cool."

"That's not love Kori, that's a crush."

"But a crush can turn into love!" She protested.

"Yes it can but that only happens when you realized your crush has imperfections."

"You don't have any imperfections Naruto."

"And that's why you're not in love with me. You only have a crush."

Tears began to form in her eyes. "I a-am too in l-love with you," She said.

Naruto noticed the tears and gave her a hug. "Trust me, you're not." At that point, she lost control and began to bawl like a baby. He waited for the crying to turn into sniffles. "Kori I told you that I did love you, remember?"

She nodded, not trusting her voice.

"There are many kinds of love and the love I have for you is that of a sibling."

"What?" she said.

He pulled away from the hug so that he could look at her face. "I love you like a sister. That's important to me."

She stayed quiet for a minute and then smiled. "Well, it's not the love I wanted but I'll take it."

"Kori, to me a family is most important. The ones you loved become a part of your family."

"I guess…I guess you're right. Mom and Dad already consider you a member of the family."

He smiled. "You see? Just do me a favor Kori."

She grew curious. "What?"

"Find someone who you'll be able to fall in love for what they are and not what they can do. I've seen what a crush can do to a person and it doesn't usually go anywhere."

"**Speaking from experience, are we?" **Kyuubi asked with dry sarcasm.

"_Yes we are. I had a crush once, remember?" _Naruto silently answered.

"**Of course I remember. I was there." **

He ignored the fox and brought his attention back to Kori. "Are you feeling better now?"

"Yeah," She answered.

He got off the bed. "That's good." He started to walk towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

He stopped and turned around. "Now I'm going to go talk to Azula."

(Location: Azula's room)

She heard a knock on the door. Getting out of bed, Azula walked over to the door and opened it revealing Mrs. Morishita. "May I come in?" She asked.

Azula shrugged and stood to the side so that she could come in. "What do you want?"

Mrs. Morishita turned around to face her. "What is it exactly that you have against my daughter?"

She scoffed. "Why would I have anything against your daughter?"

"Maybe it's because she had something that you thought was your and yours alone. Or maybe because she has something you don't."

"What could she have that I don't? I'm a princess, I have everything."

"Really?" asked Mrs. Morishita. "Then where is your mother?"

Azula stiffened. "Excuse me?"

"You say you have everything, then where is your mother?"

"Why do you care?" She growled.

"No mother would ever let their child turn out like this."

"Shut up."

"If your mother let you turn out like this, she wasn't a very good mother."

"I said SHUT UP!" Azula yelled. "What's it matter to you anyway? You're not my mother! Besides, she never cared about me, Zuko was her favorite."

"Nevertheless, she was your mother and she did care about you." Mrs. Morishita stated. "I have a question for you, young lady: if your mother saw how you acted, what do you think she would say?" she left Azula alone in her room.

While she just stood there, absorbing what she was told, Naruto appeared at the door. "I take it Mrs. Morishita already talked to you?"

Azula turned to face her bodyguard. "Where were you?" She demanded.

"I went to talk to Kori."

She gave an annoyed huff. "Whatever."

"What's wrong Azula?" He asked her.

She stood there silently for a few minutes. Finally she asked "Why do you care so much about Kori?"

Naruto had a mystified look on his face but decided to answer anyway. "I was the first one to treat her like a normal person."

Azula was visibly confused, so he continued. "When I was first assigned here, everyone knew her as the mayor's daughter, not as Kori. She hated that and so she kept constantly getting in trouble. The problem was that nobody would punish her for what she did."

"So what did you do?"

He smiled. "The first time she got into trouble when I was her bodyguard, I made her do twenty laps on the trail and she had to do it in ten minutes. Every time she got into trouble, hard training was her punishment. She hated me for that. She had threatened to murder me almost every time she did laps. In response, I just told that she had to start over."

"Her parents let you do this?" Azula asked. She was surprised but she also knew that Naruto could be a hard taskmaster.

"They told me that so long as I didn't kill her, I was fine. And so, every time she turned her frustration and anger at me, I trained her to the ground."

"That's all you did? You trained her?"

"Why do you think she tried to attack me? She's been trying to beat me ever since I trained her. It's her way of trying to prove that my training worked."

Azula just stood there, reflecting on what he said. She then walked through the door and out into the corridor. She walked right pass Ty Lee and Mai. "Azula, where are you going?" Naruto called out.

"To Kori's room," She called back.

"What for?" asked Ty Lee.

"I'm going to talk to her."

As they watched go down the corridor, Mai just turned to the others and said "So whose getting the fire flakes?"

"That's not funny Mai." Naruto told her.

"Do you see me laughing?"

(Location: Kori's room)

She heard the knock on her door. "Who is it?" She called out.

"It's Azula. May I come in?"

"As you wish," she answered.

Azula opened the door and walked into the room. "What do you need?" Kori asked her.

"I wanted to apologize."

Kori looked at her. "I'm sorry?"

"I want to apologize for my behavior to you."

"Why?"

Azula stood silent for a minute. "I was jealous of you. I had thought that Naruto was my bodyguard only. Then you appear and practically tell me that he was yours as well. I was jealous and I took it out on you." She bowed her head. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I know what you're talking about." Kori smiled. "Naruto does that to you, doesn't he?"

Azula chuckled. "Yes, he does." She gave Kori a long look. "By the way, you can never tell anyone about me apologizing. If people found out, my reputation would be ruined."

"Yes ma'am!" She gave a mock salute, making the both of them laugh.

"You know…now that I think about it, it was Naruto's fault for making us act like that." Azula said after they stop laughing.

Kori thought about it. "Yeah…you're right."

Azula smirked. "Want to get back at him for it?"

Kori just smirked in return. "I already have an idea."

(Location: Beifong estate)

Sokka stood in front of two very shallow craters in the ground with Katara and Team Guy nearby as well Lao, Poppy and Master nearby. Reaching down, he pulled out a dagger out of the ground, attached to the dagger was a message. "Whoever took Aang and Toph left this." He said as he held it out to Katara.

She took the message of the weapon. "If you want to see your daughter again, bring five hundred gold pieces to the arena." She read aloud. "It's signed Xin Fu and the Boulder."

Sokka looked at the message. "You know, the Boulder has got a nice autograph." He noticed the looks Katara and Team Guy were giving him. "Hey, I am just saying."

"Master Yu." Lao began. "I need you to help me get my daughter back."

"We're going with you." Katara told him.

"We are indeed." Guy said.

Poopy knelt in front of the craters. "Poor Toph, she must be so scared." She said.

(Location: Earth Rumble Arena)

"You think you're so tough!? Why don't you come up here so I can smack that grin off your face!" Toph told Xin Fu. Both her and Aang were still in the cages but were now held in the air by chains.

"I'm not smiling." Xin Fu replied.

"Toph!" a voice cried out. Xin Fu turned around and saw Lao, Master Yu, Katara, Sokka, Akela and Team Guy.

"Here's your money!" Sokka announced holding up a sack of money. "Now let them go." He dropped the bag and Master Yu bent it across the floor to Xin Fu's feet.

He picked up the bag and checked the contents. Once he was satisfied, he gave a signal and Toph's cage was lowered. The Boulder (who had standing close to Xin Fu) opened the bottom and Toph came out. She ran over to her father and they began to leave with Master Yu and Team Guy behind them.

"What about Aang?" Katara demanded.

Xin Fu held up a wanted poster of Aang. "I think the Fire Nation will pay a hefty price for the Avatar. Now get out of my ring!" He told them.

Akela gave an angry snarl and charged at Xin Fu. Before he could even get close the Boulder stepped up and bent the ring to jut out a column beneath Akela, sending him up into the air with a yelp.

"Akela!" cried Sokka.

The Boulder then bent a big chunk of rock out of the ring and threw it at the airborne wolf. It hit him, sending him crashing to the floor in front of Sokka. "The Boulder did not come here to play with half-grown mongrels."

Katara quickly checked Akela. Thankfully the injuries were not serious.

Sokka turned and glared at Xin Fu and the Boulder. "You son of a half grown…" He reached for his boomerang but the other members of Earth Rumble VI appeared, severely outnumbering him. "The Boulder dares you to finish that comment." The Boulder taunted him.

Both Katara and Sokka stared at the group. "Go, I'll be okay." Aang told them. They turned and left with Akela behind them.

They managed to reach the other group in the tunnel. "Toph, there's too many of them. We need a Earthbender, we need you!" Katara told her.

"My daughter is blind." Lao told them with anger in his voice. "She is blind and tiny and helpless and…fragile. She cannot help you."

At this point, Toph had had enough. She jerked her hand free of her father's grip. "Yes, I can." She began to walk back over to Katara and Sokka.

Team Guy began to follow. "Lord Lao," Lee spoke up as he passed by. "Sooner or later, your daughter will want to be free of your protectiveness. Perhaps sooner is better than later?" He kept on walking leaving Lao to ponder his question.

Meanwhile, the members of Earth Rumble were also leaving the place. Aang was being held by the Hippo. As they approached the staircase, a wall of earth sprang up in front of them. They all turned their heads to see Toph on the other side of the ring with Sokka and Katara behind her.

"Let him go!" Toph ordered. "I've beat you all before and I'll do it again."

"The Boulder takes issue with that comment." The Boulder responded. The Hippo tossed Aang's cage away and they all charged forward.

Both Sokka and Katara moved forward to fight but were stop by Toph. "Wait!" she told them before concentrating a bit. "They're mine." She went into an Earthbending stance and forced the Earth Rumble members back while also creating a dust screen. As her father watched with worry from the stands along with Master Yu, Team Guy and Akela, Toph entered the dust screen.

The first person she encountered was Fire Nation Man, who was doing poses. Once he noticed that she was there, he tried to bend a stream of dust at her. She simply smirked, sidestepped and sent the Fire Nation Man out of the ring and crashing into the floor by way of a rock line.

As the fight went on, Sokka and Katara were trying to get Aang out of the cage. "Hit it harder!" Aang told Sokka, who was banging on one of the locks with a rock. "I'm trying!" he replied.

Meanwhile the Gecko had been hit on the head by a small pebble. Looking at where it came from, he saw Toph and immediately reacted by leaping up with rock-balls in hand and hurled them at her. When they got near, she just grabbed them and tossed them behind her. As the Gecko was coming down due to gravity, he was hit by a column which sent him flying again. He got again by another column and a third each time gravity took over his flying abilities. The third sent him flying out of the ring and straight into Fire Nation Man, sending the two of them back onto the ground.

The Gopher tried to sneak up on Toph by tunneling. He popped up behind her and threw a rock-ball at her. However she knew he was coming. So when the rock-ball reached her, she whipped around, grabbed the rock-ball and threw it back. The result was the Gopher was being hit and flew out of the ring and crashing into the Gecko and Fire Nation Man.

Sokka finally managed to break open the lock letting Aang free. He popped out of the cage ready to fight, only for Sokka to shake his head and point. His finger pointed to the Hippo, who was swinging a large rock emblem at nothing, coming out of the dust screen. Soon afterwards, the Boulder flew out of the dust screen. The two of them quickly turned back around and saw Toph follow them out of the dust screen.

The Boulder growled and the Hippo thumped his chest. The two charged forward with the Headhunter swinging in from behind with rock in hand and screaming as well. The screaming tipped Toph off. She was standing on the Earth Kingdom emblem in the middle of the ring and so when the Boulder and the Hippo also reached the emblem, she literally bent the earth to twist the emblem around. The end result was the Headhunter crashing into the Boulder and the Hippo. Toph took advantage of that and sent them flying out of the ring and into the Gopher, Gecko and Fire Nation Man.

"I never knew." Master Yu said. "Your daughter's amazing."

"People you least expect it from do that to you." Neji stated.

Toph now stood at one end of the ring with the dust screen covering the other side. Bringing her hands down, she bent the dust away revealing Xin Fu standing there. He loosened some muscles in his neck and took his stance. Toph simply hocked one in response.

She then got into her stance and slowly they circled each other. Xin Fu started it off by bending a barrage of rocks at her. Toph bent the ring to form two triangular slabs in front of her to form a shield. The barrage of rocks hit the shield but nothing broke through. She then bent one of the slabs forward at Xin Fu.

He twisted to the side in order to dodge the incoming slab. He stuck his hand into the ring and hurled a rock-ball at Toph. She simply took one step to the side and let the rock-ball fly right past her face. She retaliated and sent Xin Fu out of the ring and landed squarely between Lao and Master Yu.

As Aang and the others gathered around Toph, Master Yu told her father "She's the greatest Earthbender I've ever seen!"

(Location: Beifong estate)

Toph Stood in front of her parents while the others sat behind her. "Dad," She began. "I know it's probably hard for you to see me this way but the obedient, helpless little blind girl that you think I am just isn't me. I love fighting. I love being an Earthbender and I'm really, really good at it. I know I've kept my life secret from you but you were keeping me secret from the whole world. You were doing it to protect me, but I'm twelve years old and I've never had a real friend. So now that you see who I really am, I hope it doesn't change the way you feel about me."

"Of course it doesn't change the way I feel about you, Toph, It's made me realize something."

"It has?"

"Yes…I've let you have far too much freedom. From now on you will be cared for and guarded twenty four hours a day!"

"But Dad!" protested Toph

"We are doing this for your own good, Toph." Poppy told her.

"Please escort the Avatar and his friends out." Lao commanded. "They are no longer welcome here."

As the group was being led away, Aang looked back. "I'm sorry Toph." He told her.

"I'm sorry too." She replied. "Good-bye Aang."

Lee also looked back. "Lord Lao, you never answered my question." Lao didn't say anything and looked away. "This is most unyouthful of you." Lee accused.

No one noticed the tears coming from Toph's eyes.

(Location: Outside the Beifong estate)

Aang stood on the edge of a cliff overlooking the Beifong estates. "Don't worry." Katara told him. "We'll find you a teacher. There are plenty of amazing Earthbenders out there."

"Not like her." Aang said.

They climbed aboard Appa where Sokka, Momo, Akela and Team Guy already were. They were about to take off when Aang heard something behind him. Turning around, he saw Toph in her causal gear running up to them. "Toph!" he cried. "What are you doing here?"

"My dad changed his mind." She told them as she stopped beside Appa. "He said I was free to travel the world."

While Sokka and Katara shared a look of confusion, Team Guy did not believe a word she said. "Well…we better get out of here before your Dad changes his mind again." Sokka said.

"Good idea." Toph replied.

"You're gonna be a great teacher, Toph" Aang told her.

"Speaking of which, I wanna show you something."

"Okay." Aang hopped off of Appa but just as he landed on the ground, Toph sent him into a tree via an earth column she bent out of the ground. "Now we're even." She told him. Holding out her hand, she said. "Um, I'll take the belt back."

Sokka took it off and tossed it down to Toph. Unfortunately, he forgot she was blind so the belt landed on her head, sending her to the ground. "Sorry." He apologized just before Aang fell out of the tree.

Soon enough, Appa was flying through the night sky with a new passenger on board.

(Location: Yu Dao)

"That was a good workout." Naruto said as he came out of the bath adjacent to his room. He had just gotten back from the morning exercises with the military. Clad only in his pants, he headed back to his bed to get the rest of his clothes when he notices the door was knocking. "Who is that?" He wondered aloud as he walked to the door.

He opened it and was immediately bombarded with high-pitched squeals of "It's Lord Naruto!"

He slammed the door shut, locked it and put his back to it so that they wouldn't get through easily. _"It's the Fangirls!" _He thought in a panic.

"**Yes it is." **Kyuubi noted.

"_How did they find me!?" _he demanded. _"I didn't tell anybody about where I was sleeping except for…" _He went still as the notion went through his head. _"They didn't."_

"**Apparently, they did."**

"_Those two are so dead when I get my hands on them!"_

The thumping on the door was getting louder, as were the cries of "Please let us in Lord Naruto!" and "I want your babies!"

"**Kit, right now you should probably focus more on getting out alive." **Kyuubi commented with a slight fear. He had lived long enough and had been sealed into enough people to know the horror of Fangirls (and Fanboys!).

Naruto looked around the room for an exit. _"Of all the rooms I had to choose, I had to pick the one that didn't have windows!"_

"**Then make one! The door won't hold for long!"**

Quickly making a one-handed Rasengan, he charged to the wall that he knew led to a room that had windows. He burst through the empty room, opened the window and leapt out just as the Fangirls broke through the door. _"I'm safe!" _he thought in triumph as he landed on a rooftop.

"**Uh…Kit? Don't look down."**

He, of course, did lookdown and saw Fangirls in the streets. He could tell they were Fangirls because of the banners that said "We love Lord Naruto!"

"_Dear Kami! How many are they!?" _He wondered.

Before the fox could answer, the window he had leapt from was filled with Fangirls. That was when he remembered he was only wearing his pants.

"Lord Naruto!" They cried getting attention from the streets, which amplified the cry many times over. Suddenly there were Fangirls on the same rooftop as him.

"**Gaki, I just have one word of advice: run!" **

And so Naruto did. He ran and the Fangirls followed. If one had stayed behind and looked up, they would have seen four girls sitting on the edge of the roof of the mayor's house, eating fire flakes.

(Five hours later, Location: Mayor Morishita's dining room)

Azula, Mai, Ty Lee and Kori were sitting down at the table and were about to enjoy a light lunch. The door then opened and in came a fully clothed Naruto. "That was not fun." He declared as he closed the door behind him.

"What's the matter Naruto? Didn't you enjoy your run?" Azula asked, making the girls burst into giggling.

"Let's cut to the chase, shall we?" He told them. "Kori, Azula, I know it was the two of you who did this. As a prankster, I commend you but I must also prank you back." He turned to Azula. "Since your prized possession is still in your room at the Royal Palace, I cannot have it copied."

"So what are you going to do then?" Azula asked with a smug grin.

Naruto shrugged. "I already did it. I lost the Fangirls two hours ago, so I went to see some people. They should be arriving soon." He looked over to Kori. "I must admit Kori; I did not know you had them."

Both Azula and Kori began to become nervous. "Who's coming?" Kori asked.

Soon they heard a knock on the door. "I think that's for you two." Naruto told them. He then went back to the door and opened it. "Here they are." He announced.

"It's Lady Kori and Lady Azula!" They heard come from the door. Azula and Kori both knew that kind of voice.

"Fanboys!" cried the two of them in horror. They then ran to a nearby opened window and jumped through it. The Fanboys soon chased after the two girls, leaving the dining room empty except for Naruto, Mai and Ty Lee.

"Um…Naruto?" asked Ty Lee. "Wasn't that a bit much?"

"Not at all." He replied as he sat down at the table. "I let them off a little easy."

"How so?" asked Mai.

"I could prank them in a way that would force them to strip to their undergarments, AND THEN I would've introduced the Fanboys." He explained before helping himself to the lunch. Both Mai and Ty Lee just stared at him. The two of them, as well as Azula and Kori when they heard about what he said later, had learned a good lesson that day:

Don't prank an Uzumaki, they will prank back in equal measure or do worse.

**End**

**Author's note: **Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me. I never thought I would hit triple digits in reviews.

Now you've got a little history on the Paragons. More will be coming up. Also coming up is a conversation between Naruto and Sifu.

For the record: this is not going to be Naruto/Azula/Kori, it's just Naruto/Azula, those of you who want a threesome can and will get over it.

For those of you who find my descriptions of Earthbending difficult, I apologize. It's not as easy as describing the other Bending arts

If you want to know what a spike meteor hammer is, it's the weapon Kori uses in the comics.

Also, those are the actual stage names for the Earth Rumble members. I did not make those up.

Now, I am not going to do Zuko Alone because, like The Cave of Two Lovers, it's a little pointless for the story. However I will be doing a Zuko-centric chapter that also reveals what happened to Naruto while he was on Ember Island.

Yes, I did change Sokka a little bit in this chapter but considering he's gotten a little more serious, I felt it was necessary.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	6. Running away and Catching up

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 6: Running away and Catching up.

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Naruto's dream)

He floated in the air as the fight waged on below him. He knew he was dreaming because the battle below was being fought by shinobi. He didn't know who the man with red hair was but he knew who his opponent was.

"I must admit, you're pretty tough." The blue skinned shinobi wielding a giant sword covered in cloth said.

"So are you." The red haired shinobi replied. "But I expected nothing less from the Tailless Tailed Beast."

"Ah, so you've heard of me."

"Any shinobi worth their kunai knows who you are. I also know what you're a part of."

"Then you know that you're about to lose."

"Kisame," a voice called out. "You're taking too much time."

Kisame turned his head back to look at a black haired man standing in a tree. "Oh lighten up, Itachi. He'll be done in a few moments."

"Then it's best if you finish it now."

"I will not be going down so easily!" The red haired shinobi said as he flashed through hand signs. **"Yōton: Shakugar**‒**"**

He didn't finish the jutsu because at that point, Kisame had shoved his cloth-covered sword into his stomach.

"My blade, Samehada, seems to enjoy your chakra." He told the red haired shinobi. Then he pulled the sword upward, tearing the cloth. What was under the cloth was not a sword made of metal but of shark scales. As the blade cleared the red haired shinobi, it left a bloody trail on his body, making him stumble to the ground.

"**Suiton: Suikōdan no Jutsu, **(Water Style: Water Shark Bomb Jutsu!)**" **Kisame said as the rain all around them formed into a giant shark. The shark then flew straight at the red haired shinobi, causing him to scream in pain when the jutsu hit. Naruto didn't know how but he could feel the pain as well.

"NOOO!" screamed out Naruto as his eyes opened. He was in his room, in Yu Dao.

"**Are you okay kit?" **Kyuubi asked.

"The pain…it was so real." He panted; sweat causing his night clothes to stick to his body.

"**What happened?" **

"I was…I was having a dream. It was the Akatsuki. They were…were fighting another Jinchūriki."

"**Did you know the Jinchūriki?"**

"No but I…I saw the headband. He was from Iwa; also his hair and beard were red."

The fox was silent for a few minutes. **"…So they got Yonbi."**

"Yonbi?" asked Naruto.

"**You just described the Jinchūriki of Yonbi."**

Before Naruto could ask another question, he heard a knock on the door. "Lord Naruto, are you alright? We heard screaming." A guard outside the door asked.

"Yes, I'm fine." He called out. "It was just a bad dream."

"Very well my lord. Please remember that you're leaving in two hours."

Naruto looked outside (he had windows installed after the Fangirl incident). It was still dark but he could see the first lights of dawn on the horizon. "Thank you for reminding me."

As he listened to the guard leave, he looked out the window. _"What was with that dream?" _He wondered.

"**I don't think it was a dream, gaki."**

(Location: Aang's group)

It had been some time after Toph had 'left' her family to join with Aang. Now it was dusk and they were setting up camp.

"Hey, you guys picked a great campsite. The grass is so soft." Toph noted.

"That's not grass." Sokka told her. "Appa's shedding."

"Oh gross." Katara complained, lifting a foot of the fur.

"That's not gross." Aang told her. "It's just a part of spring. You know rebirth, flowers blooming and Appa gets a new coat."

"Aang is most correct! Springtime is so youthful!" Lee shouted.

"Yosh! And you all are in the springtime of your youth!" Guy cried out.

"Don't even think about hugging." Neji warned.

"We'll have Toph bury you up to your waist in the earth." Tenten threatened.

"Ah, the beauty of spring," Katara said with sarcasm. Appa sneezed which caused a lot of fur to fly upward and fall down to the ground (as well as the group). "Stop, Appa stop," she told him as he shook his head, getting rid of any other loose fur.

"It's not that bad Katara." Sokka told her. She turned around and saw him crouched on the ground next to Akela. "It makes a great wig." He turned around and on top of his head was a tall cone of Appa's fur. Akela had the same thing, but his was smaller.

"And a great beard." Aang announced as hopped down from the saddle. He was wearing Appa's fur as a bushy white beard. Both Sokka and Aang laughed at what the other was wearing, Akela just rolled his eyes and pawed the wig off his head.

"I'm just glad we have another girl in the group. There are times you two are disgusting." Katara said as she swept fur off her shoulders.

Toph walked up to Aang and Sokka. "Excuse me, does anyone have a razor? Because I've got some hairy pits," She said as she raised her arms. She had stuffed fur under her armpits. The three of them kept laughing, even more so when Aang had sneezed, slammed into Appa's foot and fell to the ground. Even Katara started to giggle.

(Location: Azula's group)

"This thing is really moving, isn't it?" Ty Lee asked.

"So it would seem." Mai answered as she leaned against the wall.

"I must hand it to War Minister Qin; he did on a fine job on this." Azula noted. The War Minister had been at Yu Dao working on a military project. The end result was hybrid of a tank and a train. When he heard that Azula was hunting for the Avatar, he lent the tank-train to her so that she could track him down.

The door to the next car opened and one of the engineers step through. Attached to his waist was a safety line. "Princess, we've found a trail on the Avatar. We're following it now."

Azula nodded. "Very good," She told him.

The engineer left to go back to the engine. "Is Naruto still checking our supplies?" Azula asked Mai.

"Yeah, he's also checking on the mongoose dragons." She answered.

"Hey Azula," Ty Lee said. "I've got something to tell you."

"What is it Ty Lee?"

"Well…this morning, while we were still in Yu Dao, I had woken up early. I wanted to stretch my legs a bit, so I walked around a little. When I walked past Naruto's room, I heard him scream."

Both Azula and Mai had an expression of surprise; they've never really heard Naruto scream. "What happened?" Azula asked.

"It sounded like he had woken up from a dream. Then he started to talk to himself. I didn't hear much but I did hear the words 'Akatsuki' 'Jinchūriki' and 'Yonbi'. At that point a guard had shown up, so I left." She looked at her two friends. "Do you know what those words mean?"

They shook their heads. "Do you think this has something to do with your vision in the swamp?" Mai asked Azula.

"I don't know." She answered. "But something tells me it also has to do with those people from Omashu."

(Location: Aang's group)

The sun had set and the sky had turned purple. Aang and Sokka were setting up the tent and sleeping bags while Katara dealt with the water. Guy, Lee and Akela had gone looking for firewood while Neji and Tenten had taken up positions in the trees to keep a lookout. The only person who wasn't doing anything was Toph. She was kicking back and relaxing against a rock with a piece of wheat in her mouth.

Katara took notice, so she went over to Toph. "So Toph," She began. "Usually when setting up camp we try to divide up the work."

"Hey, don't worry about me. I'm good to go." Toph told her.

"Well, actually what I'm trying to say is some of us might fetch water while someone else might set up the fire pit or put up the tent." Momo flew by with berries in his paws, which he dropped into Katara's hands. "Even Momo does his fair share."

"Katara I'm fine, I can carry my own weight. I don't need a fire; I've already collected my own food and look." She bent two slabs of rock out of the earth to from a triangular shape. "My tent's all set up."

Katara made a face. "Well, that great for you but we still need to finish—"

"I don't understand! What's the problem here!?" Toph demanded, interrupting Katara.

"Never mind," said Katara as she walked away.

Later, Aang was Airbending the saddle off Appa's back. He managed to get it on the ground but he also managed to put it on top of Sokka as well. As this was going on, Katara looked over at Toph and decided to give it another try.

"Hey Toph," She greeted as she walk back over. "I wanted to apologize for earlier. I think we're all just a little tried and getting on each other's nerves."

"Yeah, you do seem a little tried." Toph told her, not even trying to apologize back.

Katara got irritated. "I meant all of us."

"Well, goodnight." Toph told her as she crawled into her earth tent.

"Goodnight." Katara gave up and walked away.

That night, everyone except Lee and Guy (who had taken over look out duty) was fast asleep. Toph lay in her earth tent sleeping peacefully but suddenly came awake because of something. She kept her hand on the ground and concentrated. "There's something coming towards us!" She called out as she came out of her tent.

"What is it?" Aang asked as they joined her.

She placed a hand on the earth again. "It feels like an avalanche but also not an avalanche."

"Your powers of perception are frightening." Sokka noted with sleepy sarcasm.

"Confirm what she's saying, Neji." Guy ordered.

Neji activated his Byakugan. "There is something coming this way and closing in fast."

"Should we leave?" Katara asked.

"Better safe than sorry," Aang replied.

They quickly broke down camp and boarded Appa. As the sky bison flew away, they all saw smoke in the distance. "What is that thing?" Katara asked aloud.

"I don't know but I don't want to find out right now." Sokka told her.

(Location: Tank-train)

Azula stood in the engine car, watching as the sky bison flew away. "Will this be a problem?" She asked the engineers.

"Not in the slightest." They answered.

(Location: Aang's group)

They had flown a good distance. When they finally decided to land, Toph was the first to get off. "Ah land, sweet land," She said as she apparently hugged the ground. "See you guys in the morning." She told as she hopped up and started to walk away.

"Actually, can you help us unload?" Katara asked.

"Really, you need me to help unload Sokka's and Lee's funky smelling sleeping bags?" She asked. When he heard this, Lee took a sniff from his bag and fainted from the smell. Sokka saw this and brought his bag down to Akela. The wolf backed up immediately with his tail between his legs. "Sorry!" Sokka apologized instantly.

"Well yeah." Katara told her. "That and everything else, you're a part of our team now and—"

"Look, I didn't ask you to help unload my stuff. I'm carrying my own weight." Toph told her off before walking away.

"That's not the point." Katara told her before walking after her. "Ever since you joined us you've been nothing but selfish and unhelpful."

"What!?" exclaimed Toph. "Look here, Sugar Queen. I gave up everything I had so I could teach Aang Earthbending, so don't you talk to me about being selfish!" She sat down and bent another tent out from the ground.

"Sugar Queen!?" demanded Katara. The response she got was a slab of rock coming out of the ground and covering the opening of the earth tent. "Did…did you just slam the door in my face, how can you be so infuriating!?"

As they watched Katara essentially throw a tantrum around the tent, Aang looked at Sokka. "Should we do something?" He asked.

"Hey I'm just enjoying the show." Sokka told him.

Aang started to approach Katara. "Okay, okay. You both need to calm down." He said.

"Both?" Katara asked before whipping around to face Aang with a look that could've possibly terrified the Biju. "I'M COMPLETEY CALM!"

"I can see that." Aang said before doing the wise thing by backing off.

Later, everyone was trying to sleep, everyone except Katara. "The stars sure are beautiful tonight. Too bad you can't see them, Toph!" She called out.

Toph's response was to bend a rock line at Katara, sending her up into the air and landing on top of Sokka and Akela (no they don't share the same sleeping bag).

"Hey, how's a guy and a wolf supposed to sleep with all this yelling and earth quaking!" Sokka demanded after hosting Katara off. Akela barked in agreement.

The earth tent's door fell back into the ground and Toph appeared. "That thing is back." She announced.

"Well, how far away is it? Maybe we can close our eyes, just for a few minutes?" Sokka asked, trying to cover himself with his sleeping bag.

Aang noticed the incoming smoke. "I don't think so, Sokka."

Sokka then began to get out of his sleeping bag. "It was wishful thinking to begin with anyway."

They got everything aboard Appa and flew away again but the smoke was still there. "Seriously, what is that thing?" Katara asked.

"And how does it keep finding us?" Toph also asked.

"I don't know. But this time, I'm going to make sure we lose it." Aang told them.

As he had Appa pour on the speed, the others just dozed.

(Location: Tank-train)

"It seems like we're speeding up." Naruto noted.

Azula took a look at her bodyguard. "Naruto," She began. "Why don't you go to sleep?"

He turned to look at her. 'You've been awake since early this morning and have been working hard since. You need the rest." She explained.

"She's right." Mai agreed.

"Yeah, go and sleep, Naruto. We'll be with the mongoose dragons in the last car." Ty Lee chimed in.

Seeing as he had no argument, he nodded. "Alright but I want you to wake me either when its morning or we've caught up with the Avatar."

Azula smiled. "Goodnight then Naruto." She left the car along with Ty Lee and Mai.

(Location: Aang's group)

Appa finally landed on a flat part of a mountain. He landed and rolled onto his side, letting everyone in his saddle fall out onto the ground. "Okay, forget about setting up camp. I'm finding the softest piece of dirt and going to sleep." Sokka told them as he scooted away in his sleeping bag.

"That's good because Toph wasn't going to help anyway." Katara said snidely.

"Oh I didn't realize baby needed someone to tuck her in bed." Toph retorted.

"That's enough you two." Guy commanded.

"Yeah, there's something after us and we don't even know what or who it is." Aang told them as he tossed his shawl over his head.

"It could be Zuko; we haven't seen him since the North Pole." Katara suggested.

'Who's Zuko?" Toph asked.

Team Guy knew about Zuko, having been briefed about him, but Sokka gave Toph a summery. "Oh just some angry freak with a ponytail whose tracked us all over the world."

"Not all over the world." Tenten commented. Her team nodded in agreement.

"What's wrong with ponytails, ponytail?" Katara asked his brother with humor in her tried voice.

"This is a warrior's wolf tail." He replied without even lifting his face off the ground.

"It certainly tells the other warriors that you're fun and perky."

Akela growled lightly at that comment. "Oh stop Akela. You know she was kidding." Sokka told him. "Anyway, who's ever chasing us; they couldn't have followed us here. So, now would everyone just shush?" He lay back on his sleeping bag and tried to fall asleep but Momo landed on his chest and started to make a racket. "No Momo, shush, sleepy time."

Momo just went over his head, straight to the edge and continued to make noise.

Sokka was the first one to get the point. "Oh don't tell me." He groaned as he put his head on the ground.

"That's impossible." Aang protested. "There's no way they could've tracked us."

I can feel it with my own two feet!" Toph told him.

He ran over to the edge to take a look. Sure enough there was the smoke and the tank-train coming at them.

"Let's get out of here." Katara suggested.

"Maybe we should face them, find out who they are. Who knows, maybe their friendly." Aang suggested in turn.

"Always the optimist," Sokka commented.

The tank-train stopped and the car opened its side door. To Aang's and Katara's surprise, out of the smoke that bellowed out from the car, came Azula, Ty Lee and Mai on mongoose dragons. The mongoose dragons then began to run up the trail that led Aang's group.

"It's those three girls from Omashu!" Katara exclaimed. They all got ready to fight.

"We can take them." Toph declared, "Three on three."

"Actually Toph, there's eight of us." Sokka told her.

"Yeah, did you forget about us?" Tenten asked as her hand neared her shuriken holster.

"Oh I'm sorry." Toph said. "I didn't count you guys. You know no Bending and all."

Sokka got mad at the causal dismissal of their abilities. "We can still fight!"

"Okay, three on three plus Sokka, Guy, Lee, Neji and Tenten."

While Sokka reined in his temper, Neji remarked "That attitude will kill you one day, Toph."

She said nothing in return, having returned her focus back to the fight. She bent large rocks to come out of the ground randomly in front the three girls. The mongoose dragons they were riding just simply climbed over them.

"Well, we wanted to find out who they were, we found out. Now let's get out of here." Sokka told them before they ran back to Appa. Toph stayed at the edge and bent a big wall out of the rock to block the girls. Azula blew open a hole in the wall by generating and directing lighting at it. They climbed through the hole and Mai shot off some small arrows at Toph. Toph bent the rock beneath her up into the air, which block the arrows and allowed to land in Appa's saddle.

"Appa yip-yip!" ordered Aang.

"Guys, I need a barrage!" Tenten told her teammates. They nodded and the three of them reached for either their kunai or shuriken. They then hurled what they had at the three girls, trying to slow them down. Both Mai and Ty Lee pulled back a bit to avoid the barrage but Azula melted a hole in the barrage with her Firebending. The kunai and shuriken fell down harmlessly around her.

"They got away." She noted. She turned around and headed back over to her friends. "Let's head back to the tank-train. We'll still be able to track them.

The two girls nodded in agreement. As they went back, Ty Lee looked at Azula. "Why didn't we wake Naruto?" She asked.

"Because he needs the rest," Azula answered. "Besides, we didn't catch the Avatar."

(Location: Aang's group)

Appa flew on but even he was getting tired. "I can't believe those girls followed us all the way from Omashu." Katara said.

"Probably not all the way from Omashu," Guy noted. "From what Team Kurenai told us of Omashu, they didn't have the room or the resource to build something like that. They must've stopped somewhere to pick it up."

"I still think we could've taken them." Toph grumbled.

"Are you kidding me?" Katara asked. "The crazy blue Firebending and the flying daggers are bad enough but last time we saw them, one of those girls did something that took my Bending away. That's scary."

"I remember Lady Hinata telling me about that." Neji said. "It sounds similar to the Jūken."

Tenten then noticed that Lee had a troubled look on his face. "What's the matter, Lee?" She asked.

"It's just something been bugging me and I find it unyouthful." He told her.

"What?"

"Those three girls were the same ones from Omashu, right?" He asked Katara.

"Yeah, that's right." She answered.

'What are you getting at, Lee?" Guy asked his student.

"If they are the same three girls," Lee said. "Then where was Naruto?"

"That kid you were talking about back at home?" Toph asked Neji. He nodded in reply.

Then they noticed that the sky was getting lighter. "Oh no, the sun is rising." Sokka groaned pointing to the east where the sun was above a mountain. 'We've been up all night with no sleep."

"Sokka, we'll be okay." Aang reassured him.

Sokka began to freak out. "Are you sure? I've never not slept before. What if I fall asleep now and something happens? And something always happens!" Akela then proceeded to bite Sokka in the leg. After yelping in pain, he looked down at the wolf. "Thanks Akela. I needed that."

"Every time we land, those girls are there. So, we'll just have to keep flying." Katara told her brother.

"We can't keep flying forever." Aang replied.

"Well, why don't you land right now and let them catch up?" Toph suggested. "We can still take them even if they have that Naruto guy."

"Toph, that 'Naruto guy' as you call him, defeated four of our teammates easily." Guy told her.

"So? You guys aren't Benders, so it wouldn't take that much to beat you."

"I think you've spent too much time with the unyouthful Master Yu." Lee commented.

"Also Toph," Sokka said before she could reply. "Naruto isn't a Bender and he can see through the earth's vibrations as well."

Toph was stunned but stayed silent as they flew on. The tank-train was still behind them and was tracking them. But unbeknownst to either party, the tank-train was also being tracked by a scarred young man on an ostrich horse.

Appa kept flying and flying as the day went on. "So what's our plan?" Aang asked in a tried voice.

"Don't know. Too tried to think," Toph told him.

"I'm sure we'll come up with something after a short nap." Katara said.

"Yes, sleep." Sokka agreed whole heartily. The two fell asleep. Then they started to float in the air above the saddle. Both Toph and Team Guy did as well, even Akela and Momo. Momo grabbed onto Toph's leg and Akela bit down on a saddle handle. They were shocked awake when they realized that they were only floating because Appa was falling.

"What's going on!?" demanded Toph.

Aang was hanging on by the rope. "Appa felled asleep!" He yelled.

As they fell, Sokka brought Katara in closer while Team Guy made sure they didn't let go of each other. Aang had managed to bring himself down to Appa's head and then scooted down to his face. "Wake up buddy!" He cried.

As they neared a forest, Appa finally managed to wake up. He pulled into himself up a bit in order to fly but he still was going doing. After finally going through some trees, he crash landed on the ground, making all the birds fly away.

Aang slipped off Appa's head. "Appa's exhausted."

Akela barked out something that not only the other animals but even the humans could tell was sarcastic. If Kiba had been there, what Akela had barked would have translated to "Thank you Captain Obvious! What tipped you off!?"

"Okay, we've put a lot of distance between us and them. The plan right now is to follow Appa's lead and get some sleep." Sokka said as he walked from Appa with his sleeping bag.

Katara, being tried and irritable, decided to beat am already dead horse. "Of course, we could've gotten some sleep early if Toph didn't have such issues."

"WHAT!?" screamed Toph as she slammed her hands on the ground, creating a crack.

"Alright, alright," Aang cut in. "Everyone's exhausted, let's just get some rest."

"No. I want to hear what Katara has to say. You think I have issues?"

"I'm just saying." Katara began. "Maybe if you helped out earlier, we could've set our camp faster and gotten some sleep. And then maybe we wouldn't be in this situation!"

"You're blaming me for this!?" Toph demanded as she came near Katara who threw her sleeping bag down and gave her a 'bring it' motion with her hands.

"No, no! She's not blaming you." Aang got between the two of them and tried to play peacemaker.

"That's a bad idea, getting between two angry women." Neji said. Guy and Lee nodded in agreement.

"No, I'm blaming her!" Katara told him.

"Hey!" Toph tossed Aang out of the way. "I never asked you for diddly-doo-dah! I carry my own weight. Besides, if there's any one to blame, it's Sheddy over here!" She pointed at Appa.

"What? You're blaming Appa?" Aang asked.

"Yeah, you want to how they keep finding us? He's leaving a trail everywhere we go!" Toph told them as she grabbed some loose fur off of Appa and let it float away.

"How dare you blame Appa?" Aang told her. "He saved your life three times today! If there's anyone to blame it's you! You always talk about how you carry your own weight but you're not, he is! Appa's carrying your weight! He never had a problem flying when it was just the seven of us!"

Toph walked away from him. Earthbending her pack into her hands, she put it around her back. "I'm outta here." She stated.

Sokka and Akela stood in front of her, blocking her path. "Wait." He told her.

She simply bent him and Akela out of the way and continued walking. A few minutes after Toph had disappeared from their sight, the reality of what Aang and Katara did hit them. "What did I just do!?" Aang asked with _very _big eyes. "I can't believe I yelled at my Earthbending teacher. Now she's gone."

"I know." Katara told him. "We're all just trying to use to each other and I was so mean to her."

"Yeah, you two were pretty much jerks." Sokka told them with Akela nodding in agreement.

"Thanks Sokka." Katara said.

"No problem."

Katara helped Aang off the ground. "We need to find Toph and apologize."

Sokka finished the drink in his hand. "Okay, but what are we going to do about the tank full of dangerous ladies and possibly Naruto chasing us?"

Aang looked over at Appa and grabbed some of the shedding fur. "I have a plan." He said as he watched the fur float away. They got Appa into the nearby river and gave him a bath. Aang and Katara bent the water out of the river and onto Appa while Sokka, Team Guy and even Momo scrubbed him down. As they did that, the loose fur that Appa had went down the river.

After they were done, Appa now stood on the bank with no more loose fur. "Toph was right; Appa's fur was leading a trail right to us." Aang explained. "But now that he's clean, no more trail."

"Are you he's okay to fly?" Katara asked.

"Appa does kinda seem a little tired." Tenten noted.

"He'll be fine as long as we leave his saddle and all our stuff here." Aang told them.

"Then it's a good thing we already hid them." Neji said.

Sokka looked over at Akela. "Akela, I want you to guard the stuff. Can you do that?" He asked. The wolf just gave him a look. "Right, sorry, forgot who I was talking to."

Aang grabbed a nearby bag and began collecting fur that was on the ground. "I'm going to use Appa's fur to make a fake trail to lead the tank off course. You guys use Appa to try and find Toph."

"Aang, that's not a good idea. You should have someone go with you." Sokka told him.

"Sokka is correct. Lee or I should follow you." Guy said.

The only words to come out of Aang's mouth were "Appa, yip-yip." The sky bison was up and flying away before anyone could get off. Aang turned around and flew off in the opposite direction, the fur in the bag already falling out.

(Location: Toph)

Toph kept walking as she near a forest. Suddenly she stopped as she felt a presence nearby. Taking no chances, she bent a rock line to behind a nearby bolder, where she heard a grunt of pain. Climbing stop the boulder, she looked at the person she had attacked. The person turned out to be an old man rubbing his rear end.

"That really hurt my tailbone." Iroh said to himself.

(Location: Tank-train)

Azula, Mai and Ty Lee stood outside the tank-train at the riverbank where Appa had landed. Sticking her hands into the water, Azula picked up some of the fur to examine it. "Wads of wet fur, how delightful," Mai said with boredom.

Ty Lee put on a thinking expression. "Hmm, they're not wads. They're more like…bundles or…bunches? It's got an 'uh' sound."

"…Clumps?" Mai suggested.

Ty Lee perked up immediately. "Clumps, they're clumps!" She cheered as she gave Mai a hug.

Mai noticed the trail of fur leading away from the area. "The trail goes this way." She told Azula after breaking the hug with Ty Lee.

Azula had been knelling down to examine the fur left on the ground. Turning around, she noticed that a couple of nearby trees had the tops broken, like something had smashed through them. "The Avatar is trying to give us the slip." She announced. Pointing at the broken treetops, she said. "You two head in that direction and keep your eye out for the bison." She walked over to the fur and the ground. "I'll follow this trail."

"Hold on Azula." Ty Lee spoke up. "We should wake up Naruto."

Azula shook her head. "We'll be done soon enough."

"But Naruto told us to wake him up when it was morning. We've let him sleep long enough."

"Then he can sleep a little longer. I can handle the Avatar on my own and you two can take care of his friends."

"But Azula—"

"This conversation is over, Ty Lee." She told her. "Get moving."

Both Mai and Ty Lee mounted their mongoose dragons and went off. Azula briefly looked their way and then began to follow the trail of fur.

(Location: Aang)

He flew on his glider away from the forest and into the desert. Checking on the bag, he realized that the amount of fur he had was almost gone. Looking ahead, he saw a small town in the desert. Landing at the edge, he noticed a small sign that read Tu Zin. He figured it was the name of the town.

He walked through the village, dropping fur and keeping an eye out as he went. Finally stopping and dropping the rest of the fur and the bag onto the ground, he opened up his glider. About to fly away, he stopped and turned back around to look the trail of fur. Making his choice, he closed his glider, sat down on the ground and waited.

(Location: Aboard Appa)

While Katara flew Appa, the others looked around to see if Toph was. "Toph couldn't have made it too far." Sokka said.

"That may be," Said Tenten "But I still don't see her."

"Worry not Tenten!" Guy announced. "Our Flames of Youth will surely find our friend!"

"Yosh! If we can't do that, we will do 10,000 around the village when we return! And if we can't do that, then we'll do 50,000 push-ups with 200 pounds on our backs!"

"OH LEE!"

"GUY-SENSEI!"

Before the two of them could hug each other, Tenten stood in the middle of them and held them apart. "No hugging!" She told the two of them. "We need Appa to fly, not be blinded!"

Neji, who had his Byakugan active, was about to nod in agreement but suddenly tensed up. "We've got incoming!" He shouted.

Momo started to growl as he looked down on the ground. Sokka came over to where Momo was. "What is it Mo OH NO!" He began to ask but stopped when he saw what was coming after them. It was Mai and Ty Lee. Turning to his sister, he yelled out "Katara!"

"How did they find?" She asked before urged Appa forward.

"Appa come on! We need to go faster!"

Appa couldn't go any faster. "He's too tired!" Katara told them.

"Not good, not good!" Sokka looked to what was ahead. "We just need to make it across that river."

Appa had begun to descend quickly, his tiredness getting to him. "Come on Appa, just a little further!" Katara urged as he began to crash through the top of trees. Taking a chance, Mai fired off small darts aimed at Sokka. He leapt back to avoid having his head pierced. Appa reached the river but instead of flying over it, he skimmed through it before crashing into the opposite bank.

Because of the crash, Lee and Guy flew off Appa and crashed into a tree, knocking them unconscious. Neji and Tenten also flew off but they flew into the woods. Sokka, Katara and Momo were the only ones who stayed on Appa.

Sokka stood up to take a look behind them. "We made it! We're safe." He announced.

"You did it, Appa!" Katara cheered. The two Water Tribe members got off the tried sky bison and gave each other a big hug. They were about to try and wake up Guy and Lee when Katara gasped. Looking back at the other side of the river, Sokka saw the two girls still riding their mongoose dragons. When they reached the riverbank, they didn't even slow down. The mongoose dragons RAN across the water!

Katara reacted by bending the water in the river into a deluge and sent at the two. While Mai simply had her dragon step to the side, Ty Lee leapt off of hers just before it was hit by the water. Katara uncorked her water pouch as she waited for Ty Lee to land.

Ty Lee didn't land right away. She leapt off a few trees before landing in front of Katara. Ducking under the water whip, she tried to jab at Katara. Katara dodged the jabs and responded with water-disks which Ty Lee cartwheeled out of the way.

While this happened, Mai had crossed the river. Once she reached then bank, she shot off some small darts at Katara. Sokka moved in and blocked them with his club and boomerang. He threw his boomerang at Mai. She jumped off her mongoose dragon and shot off another round of small darts, this time from her leg.

Sokka also swiped those away. Mai ran after Katara, surprising Sokka momentarily. That was all Ty Lee needed to get in close and hit Sokka in the right arm, making him drop the retrieved boomerang. He turned and tried to hit her with his club but she hit that arm as well. His arm went limp and the club fell from his grasp. He tried kicking her but she made that go limp too. Swaying on one leg, he lost his balance and fell forward. Ty Lee took that opportunity to hit him in the head.

It didn't quite work out the way she wanted. She clutched her in pain and glared at the Water Tribe boy. "Good try but no!" He told her.

Meanwhile, Katara ran to the bank to bend water at Mai. Mai quickly stopped her by throwing knives at her. The knives pinned Katara to a tree behind her and also made her lose control of the water, which just fell back into the river. Sokka showed up hopping away from Ty Lee. He felled down in front of Katara. "How're you doing?" He asked her.

"Well, you know." She told him.

"I thought that when Ty Lee and I finally got you guys, it would be more exciting." Mai told them, she then felt a kunai on her throat. "Does Round 2 sound good to you?" Tenten asked from behind her. Neji also appeared behind Ty Lee.

The two girls jumped away from the shinobi. They got ready to fight but they didn't expect what came next. The two of them were once again sent flying via Airbending from Appa's tail. They flew right into the river.

"Thanks Appa. I don't know what we do without you." Sokka told him. Appa responded by licking him in the face (please remember the sky bison has a big tongue).

"Appa!" scolded Tenten. "I wanted to fight that girl, why did you have to go and do that!?"

Neji stood above Sokka. With a few jabs in the right places, functionality was restored to his limbs. "Can we worry about that later, Tenten?" We need to wake up Guy-sensei and Lee. I think the third girl went after Aang!"

They quickly woke Guy and Lee up. Then they boarded Appa and then flew off. As they flew away, down the river Mai and Ty Lee waded out of the river and onto the bank. "Was it just me or was that guy kinda cute?" Ty Lee asked as she got the water out of her braid.

"Which one, there were three of them." Mai told her. "You know what, never mind."

(Location: Tu Zin)

Aang finally noticed that someone was coming. At first he saw only a shadow and a dust trail but as the shadow got closer to the town, he saw that it was the same girl who had chased after him in Omashu.

Once she had actually entered the town, she got off the mongoose dragon and walked forward.

"Alright, you've got up with me. Now who are you and what do you want?" Aang asked her.

'You mean you haven't guessed? You don't see the family resemblance?" She asked back.

"Guy and his team seem to know who you are but I want to hear it from your mouth."

"Well then, here's a hint." She put a hand over her left eye. "I must find the Avatar to restore my honor." She said in a false deep voice.

Aang said nothing and just stared at her. "It's okay, you can laugh. It's funny." She told him as she brought down her hand.

Aang looked at her and asked "So, what now?"

"Now?" she repeated. "Now it's over. You're tried and you have no place to go. You can run but I'll catch you!"

He stood up. "I'm not running."

When she heard that, she gave a little smirk.

(Location: Naruto's dream)

Once again he was floating in the air but he also could feel tremendous pain. Looking down, he saw a giant statue that had nine eyes. About four of the eyes had pupils in them while the other five did not. The mouth was opened and it appeared to be eating a large amount of chakra. The source of chakra was coming from the same red-haired shinobi Naruto had seen fighting Kisame. He was floating in the air surrounded by chakra. Also some form of pink chakra was coming out of his eyes and mouth.

Forcing himself to ignore the pain, he looked down at the statue's hands. On nine of the fingers, he saw people standing on them. Some were just images and some were actually there but Naruto knew who they were just by looking at the red cloud design on their cloaks.

"The Yonbi is finally sealed." One member of the Akatsuki announced. All of the chakra had disappeared into the statue and the red haired shinobi felled down to the ground, dead. The statue now had another eye with a pupil in it.

The pain had disappeared but then something odd happened. The statute's eyes swerved to look at him, even though he wasn't there. A deep voice came from the statue's mouth. **"YOU COULD 'VE STOPPED THEM! YOU COULD'VE HAVE SAVED HIM!" **The voice roared at him. While Naruto was visibly shocked, it seemed the members of Akatsuki were as well. It was then, with horror, Naruto realized that the pain he felt was what the red-haired shinobi was feeling when the Yonbi was being taken out of him.

"**Kit, wake up!" **Kyuubi's voice rang out. Naruto opened his eyes and realized that he was still in the tank-train.

"Why…why did I see that?" He asked as he gasped for breath.

"**Are you okay?"**

"I saw…I saw the Akatsuki sealing the Yonbi."

"**Will you be alright?"**

"Yeah," He looked around the compartment. He noticed that the side door was open and daylight was streaming in. _"Wait a minute, daylight?" _He thought. He rushed out of the compartment and saw that it was the middle of the afternoon. Looking over to the engine, he saw the engineers standing outside. One of them noticed him. "Lord Naruto, you're awake!" He said.

"Where is Azula?" Naruto demanded as he walked up to the engineers.

"The Princess?" the engineer asked. "She and her friends left to search for the Avatar. Her friends went off in one direction while she went in another."

"Why didn't they wake me? I told them to wake me up when it was either daylight or they had found the Avatar!"

"I don't know, my lord. The Princess told us not to disturb you and then left."

"Which way did she go!?" Naruto demanded, grabbing the engineer's shirt.

"S-she went that way!" The engine told him nervously, pointing at the trail of fur.

Naruto let go of the engineer and proceed to run in the direction the fur was leading. Once he was sure the engineers couldn't see him anymore, he increased his speed and ran even faster. _"You better not be doing something stupid, Azula!" _He thought angrily.

(Location: Toph & Iroh)

After getting over the initial confusion, Toph sat down with Iroh as he brewed some tea. Once the tea was brewed, he poured it into two crude cups and handed one to Toph. "Here is your tea." He told her.

As she stayed silent, he looked at her. "You seemed to be a little too young to be traveling alone."

"You seemed to be a little too old." She replied as she took the cup.

He gave a small laugh at the comment. "Perhaps I am."

"I know what you're thinking." Toph said. "I look like I can't handle being by myself."

"I wasn't thinking that." Iroh objected.

"You wouldn't let pour my own cup of tea." She pointed out.

"I poured your tea because I wanted to and for no other reason."

"People see me and think I'm weak. They wanna take care of me. But I can take care of myself, by myself."

"You sound like my nephew." Iroh told her. "Always thinking you need to do things on your own, without anyone's support. There is nothing wrong with letting people who love you help you. Not that I love you." He quickly said to her. "I just met you."

She gave a small laugh at that. "So, where is your nephew?"

"I've been tracking actually."

"Is he lost?"

He took a drink of his tea. "Yes, a little bit. His life has recently changed and he's going through very difficult times. He's trying to figure out who he is and he went away."

"So, now you're following him?" She asked him.

"I know he doesn't want me around right now but if he needs me, I'll be there."

"Your nephew is very lucky, even if he doesn't know it." She put her tea down and stood up. "Thank you."

"My pleasure, sharing tea with a fascinating stranger is one of life's true delights."

"No, thank you for what you said, it helped me." She bent down and picked up her pack.

"I'm glad." Iroh told her.

She started to walk away but then stopped and turned around. "Oh and about your nephew. Maybe you should tell him that you need him too."

Iroh said nothing as she walked away. He just drank his tea.

(Location: Tu Zin)

Azula stared down Aang. "Do you really want to fight me?" She asked almost tauntingly.

Then the cry of an ostrich horse was heard. One came out of an alley and its rider hopped off. "Yes, I really do." The rider said as he tossed his hat away, revealing his face.

"Zuko!" said Aang in surprise.

"I was wondering when you'd show up, ZuZu." Azula told him, crossing her arms.

Aang snorted a laugh "ZuZu?" He asked.

"Back off, Azula," Zuko said as he went into his stance. "He's mine."

"I'm not going anywhere." She replied as she too went into her stance.

The three of them faced off in the beginning of a three-way fight. They each stared down the other two, trying to figure out who would make the first move. Zuko took a look at Azula and moved his eyes to look at Aang. As he did, he noticed that Azula gave a little smirk.

She made the first move by throwing a blue fireball at Zuko. He reacted quickly by bending a shield of fire but the blue fireball sent him crashing into a wood column. After staring at what happened, Aang opened up his gilder and tried to fly away. Azula bent a large column of blue fire at him. He tried to block the fire by bending air through it. It worked but he also fell back onto the ground.

Looking up, he saw Azula running along a rooftop. She leapt down in front of him and bent fire in a sweeping motion with her foot. He leapt and landed between Zuko and Azula. This set off a three-way bending barrage of fire and air. They kept changing positions, sometimes it was Aang in the middle, sometimes it was Azula.

Finally, Aang leapt up a staircase and ran into a house. Azula followed him but soon discovered that the room had no floor. Aang sat on an air scooter on the other side and gave a wave. Azula regained her balance and landed on the tiny space of flooring that was attached to the wall. Zuko, however, charged right in and crashed into the bottom floor.

Aang looked down but then remembered that Azula was still there. She sent a stream of fire at him, which he quickly dodged by running along the edges of the wall and out the door, knocking Azula down to the bottom floor as well. He leapt off the staircase to avoid a burst of fire. As he stood up, he saw Zuko being sent out of the building via a burst of fire. He fell down unconscious on the ground, as Azula exited the building.

Aang bounced up two walls to avoid Azula's fire. Anticipating his next move, she bent a thin stream of fire to slice off the part of the roof he was on. He leapt to the rest of the roof but only grabbed the edge but Azula sliced that part off as well as he tried to climb up. Aang got stuck under a large piece of lumber in the wreckage as Azula entered the room. She set the walls on fire and began to walk towards Aang, who was desperately trying to get the piece of lumber off.

Before Azula could anything, Katara appeared. Bending her water into a water whip, she distracted Azula by bending the water whip into grabbing her hand. As Azula tried to regain her balance, Katara used the water whip to break the piece of lumber which had Aang stuck. "Katara!" he cried joyfully.

Azula retaliated by whipping around and sending a stream of fire at Katara. She ran out of the building to avoid the fire and Azula gave chase. As she was about to pass another door, Sokka and Tenten appeared out of it. She dodged Sokka's club and leapt out of the way of Tenten's kunai, landing in the street where Neji was waiting. She dodged his strikes by jumping back but then heard "Double Dynamic Entry!" Turning around, she saw two different pairs of feet coming at her. She let that fly right over her by falling to the floor.

While Azula fought with Aang, Sokka, Katara and Team Guy, a shadow appeared over Zuko's body. Opening his eyes, he saw a familiar face, "Uncle." He said.

"Get up." Iroh ordered and Zuko did.

Meanwhile, Azula was still fighting but could never hit her targets. They kept moving and forcing her to go where they wanted her to go. They cornered her in front of an alley. She felt that something wasn't right and looked down at her feet. Suddenly her feet were somehow yanked from underneath her. Standing behind her was Toph. "I thought you guys could use a little help." She told Azula's opponents.

"Thanks." Katara replied.

Azula got back on her feet and moved away. She bent two bursts of flame at them and then run through an alley. Thinking she had escaped them, she did not noticed Iroh and Zuko until she had ran into Iroh himself. Finally the ten of them cornered her in front of a ruined walled. "Well look at this." She announced. "Enemies and traitors all working to together, I'm done. I know when I'm beaten." She raised her hands in surrender. "You got me, a princess surrenders with honor."

But before anyone could do anything, a massive wind came in from behind them, making them lose their balance for a quick minute. Once they regained their balance, they saw someone standing on top of the ruined wall that Azula stood in front of. Everybody's eyes widened in surprise.

"Azula," Naruto growled. "I am not happy with you."

"Naruto I—" Azula began but Naruto interrupted her. "You and I will have a talk later. Right now, I have to deal with this." He looked down at the ten people in front of Azula.

"So it is you, Naruto." Neji stated.

Naruto ignored him and looked to Zuko and Iroh. "Zuko, Iroh, my fight is not with you. I recommend you leave."

Zuko surprised everyone there by saying "We'll take that recommendation."

As Zuko and Iroh began to leave, Azula spoke. "What's the matter ZuZu? Lost your spine?"

"Be quiet Azula!" Naruto barked out.

Zuko stiffened but refused to look back at his sister. Both he and Iroh walked away. Azula did not like being ignored, so she sent a fireball at her brother. Iroh saw this and pushed Zuko out of the way. The fireball hit him in the left shoulder, knocking him out cold.

"Azula, stand down!" Naruto ordered. "Zuko, take him and go."

Zuko did just that. He left the town, carrying his unconscious uncle.

"Azula," Naruto began. "Until I tell you, you are not to move from that spot or do any Firebending. Is that clear?"

"You can't—"

"Is. That. Clear?" He snarled.

He leapt down to the ground. "Good, now be quiet while I deal with them." He turned to face the others.

"The odds are not in your favor, Naruto." Guy told him. "You're outnumbered."

"There's a simply way around that, Guy." He replied curtly. "I'll make the most dangerous person in your group a deal."

The ten of them stayed silent until Aang stepped forward, thinking because he was the Avatar, he was the most dangerous. "What's your deal?" he asked.

"I wasn't talking about you, _boy_." Naruto told him. He then turned to face Sokka. "I was talking about him."

Sokka stepped forward, ignoring an angry Aang. "What do you want?"

"I want to see how good you are with the Bending styles. Here's the deal. You and I fight each other, no weapons, no tricks, just the Bending styles. You win; you and your group can leave."

"And if we lose?"

"Then the Avatar leaves with us."

"Like we would allow that!" shouted Katara.

"You resist us taking him, you die. It's simple as that." Naruto told her. He turned back to Sokka. "Have we got a deal?" He held his hand.

After thinking about for a minute, Sokka took the hand and shook it. "We've got a deal." That was when he threw a punch at Naruto's face. Naruto ducked and tried to sweep his legs out from under him. Sokka jumped away from the attack. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that Katara, Aang, Toph and Team Guy had given more space. Bringing his attention back to the fight, he moved into a Waterbending stance. Naruto smiled and moved himself into a Firebending stance.

The two of them stared down the other. Naruto made the first move. He moved forward and gave a small barrage of punches. Sokka deflected the punches, and then moved around him in an Airbending stance. When he reached his back, he changed into an Earthbending stance and gave a hard punch.

Naruto turned around into a Waterbending stance, swiped the punch away and struck Sokka in the chest with his palm. Sokka stumbled back but quickly recovered as Naruto pressed the attack. He went into an Earthbending stance and threw several hard punches as well as a strong kick. Sokka took some of the punches but managed to get into an Airbending stance and twisted his way away from the rest. When he saw the kick coming, he crouched into a low Firebending stance and swept Naruto off his remaining foot. He crashed on the ground but quickly recovered. Turning onto his side, he lifted his feet up and gave Sokka a one-two kick. Sokka jumped back into an Earthbending stance and Naruto came up into an Airbending stance.

Naruto moved in closer, trying to get around to Sokka's back. Sokka stopped him by bringing up his leg and snapping his foot out at him. Naruto tried to deflect it but it went through and hit him in the waist. He took it and using it as a handle; he twisted his foot up into a kick. Sokka blocked the kick with his left arm. While he used his hand to grab the leg and force it back down, he brought his leg back down and went into a Waterbending stance. As Naruto's legs touched the ground, Sokka struck him in the chest with his palm. It made Naruto skid back away from Sokka but he managed to recover and regain his balance.

The two of them now once stared at each other. "Not bad Sokka." Naruto told him as he lightly panted. "Your Earthbending and Firebending stances seem a little sloppy; you'll need to work on them as well as your movements."

"Duly noted," Sokka noted as he panted a little more heavily for breath. "Correcting my Firebending stance might be a little difficult consider every Firebender we meet wants to kill and/or capture us."

Naruto laughed. "That's true."

"You're not perfect yourself. Your Airbending stance and moves were stiff and rigid."

"This would be my first time actually using it in real combat. I've only read the instructions and the practice exercises."

"You have Airbending scrolls? Where are they!?" Aang demanded.

"Can it kid; I'm not talking to you." Naruto told him. He turned back to face Sokka. "How about we call this one a draw? It seems we still need to strengthen our weaknesses."

"Fair enough," Sokka decided. Naruto walked back over to Azula, took her by the arm and proceeded to walk out of the town. Once he was clear of the town, he hoisted Azula up onto his back and ran off at an incredible speed.

The remaining people there went back to the nearby Appa and flew back to retrieve Akela and their supplies. Soon afterwards, in the night, Appa once again found a flat piece of a mountain. He didn't, he collapsed onto the ground and fell asleep. Aang, Sokka, Katara, Toph, Momo, Akela and Team Guy just went to sleep in the saddle. It was the first full sleep they had and they were grateful for it.

(Location: Tank-train)

When Mai and Ty Lee got back to the tank-train, they decided to go after Azula. The tank-train followed the trail of fur. They met up with Naruto and Azula, who had slow down when he noticed the tank-train, in a different part of the forest after dark.

"Hey! Are you guys alright?" Ty Lee asked.

"Not now, Ty Lee." Naruto told as he marched Azula to the side of the tank-train. After making her stand against it, he asked her a question. "What were you thinking?"

"What do you mean?" Azula asked back.

"I mean your idea of going after the Avatar alone. I told you specifically to wake me when you caught up with him!"

"You said it yourself. The Avatar was weak! I would have captured him easily if his friends or Zuko hadn't shown up!" She protested.

"That's exactly my point! I wanted you to wake me up because of them. My main worry about them isn't the Avatar, its Sokka. Also, why did you try to attack Zuko after I let him go!?" he demanded.

"You did what?" Mai asked with half shock, half surprise.

"He didn't get hit, that old fool of an uncle pushed him out of the way." Azula told her. She then felt a gust of wind go by her face. She turned to see Naruto's arm buried in the tank-train. The tank-train was made from Yu Dao metal, the finest metal in the four nations, and Naruto punched through it like it was made out of paper.

"Iroh pushed Zuko out of the way because he knew his answer. You were about to kill your brother and possibly ruin your answer just because he didn't respond to your insult!" Naruto growled. "It was not a time for you to be petty, Azula. Your life was at stake!"

"I was not in any danger!"

"YES YOU WERE!" He roared at her. "YOU WENT OFF ON YOUR OWN WITH TELLING ME! HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO PROTECT YOU IF YOU DON'T TELL ME WHERE YOU'RE GOING!? DO YOU WANT TO DIE, IS THAT IT? WERE YOU TRYING TO DO SOMETHING SO STUPID THAT WILL GET YOU KILL!?"

"No." Azula told him, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. "I just wanted to show that I could handle it myself. I honestly thought I could take him and I thought you really needed the rest."

The next thing she knew, Naruto pulled her into a tight hug. "Don't ever scare me like that again. Understand? Never again," He told her.

She nodded. "I'm…I'm sorry."

Naruto broke the hug. "Thank you." He looked at Ty Lee and Mai. "We should all get some rest. I'll take watch."

The three girls nodded in agreement. **"That was nicely done, gaki." **Kyuubi complimented.

"_It was necessary, Kyuubi." _Naruto silently replied. _"She shouldn't have done something so reckless."_

"**You would have done the same thing three years ago." **

"_I'm not the same person I was three years ago. I know the consequences of charging in without a thought. She didn't and that's what she did today. She was overconfident and that would have gotten her killed."_

The two of them stayed silent as the girls went back into the train-tank. **"Why did you take watch kit? You know that neither the Avatar's group****nor Zuko will come after you." **Kyuubi asked out of the blue.

"Someone should still keep an eye out." Naruto said quietly.

"…**You're trying to stay avoid the dreams, aren't you?"**

"Why am I even seeing the Elemental Countries in my dreams? I left that all behind me."

"**Not all of it." **A new voice told him. Turning his head, Naruto saw someone leaning against the tank-train.

"Sifu," He greeted. He looked around. "You've frozen us in a moment, didn't you?"

"**Very observant," **Sifu told him.

"Do you know what's causing my dreams?"

"**Of course I do. I'm causing it."**

"Why?" Naruto asked.

"**I feel I must remind you of what the consequences of your decision."**

"What are you saying? That the dream of the Yonbi being sealed was my fault?"

"**It wasn't a dream."**

Naruto had a look of shock. "You mean…you mean that actually happened?"

"**Yes."**

"The Yonbi was sealed…and he blamed me?"

"**He felt your presence both when his Jinchūriki was being captured and when he was being sealed. He thought you were actually there and did nothing to help."**

"Even if I had been there, there was nothing I could to do help."

"**And yet there was the chance that if you had stayed, you could've stopped those two from taking him."**

"Well I didn't stay, alright!? This isn't my fault!"

"**In a way yes it is, which is why every time one of your brethren is taken, you will see what happens."**

"Damn you, Sifu."

"**This was because of your choice, not mine."**

"You know I wanted to leave those people behind."

"**But they didn't leave you behind. Why else would they be here right now, trying to bring you back?"**

The frozen moment and Sifu disappeared. **"Are you going to be okay, kit?" **Kyuubi asked.

"Yeah, I just hope the other three Jinchūriki will be fine."

"**The other three?" **asked Kyuubi.

"When I saw the statue after the Yonbi was sealed, it had five eyes with pupils and four eyes without. That means there are three other Jinchūriki still alive."

"**That's not what has you worried."**

"What's makes you think I'm worried."

"**Kit, I have been living inside you for the past sixteen years. I know when you're worried."**

Naruto looked to the sky. "I just hoped that Gaara is still alive."

(Location: Elemental Countries)

The Akatsuki once more gathered in meeting. This time they gathered together in the same place. The day the Yonbi was sealed and the Gedō Mazō had screamed out those words had put them on edge. So they decided for the time being to always meet in person. "We have captured five of the nine Biju." The leader announced.

"Which means there are only four more to find and capture." said a hunchback member.

"Well, let's go find them already! I'm getting bored here." announced a member with purple eyes.

"Hidan, shut up. You're annoying." An eerily green-eyed member told him.

"Make me, Kakuzu!" Hidan challenged.

"There they go again, hm." A long haired member said.

"Enough." The leader spoke, his purple, rippled-like eyes stared at both Hidan and Kakuzu. "We have new information about the Kyuubi."

That made everyone pay attention. "Where is he?" Itachi asked calmly.

"A month ago, one of our spies in Konoha informed us that a Shinobi team had encountered the Kyuubi in the Bending Countries. After informing us, he was ordered to book passage to the country known as the Earth Kingdom."

"When was this?" The hunchback member asked.

"A month ago. He left immediately for the Earth Kingdom. "

"So why are we just learning about this now?" Kakuzu asked.

"Our spy also learned of a seal in the mission records room that sends messages and people, if enough chakra is added, to far locations, like the Bending Countries. Before he left, our spy carefully made a copy of the seal and also stole copies of the receiving seal tag. He sent us these as he left. The reason we waited this long was for the spy to reach the Earth Kingdom." He looked at two members. "Itachi, Kisame, you will be the ones to go through the seal and retrieve the Kyuubi."

"Why them!?" yelled Hidan. "I want to send that entire continent to Lord Jashin."

"The reason is because Itachi and Kisame have dealt with the Kyuubi before. They are the most experienced in dealing with him."

"Anything we should know about the Bending Countries?" Itachi asked.

"They are currently in a war that has lasted for the past century. Do not attract attention to yourselves."

"Do we have any information on the target?" Kisame asked.

"None that is new. I expect that the Kyuubi will be different from what you remember, so I'd advise caution when dealing with him."

"Well, it'll still be interesting to see the kid again." Kisame said with a grin.

"When do we leave?" Itachi asked the leader.

The leader looked back at him. "Immediately," He answered.

**End **

**Author's Note: **Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

If you're mad that Naruto didn't fight Team Guy, don't worry. That's next chapter.

If you thought the fight between Sokka and Naruto was a little short, cut me some slack. It's a little hard to write a fight scene with four different styles of fighting and trying to remember which movement goes with what style, all the while making sure it all works.

The location of the Airbending scrolls will be revealed soon.

As to how Azula, Mai and Ty Lee trying to figuring out Naruto's past, don't worry. Soon, he'll tell them a few things.

I'm trying to make sure that I keep the timeline that I created correct but it's a bit difficult when they don't tell you what month of what season Aang and his group is in.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	7. Training and Fighting

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 7: Training and Fighting

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Aang's group)

Two days have passed since the fight in Tu Zin. They had slept the night in a rock quarry. Now it was early morning and the only people who are supposed to be up that early is Team Guy. The reason the word "supposed" is used was because that Aang was also up and excited too. "Today's the day!" He said excitingly as he leapt into the air. He landed next to Sokka and Akela. "Can you believe it? After all that time searching for a teacher, I'm finally starting Earthbending! And this place, it's perfect. Don't you think?" He looked down at the two. "Sokka, Akela?"

Both of them managed to throw him a glare at the same time. "Oh, the two of you are still sleeping, huh?" Aang asked.

"Too early for this." grumbled Sokka. Akela growled sleepily in agreement.

"Sorry." Aang whispered. All of a sudden, the ground began to rumble and a nearby earth tent broke open. "Good morning Earthbending student!" Toph announced.

"Good morning, Sifu Toph." Aang greeted in return.

"Hey, you never call me Sifu Katara." Katara said with a little bit of jealousy.

"Don't take it personally Katara." Neji told her. "He's just excited."

Aang began to rub the back of his head. "Well, if you think I should…"

Sokka sat up, glared at the two of them and grumbled something at them.

"Sorry Snoozles. We'll do our Earthbending as quietly as we can." Toph told him before bending a rock to jut out of the ground beneath him, sending the bag skywards. It was probably not one of her better ideas. She was immediately pinned by Akela, who had his teeth at her throat.

"You know Toph, for a supposed genius that was pretty stupid of you." Sokka told her as he stood above her. The sleeping bag felled down to the earth harmlessly

"What? How did you…?" Toph began to ask.

"We practiced this. It'll help us if we ever get surprised like just now." He looked over at the wolf. "Let her go, Akela."

"How did you get out of the sleeping bag?" Aang asked as he kept looking at both the bag and Sokka.

"The moment I felt the rock in my back, I moved out of the sleeping bag. It's that simple."

"You trained your senses and your body very well Sokka. You are very youthful!" Lee shouted out.

"Focus Lee!" barked out Guy. "While Sokka is indeed youthful, we must get going."

"Where are you guys going?" Katara asked.

"To get Naruto," Neji answered.

"Why? The last time that happened, he would've killed Hinata."

"He is still our teammate and our friend!" Lee stated.

"You do know that Naruto doesn't see it like that anymore." Sokka pointed out.

"It doesn't matter!"

"Then how are you going to find him? I thought that Team Kurenai was the tracking team."

"Lady Hinata has taught me some things on how to use the Byakugan with tracking." Neji told them.

"Also, just because we aren't a tracking team doesn't mean we don't know a few things about tracking." Tenten stated.

"Okay, what's your plan for tracking him?" Sokka asked.

"We will head back to Tu Zin and then track him from there." Guy told him. "Now we must be off. Come, my youthful students! Let us track our wayward friend with the power of YOUTH!"

The four of them took off in a fairly impressive show of speed. After they left, Aang hopped over Toph. "So what move are you going to teach me first?" He asked excitedly "Rockalanche? The Trembler? Oh, maybe I could to learn how to make a whirlpool of land!"

"Let's start with 'move a rock'." Toph told him before walking away.

"Sounds good, sounds good!" he replied, giving her a clap.

Akela yawned and woofed something, if Kiba was there, the yawn and the woof would have translated to "Suck-up."

A couple of minutes later, Toph and Aang stood in front of two big rocks. "The key to Earthbending is your stance. You've gotta be steady and strong." Toph explained as she showed an Earthbending stance. "Rock is a stubborn element. If you're going to move it, you've gotta be like a rock yourself."

"Like a rock, got it." Aang repeated.

"Good. Now the actual motion for this one is pretty simple." She took one step towards the rock and at the same time, punched the rock. The rock slid across the quarry until it hit one of the walls. "Okay, you ready to give it a try?" Toph asked.

Aang mimicked the stance he was shown. "I'm ready." He tried to punch the rock but instead he slid backwards until he crashed into a still sleeping Appa.

"Rock beats Airbender." Sokka stated. Akela nodded in agreement.

(Location: Iroh's dream)

A younger Iroh ran over a hill with a single tree. He had a smile on his face, for behind him was his son, Lu Ten. "I got you, Dad!" he said happily, pretending he bent a fireball at his father.

Iroh turned around and pretending to be hit, he fell down to the ground. Lu Ten jumped onto his stomach, the two of laughing happily.

The sky then turned dark and began to rain. A much older Iroh knelt before a grave. "My beloved Lu Ten." He said. "I will see you again."

Just then, he heard a familiar voice say "Uncle." Opening his eyes, he saw Zuko looking at him with worry. Looking around he saw that he was in an abandoned shack.

Iroh tried to sit up but felt pain in his left shoulder. "It's been sometime since I've been to hit that close to the heart." He noted.

Zuko looked away. "I'm sorry about that. I should've seen that fireball coming."

"Do not blame yourself, nephew. I chose to push you out of the way."

"I know." He reached for the tea that was brewed and poured some into a cup. "I hope I made it the way you like it." He handed the cup to Iroh.

He brought the tea to his lips and drank. He made a face but was able to hide it quickly. "Good." He told Zuko as he took another sip. 'That was very…hm…bracing."

Zuko poured him another cup and gave it to his uncle. When he wasn't looking, Iroh threw the tea out the window behind him. "So uncle," He began "I've been thinking, it's only a matter of time before I run into Azula again. I'm going to need to know more advanced Firebending if I want to stand a chance against her. I know what you're going to say, she's my sister and I should be trying to get along with her."

"Well yes, you should do that but you do have a point." After a little struggling, Iroh managed to stand up. "It's time to resume your training." He declared.

(Location: Aang's group)

Aang walked back to the rock. "I don't understand what went wrong." Katara said, looking at Toph. "He did it exactly the way you did it."

"Maybe there's another way." Aang offered. He approached the rock in an Airbending stance. "What if I came at the boulder from a different angle?"

Toph grabbed the back of his shirt. "No, that's the problem. You've got to stop thinking like an Airbender. There's no different angle, no clever solution, no trickitiy-trick that's going to move that rock." She shoved him out of the way. "You've got to face it head on. And when I say head on, I mean like this!" She leapt at the rock and shattered it by simply head-butting it!

"Whoa!" Aang said in surprise. As he began to mope (the kid mopes, get over it) Katara decided to try and help. "I've been training Aang for a while now. He really responds well to a positive teaching experience. Lots of encouragement and praise, kind words, if he's doing something wrong, maybe a gentle nudge in the right direction," She explained.

"Thanks Katara." Toph said. "A gentle nudge, I'll try that."

(Location: Tu Zin)

"We got lucky." Tenten announced. "The tracks were made on hard ground, not sand. Plus the wind hasn't been blowing hard around here." She was checking the footprints by the town entrance.

"Indeed, we also know which way Naruto went!" Lee said as he came back into the town,

"What do you mean?"

"Naruto made the same kind of footprint both Guy-sensei and I make when we run laps around the village. I don't think he knew about the footprints and if he did, he was probably hoping that they would be blown over by the wind."

"Neji, confirm!" Guy ordered.

Neji nodded and activated his Byakugan to look in the direction of the tracks. "It's very faint but I can sense Naruto's chakra signal in that direction."

"I thought Hinata said you wouldn't be able to see Naruto's chakra unless he used a Jutsu." Tenten said.

"No offense to Lady Hinata but I am better in using the Byakugan. Naruto's control is still incredible though, that's why his chakra signal is faint to me."

"Nevertheless, we have found his trail!" Guy announced loudly. "Now we will go forward with the power of YOUTH!"

While not all of the team agreed with how Guy said it, they all agreed on what he meant. Sure enough, they were following the trail at full speed (which in Team Guy means that both Neji and Tenten can easily stay with Guy and Lee. You see, in that team, full speed is directly below Youthful speed).

(Location: Tank-train)

"I'm bored." Mai stated as she lay on the ground.

"You're always bored, Mai." Ty Lee told her.

"Well, now I'm really bored."

"Mai, please give it a rest. Just think of this as a break." Azula told her.

The three girls hadn't been able to do much for the past two days. After spending a day fixing the hole Naruto made in the tank-train, the engineers found that they needed more wood as fuel for the fire. That meant another day for finding wood in the nearby forest. Today was the day they were supposed to move again, the engineers needed a little more time to get the wood down to proper size.

Meanwhile the girls had sparred, ran, relax and basically did anything that kept them from getting bored.

"Hey, why's Naruto?" Ty Lee asked out of the blue.

"Yeah, where is he?" Mai asked as well, genuinely curious.

"Now that you mention it, I haven't seen him for the past two days." Azula said before shrugging her shoulders. "Well if he had to do something and wanted to be left alone, we should respect his wishes."

"You're sure acting nonchalant about him, considering you like him." Mai stated.

"What!?" she squeaked. "I-I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Right and I am the Avatar."

"C'mon, it's so obvious Azula! You like him." Ty said with a smirk. "Did that small crush you had on him grow when we weren't looking?"

Azula blushed a little bit. "Well…I don't know. I haven't been sure since Yu Dao."

"You mean that fiasco with Kori?" Mai asked.

Azula nodded. "She told me what he had told her. He said that a crush can turn to love if you realize that your crush has imperfections. Right now, I don't think that Naruto has any imperfections."

"Oh, I know an imperfection!" Ty Lee said. "He's always polite and serious but also cheerful."

"Ty Lee, that's not an imperfection." Mai told her. "However, I do know an imperfection that he has."

"What's that?" Azula asked.

"He's secretive." Noticing the looks she was getting, she explained. "He's never told us about his past or who those people with the Avatar are to him."

"Yeah…you're right. Also he didn't really tell us about the people we saw in the swamp, just that they're dead." Ty Lee pointed out.

"What's he hiding from us?"

"I don't know." Ty had a frown on her face for a brief moment, and then brightened up. "But what I do know is that you do like him, Azula."

"And how can you tell?" she asked with sarcasm in her voice.

"Because there are days where the two of you act like a couple. You argue and fight but you also work well together in and out of combat."

"She's got a point." Mai noted. "Also, we're pretty sure that Naruto likes you as well."

"What? What do you mean?" Azula asked with surprise.

"We're quite confident in the fact that Naruto wouldn't let any girl sleep with her head on his naked chest."

Azula's blush got redder. "You saw that?"

Mai now had a little smirk on her face (it's not every day the Princess of the Fire Nation got flustered). "We walked in on you guys the next morning. I decided that the both of us would leave you two alone. Ty Lee kept grousing about the fact that neither of us were good artists."

"If you had made any pictures, I would have burn them!" She hissed at Ty Lee.

"Then it's a good thing we didn't make any." She replied. "There another thing that tells us Naruto likes you."

"What that's?"

"He yelled at you for putting yourself in danger. I don't think I ever seen someone act that protective with you."

Before Azula could reply, there was a sudden wind coming from the nearby forest as well as the sound of something to cut the air.

"What was that!?" Ty Lee asked.

"I don't know but let's go check it out!" Azula said as she leapt off the ground and charged into the forest.

(Location: Naruto)

He looked around and saw all the scarred tree trunks. "Okay, need to work on size." He noted.

"**Look on the bright side, you finally managed to get the thing working." **said Kyuubi.

"Yeah and I almost fell over because the thing was too big and heavy. Just look at all the trees."

"**True. I still think that using a Kage Bunshin would help."**

"For training yes, but it would be a crutch in battle, I want to be able to use this thing on my own."

"**You said the same thing when you started to practice using the Rasengan with only one hand."**

"And I wasright. Still it needs work, the thing only lasts a few seconds and I want to be able to throw it. If need be, you'll probably need to help me with the throwing part at first."

"**Duly noted kit,"** Kyuubi said. **"By the way, the girls are coming."**

Sure enough, Azula, Ty Lee and Mai appeared. "Is everything okay, Naruto?" Azula asked with concern.

"Yes, everything is fine. I was working on something and it turned out to be a little bigger than expected." He turned around to look at the three girls, what he saw made him stop and give them an onceover. "Sunning ourselves, were we?"

The girls looked down and then realized that they went to check on the disturbance in their undergarments. "Pervert!" cried Ty Lee as she tried to hit Naruto.

"Nothing of the sort Ty Lee," Replied Naruto as he dodged the strikes. "I'm just stating the obvious."

"Calm down." Mai told a blushing Ty Lee as she held her back.

"Do you enjoy the view, Naruto?" Azula asked with a smirk.

Naruto looked at her and then _looked _at her. "Let me put it this way: I'm glad the three of you know how to defend yourselves."

"Why's that?"

"Because you'd have to fight off a lot of boys coming after you if you ever went to the beach," He said with a straight face.

The four of them laughed at what he said. A gust of wind then blew through the small clearing. **"Kit, turn into the wind and breathe through your nose." **Kyuubi told.

"_What?" _he silently asked.

"**Just do it! When you do, I'm going to send some of my chakra into your nose."**

Naruto did as he was told. As he breathed through his nose, his eyes went flat. "Azula, Ty Lee, Mai." He began. "Are the engineers almost done with the wood?"

"They only need another half-hour to be done." Azula told him.

"When they're done, have them set off immediately. As for you three, please get dressed and join them when they leave."

"What's going on, Naruto?"

He looked away. "I'm going to get company soon."

The three of them were silent until Ty Lee spoke. "…Is it that group of people from Omashu?"

Naruto shook his head. "It's a different one."

"It's that group that was with the Avatar at Tu Zin, isn't it?" Azula asked.

Naruto nodded once. "We're staying." She stated, the other two nodding in agreement.

"No you're not. When the tank-train leaves, you will be on it."

"We can take them!" Ty Lee announced.

He looked at her. "Ty Lee, I know that you and Mai were about to fight two of them when the sky bison sent you into the water. Be glad that it did that, for you would have lost in seconds. When this team fights seriously, they tend to rearrange the surrounding landscape. You are leaving in the tank-train, no arguments."

Azula was about to argue again but saw the look in his eyes, they held the seriousness of a soldier about to go into battle. "Very well," She agreed. "Just promise me one thing."

"What's that?" he asked.

"Promise me that you'll win."

He smiled. "You doubt my ability to win a fight?"

She gave a small laugh. "How long until they're here?" she asked.

"Given how faint the smell on the wind was, I'd say an hour or two." He looked at the three girls. "Now go. Also be sure to get dressed as well."

They left, leaving Naruto alone in the clearing. _"So how did you know that they were coming?" _He asked Kyuubi silently. _"You had to use my nose to confirm but what tipped you off?"_

"**I could…ah…oh Kami this is embarrassing!" **Kyuubi muttered to himself.

Naruto could still hear him _"What could you do?"_

"**I could…sense the oncoming Youthfulness."**

"You could WHAT!?"

"**Don't make me say it again. It's embarrassing enough as it is."**

That conversation ended with Naruto on the forest floor, howling in laughter.

(Location: Aang's group)

"KEEP YOUR KNEES HIGH, TWINKLE-TOES!" Toph roared at her student.

Aang currently holding a big boulder on his back and was trying to walk. Every timehe made a step, Toph would bend the earth beneath his foot to rise up a little bit. After two steps, the weight of the boulder sent him off to the side and into the ground.

Next, Toph stood in front of a flat piece of stone. Rubbing her hands, she dug through the rock like it was sand. Aang repeated her actions, only to hurt his hand at the first attempt.

Next, Aang stood in a stance and waited. The waiting was causing him to sweat. Suddenly, Toph came out of the rock to his right and shouted at him. He yelped and fell backwards to the ground. Toph simply bent earth underneath him to stand him up again and flicked his forehead.

After borrowing Sokka's club (she would've just taken it but the fact that Akela was there and growling lightly convinced her to change her mind), Toph handed it over to a blindfolded Aang. She then had him play the Earthbending version of Whack-a-Mole. He kept missing at first but finally managed to hit one, earning him a slight nod of approval from Toph.

Next, Toph bent the earth to raise a wall on both sides of them. Then she drew a line in the ground and bent the surrounding rock into armor. After she was incased in the rock (save for her eyes, which is kinda redundant), she charged forward at Aang. He grabbed hold of her and began to push her back. After some struggling, he managed to push her back across the line.

Toph then had him stand on what can only be described as two earthen stilts while tossing and catching a weight. Toph then moved between the two stilts and punched them, sending a shockwave up both of them. Aang didn't move, so the shockwave just blew through him and his clothes. Toph gave him a single nod of approval, making him smile.

(Location: Sokka)

He stood in a tree, watching as a small furry creature came by and eat a patch of grass. "You're awfully cute." He said. "But unfortunately for you, you're made of meat." He kept watching the creature. "Just a bit closer," He muttered. When the creature finally left the grass and came near the tree, he acted. Yelling a battle-cry, he leapt down with machete in hand, ready to kill the creature. Unfortunately for him, he landed on top of a crevice. He got buried up to his waist. The creature simply walked up closer to him.

"Gotcha!" he cried, about to swing his machete again. This caused him to be buried even further but he managed to spread his arms out. The end result was him buried up to his armpits, allowing him to move his arms freely. He tried to move his body out of the crevice but with no success. "You are one lucky little meat creature." He told said creature, which only wagged its tail in response. He was just glad Akela had stayed behind to take a nap on Appa. The wolf would have been rolling around on the ground in wolfish laughter.

(Location: Ruined shack)

"Lightning is a pure expression of Firebending, without aggression." Iroh told Zuko. "It's not fueled by rage or emotion the way other Firebending is." He reached for the new batch of brewed tea. "Some call lightening the cold-blooded fire. It is precise and deadly, like Azula."

"Or Naruto," Zuko replied.

"True." Iroh agreed. "To perform the technique requires peace of mind."

"I see, that's we're drinking tea, to calm the mind."

"Oh yeah, good point." Iroh said he was drinking the tea because he was a tea enthusiast (insert 'duh' here). "I mean, yes."

After they had finished the tea, they left the shack and walked over to the nearby cliff edge. If one looked out to the distance, they would've seen a familiar ruined town. "There is energy all around us." Iroh began. "The energy is both yin and yang, positive energy and negative energy. Only a select few Firebenders can separate these energies. This creates an imbalance. The energy wants to restore balance and in the moment the positive and the negative energy come crashing back together, you provide release and guidance, creating lightning." He motioned Zuko to step back, which he did.

He began to move his arms in a circular motion, already generating lightning. Once he was done, he shot his right hand, which was folded save for two fingers, forward and the lightning that was stored was fired off into the air.

"I'm ready to try it." Zuko stated after he watched the display.

"Remember, once you've separate the energy, you do not command it. You are simply its humble guide." Iroh warned him. "Breathe first."

Zuko did indeed breathe and began to copy Iroh's motions. The first thing that Iroh noticed was wrong was the fact that his fingers were not generating lightning. When he shot his fingers out, he didn't generate lightning. It just exploded in front of his face, sending him crashing into the ground.

(Location: Naruto)

He stood against one of the tree trunks in the clearing. It had been an hour and a half since the tank-train had left with the girls in it

"**They're getting closer." **Kyuubi said.

"Yeah, I can almost see the Youthfulness from here." Naruto replied with a smirk.

"**You are never going to let me live that down, are you?"**

"Are you kidding?"

The fox sighed.** "I thought not."**

"I mean, how can you even sense that?"

"**Did you think that guy was kidding when he was talking about the Flames of Youth? Every time he and that weirdo of a student really got going while you were nearby, I kept thinking I needed something to protect my eyes! Their chakra was too damn bright! A person with no chakra would've been able to feel that!"**

Naruto was about to laugh again but managed to turn it into a snort. **"Now what's so funny?" **Kyuubi asked with exasperation.

"Nothing really, I just had an image of you wearing of sunglasses." The fox gave that statement some thought; afterwards he too had a hard time trying to suppress his laughter. However a small gust of wind stopped them. **"They're here." **Kyuubi stated.

"_I noticed." _Naruto silently replied. He looked out to the clearing. "You might as well come out. I know you're there."

The forest was silent but the people who were looking for him landed into the clearing. They stared at each other silently for a few minutes. "…You took your time getting here." Naruto finally said.

"Come quietly, Naruto." Guy told him.

He barked out a laugh. "From 'let's go home' to 'come quietly', next thing I know, Team Asuma is just going to blindside me."

"When did you find about Team Asuma being here?" Lee asked.

"Just now, thanks." He replied with an amused smirk. Lee had the decency to look ashamed.

"Where are the girls, Naruto?" Neji asked him.

"They left, this isn't their fight."

"Have you told them? Do they know about your past?"

"No and if I had my way about it, they never will."

"That is most unyouthful of you, Naruto! Hiding your past from a girl, have you no shame!?" Lee demanded.

"Shut up Lee, it's my past and it's my choice to tell them or not."

"Naruto," Tenten said. "We know all about the Kyuubi. You don't have to hide it anymore."

"…Tsunade told you, didn't she?"

Neji nodded. "And showed us the results of it too," He said.

"Let's cut to the chase, shall we?" He walked forward, away from the trunk of the tree. "The four of you want me to come back. I'm not going anywhere. So that leaves us with only one option." He brought his hands up into a familiar handseal. **"Kage Bunshin** **no Jutsu," **He said quietly.

They all heard the sound of a _POOF!_ Beside Naruto was not ten, a hundred or even a thousand clones, there was just one. "We fight." The clone said. The two of them then got into different stances; the original went into a high Waterbending stance while the clone went into a low Firebending stance.

"Naruto, please." begged Tenten. "We don't want to fight you."

"Don't lie to me; I know you want to fight me." He looked over at Lee. "Especially him, you want to fight me, don't you Lee? Ever since Tu Zin, you've wanted to prove that you're better than me. You feel outraged that I didn't even consider you a threat."

"Yes I do, I do." Lee muttered to himself as he hung his head low. He was still able to be heard by the rest of his team. It was almost like he was under a spell. "I do want to prove I'm the better fighter. No…no I am the better fighter."

Naruto smirked, he had him. "Oh? Then why don't you try and prove it? Or have your Flames of Youth diminished to the point where you'll only fight someone weaker then yourself?"

Lee brought his head back up, his eyes ablaze with equal parts rage and excitement. "MY FLAMES OF YOUTH HAVE NEVER DIMINISHED! I WILL DEFEAT YOU WITH THE POWER OF YOUTH!" He charged forward at the two Narutos.

"Lee, wait!" Neji shouted. "He's baiting you!"

Lee didn't pay attention to his teammate. "**Konoha Senpū **(Leaf Whirlwind)**!**" He cried as he leapt at his opponents.

As the leg reached the two, the Naruto in the Waterbending stance pressed both palms against the underside of the leg. Pushing upwards, he sent Lee into an unexpected flip. As Lee began to face the ground, Naruto put his palms on his back and guided him towards the clone.

The clone reacted quickly to the incoming target. He shoved an elbow into Lee's chest and then punched him hard in the stomach with his other fist. He brought his body into a turn and snapped-kicked Lee in the chest, sending him flying back to his teammates.

"Lee! Are you alright!?" Guy asked with concern.

"I am fine." Lee told his sensei. He turned to glare at Naruto. "That was an unyouthful trick to bait me like that, Naruto."

"All's fair in a fight, Lee." Naruto replied.

"What kind of style was that? It looked like both Waterbending and Firebending." Neji asked.

"While I was being trained in the Bending stances, I began to experiment in secret with a clone to see how two styles that were the opposites of each other could be used in tandem. What you saw was the end result. You may have two shinobi skilled in the **Gōken **(Strong Fist) and a shinobi skilled in the **Jūken **(Gentle Fist), but this…" He and his clone switched styles, just to prove his point. "This is my own style, the **Tsuinken **(Twin Fist)."

"Stop this, Naruto." Guy pleaded. "We don't have to fight!"

"That's bullshit, Guy." Naruto told him. "And we both know it." Both he and the clone then charged at Team Guy.

(Location: Aang's group)

"This time we're going to try something a little different." Toph told her student. "Instead of moving a rock, you're going to stop a rock. Get in your horse stance!" She ordered.

Aang did as he was told. "I'm going to roll that boulder down at you." Toph pointed to said boulder. It was on top of a nearby cliff, sitting in front of a ramp. "If you have the attitude of an Earthbender, you'll stand your stance and stop the rock. Like this." She showed him the motion of the stance.

Katara decided to intervene. "Sorry Toph, but are you sure this is really the best way to teach Aang Earthbending?"

"I'm glad you said something. Actually there is a better way." Toph reached down for Aang's belt and took it off. She then warped it around his eyes. "This way, you'll really have to sense the vibrations of the boulder to stop it. Thank you Katara."

"Yeah, thanks Katara." Aang repeats childishly. Katara could only chuckle awkwardly in return.

Toph had climbed up to where the boulder was. With a simple push, she sent it down the ramp and at Aang. Katara waited nervously nearby while Aang face the oncoming boulder. Just as the boulder and Aang were about to hit each other, he chickened out and jumped over the boulder. The thing just kept on rolling until it smashed into a cliff wall.

Aang took the blindfold off and the first he saw was a very mad Toph. "I-I guess I just panicked." He tried to defend himself. "I don't know what to say."

"There's nothing to say!" Toph told him angrily. "You blew it! You had a perfect stance and perfect form but when it came right down to it, you didn't have the guts!" She shoved him to the ground.

"I know, I'm sorry," He told her.

"Yeah, you are sorry." She shoved her face into his. "If you're not tough enough to stop the rock, then you could at least give it the pleasure of smushing you instead of jumping out of the way like a jellied-bone wimp! Now, do you have what it takes to face that rock like an Earthbender!?"

Instead of rousing his spirits and/or his resolve, Toph's little speech had the opposite effect. "No. I don't think I do." Aang admitted in a defeated voice.

Katara once again decided to intervene. "Aang, it's no big deal. You'll take a break and try Earthbending again when you're ready. Besides, you still have a lot of Waterbending to work on, okay?"

"Yeah, that sounds good." He got up and followed Katara.

"Yeah, whatever," Toph told the two of them. "Go splash around until you feel better." She walked away as well.

(Location: Ruined shack)

Zuko kept trying to generate lightning but the end results kept going blowing up. "Why can't I do it!?" he asked his uncle. "Instead of lightning, it keeps exploding in my face, like everything always does!"

Iroh got up from where he sat. "I was afraid this might happen. You will not be able master lightning until you dealt with the turmoil inside you."

Zuko turned to face his uncle. "What turmoil!?" he shouted.

"Zuko, you must let go of your feelings of shame if you want your anger to go away."

"But I don't feel any shame at all. I'm as proud as ever."

"Prince Zuko, pride is not the opposite of shame but its source. True humility is the only antidote to shame."

"Well…my life has been nothing but humbling lately."

Iroh looked away for a moment in thought. "I have another idea. I will teach you a Firebending move that even Azula doesn't know, because I made it up myself."

Zuko looked back at his uncle and gave an appreciative smile.

(Location: Sokka)

"You probably think I deserve this, don't you?" Sokka asked the small creature, who was currently sitting on his head. "Look, I'm sorry I hunted you but that's just the natural order of things. Big things eat smaller things, nothing personal. But this time it didn't work out that way."

The creature yawned and turned around a couple of times before sitting down on his head and rubbed his nose. "I admit it, you're cute." Sokka told the creature. "…Okay, you convinced me. If I get out of this alive, it's a comically correct, vegetarian existence for me. No meat." He paused for a second as he realized just what he had uttered. "Even though meat is so tasty," His eyes grew watery about the subject. The creature leapt off his head and ran off. A fly flew nearby, but Sokka swatted at it, making it go away. Sokka found that the most comfortable way to put his arms were to cross them and put them on the ground in front of him.

The creature came back with an apple in its mouth. "Hey, looks like my karma's already paying off." Sokka said as the creature dropped the apple and pushed it forward with its nose. "That's okay, I got it." He simply reached for his boomerang and used it to scoop up the apple. "See? The boomerang does come back." He began to munch on the apple.

(Location: Naruto & Team Guy)

The battle kept going on. Despite being outnumbered and his refusal to add more numbers to his side via clones, Naruto and the one clone he did have fought Team Guy on even ground. After foiling Lee's and Guy's double attack, he fended off Neji. Tenten all the while was staying in the back, throwing weapons at Naruto in the hopes that he would be distracted. While she didn't pin him down, she did manage to take care of the clone. Now Team Guy stood across from him, all of them lightly panting.

"You have improved, Naruto." Guy told him as he and Lee stood in Naruto's view of Tenten. "You would have made a fine Konoha shinobi."

"I was a fine Konoha shinobi." Naruto replied. "Everybody else was too busy sucking up to the Uchiha to notice."

"That's not true!" Lee objected. "Not everyone did that!"

"So you're admitting that people did it?"

He faltered. "Well, I…"

"While I admit that Teuchi, Ayame, Iruka-sensei, Jiji and a few others didn't do it, everybody else pretty much did, even you, Lee."

"I most certainly DID NOT!"

"You most certainly did. Do you remember the first time we met? It was during the Chūnin Exams. You met us and the first thing you demanded of us was to fight the Uchiha and only the Uchiha. You didn't even acknowledge me as a threat."

"But he does acknowledge you as a threat now. That's why we're fighting." Neji said. Then he smirked. "Although, I had to say that the fight is over."

Behind Naruto, in the trees, Tenten held a katana in her hands and launched herself at Naruto. She swung at his side, hoping to injure him so that Neji could get in close and paralyze him.

Or so she thought.

_CLANG! "What the…?" _Tenten thought in surprise. Naruto had blocked her strike with his jian. It was almost like he was expecting it. "How did you…?"

"Did you honestly think that you got the clone?" He asked in a bored tone.

"_Of course I did!" _She thought. She had taken the clone out with a kunai to the heart and to the head!

"You thought that you had taken the clone out by piercing its heart and head with kunai, correct?"

"What? How did…" She narrowed her eyes as she realized the truth. "A Genjutsu!" she growled.

He smiled. "A minor one, designed to fool you into believing what you wanted to see happen to actually occurred."

"You can use Genjutsu as now?" Lee asked in surprise.

"Not the big ones." He admitted. "Genjutsu is not my forte. I just make use of the small ones, they work just fine for me."

"Then how do you explain the smoke!?" Tenten demanded

"Shinobi tools 101." He answered.

They were all confused until Neji remembered his days in the Academy. "The clone used a smoke bomb." He said.

"Correct." Naruto announced. "Just because I haven't been in the Elemental Countries for three years, doesn't mean I don't know how to make a smoke bomb. They were always useful for pranks when I was younger."

"So how did you know what I was going to do?" Tenten asked him. "How did you know that I was behind you when you didn't look behind you?"

Once again, he simply smiled and tapped his head with his free hand. "The clone told me."

While three members of Team Guy looked confused, one got the point. "You know the secret of the Kage Bunshin?" Guy asked.

Naruto nodded. "I give credit to my teacher."

**"You flatter me, kit."** The fox told him.

"_Is it flattery if it's true?" _he silently asked back.

**"Yes and it makes it even sweeter." **

"_So that was his plan." _Guy realized. _"He used the Genjutsu and the smoke bomb to allow the clone to disappear into the trees. When the clone saw what Tenten was about to do, he dismissed himself so that the original could get his memories!"_

"Tell me saw something, Tenten." Naruto asked, bringing everybody's attention back to what was going on. "Are you any good with that katana?"

She gave a little snort of disbelief. "I am a master of weapons." She told him.

"I didn't ask if you were a master of weapons. I ask you if you were any good with the katana."

"What do you think?"

His answer was to simply swat the katana away and smacked her side with the blunt side of the jian. "Not very, apparently," He stated as she yelped in pain.

"Why you…!" She raged. She swung the katana at him again but he twisted to the side in order to dodge it. In response, he slapped her on the ass with the blunt side of the jian. She kept trying and trying to hit him with the katana but he had moved into an Airbending stance and thus was always moving. Every time she tried to hit him, he'd twist or turn out of the way and then would hit her with the blunt side of the jian. She was soon getting bruises everywhere and was also getting angrier. "WILL YOU STOP THAT!?" she yelled at him as she attacked him again with the katana.

"Why should I?" He asked in return as he blocked the strike. "It's very entertaining."

"Tenten!" called out Neji. "Break off high-back!" It was a term that Team Guy used when in a combat situation. To break off high-back meant the person who was currently fighting the opponent would jump away in a high back-flip. Meanwhile the rest of the team would send a barrage of kunai and shuriken at the opponent. While they were distracted by this, the airborne person would land and engage again, taking care of the distracted opponent.

She broke contact with her katana and went airborne with a high back-flip. Then he saw the oncoming barrage. But he did something that Team Guy wasn't expecting; he knelt down on one knee with his head bowed low. This way, the barrage of kunai and shuriken passed harmlessly over his head.

Then a voice from the woods called out. "**Fūton: Daitoppa** (Wind style: Great Breakthrough)**!**" A huge gust of wind flew out of the woods. Not only did it stop the barrage, it redirected it back at the throwers. Team Guy leapt out of the way of the incoming barrage. When it had passed, Naruto had stood back up like nothing had happened. "What…? How...?" Lee tried to ask.

"Did you really think I wouldn't be able to learn new Ninjutsu?" Naruto asked the team.

Before they could answer, another voice spoke up. "Also, did you really think I wouldn't learn what my elemental affinity is?" A person walked out of the woods, revealing himself as another Naruto.

Guy then realized his mistake. _"The clone didn't just dismiss himself, he made a second clone!" _He thought silently.

"How do you know what your elemental affinity is?" Neji asked in stunned surprise. "Or even an elemental jutsu?"

"Once again, I give credit to where credit is due." Naruto told them.

"Your mysterious teacher?" asked Tenten.

"He's not really that mysterious, you all know him." But before anyone could think of a name, he continued to speak. "Now then…" This time, the clone moved into an Earthbending stance while the original went into an Airbending stance while also keeping his sword out. "Weren't we in the middle of something?"

(Location: Aang & Katara)

While Momo was trying to catch a frog (and failing), Katara and Aang stood in a marsh moving a small blob of water in a circle between the two of them.

"You know this block you're having is only temporary, right?" Katara asked Aang.

"I don't want to talk about it." He replied.

"You do realize that's the problem, don't you? If you face this issue instead of avoiding it—"

"I know, I know, I know, I know, I know! I get it, alright?" he told her as he let the blob of water fall down into the pool they were in. "I need to face it head-on like a rock, but I just can't do it! I don't know why I can't, but I can't."

"Aang, if fire and water are opposites, then what's the opposite of air?"

"I guess its earth."

"That's why it's so hard for you to get this. You're working with your natural opposite but you'll figure it out. I know you will." She reached behind her back and plucked out a reed. "Think fast!" she told him as she threw the reed at him.

Aang reacted quickly by bending the water to slice the reed in half.

"Excellent, you have the reflexes of a Waterbending master." She told him.

"Thanks, Katara." He then bowed to her. "Sifu Katara."

She gave a small smile and returned the bow.

(Location: ruined shack)

"Fire is the element of power." Iroh lectured Zuko as he drew the symbol for fire in the dirt with a stick. "The people of the Fire Nation have desire and will and the energy and drive to achieve what they want." He then began to draw the symbol for earth. "Earth is the element of substance. The people of the Earth Kingdom are diverse and strong. They are persistent and enduring." He began to draw the symbol for air. "Air is the element of freedom. The Air Nomads detached themselves from worldly concerns and found peace and freedom. Also they apparently had pretty good senses of humor." He grinned at his nephew.

Zuko just stared at him, so he continued by drawing the symbol for water. "Water is the element of change. The people of the Water Tribe are capable of adapting to many things. They have a deep sense of community and love that holds them together through anything."

"Why are you telling me these things?" Zuko finally asked his uncle.

"It is important to draw wisdom from many different places. If we take it from only one place, it becomes rigid and stale." To emphasis his point, he drew lines separating the four elements. "Understanding others, the other elements and the other nations, will help you become whole." He drew a circle around the elements.

"All this four elements talk is sounding like Avatar stuff."

"It is the combination of the four elements in one person that makes the Avatar so powerful." He pointed the stick at Zuko's chest. "But it can make you more powerful too. You see, the technique I am about to teach you is one I learn from studying the Waterbenders."

Zuko looked slightly hopeful when he heard this.

(Location: Aang)

Aang was currently sitting on a big rock trying to meditate. As he meditated, Toph came over and sat down nearby. "Aang, I found these nuts in your bag." She told him as she held up a bag with a little Aang face on it. "I figured you wouldn't mind, and besides, if you did, you're too much of a pushover to do anything about it."

"As a matter of fact, I don't mind. I'm happy to share anything I have." He told her in an even tone.

"You know, I'm really glad you feel that way, because I also have this great new nutcracker." She picked up and twirled Aang's glider staff.

Aang turned around with a look of unease as she brought the staff down on the nut cracking the shell open. "Actually, I prefer if you didn't—" _Crack! _"That's an antique, handcrafted by the monks—" _Crack! _"It's a delicate instrument!"

"It's not the only delicate instrument around here." Toph said mockingly as she and Momo eat the nuts. She walked away, banging the staff against rocks along the way.

Aang just went back to his meditation before Katara came by. "Hey Aang, have you seen—?" she began.

"Meditating here!" interrupted Aang.

"It's important. It's almost sundown and Sokka isn't back yet. I think we should search for him."

He turned to face her. "We'll find him faster if we spilt up." He got off the rock and the two of them went in two different directions.

(Location: Naruto & Team Guy)

They had fought for hours. While Team Guy had enough numbers to keep Naruto occupied while the others caught their breath, Naruto had his stamina and his style. He had them guessing by switching the styles that he and the clone were using when they didn't expect it. He had lost count of the number of times he had moved into a Firebending, Airbending, Earthbending or Waterbending stance while fighting them. He also kept them on their toes by sometimes using Ninjutsu at them, though he could only use Wind styled jutsu. As a result, they had pretty much torn up the surrounding woods.

Now once again, Team Guy stood across from Naruto. "Well, thank you for the exercise but now, I'm afraid I must be going." Naruto announced, surprising them. He dismissed the clone and began to walk away.

"Don't turn your back on us, Naruto!" Guy yelled at him. "You're not going anywhere!"

"Oh? And why not?" he asked.

"Because this time, we are not holding back," Guy told him.

He smirked and turned back to face them. "Not holding back? Please. Both Neji and Tenten are running on fumes and soldier pills. Lee's a little better off but not by much. But you Guy, you were holding back the whole fight."

"Why makes you think I am not holding back?" Lee demanded.

"You haven't taken off your weights or unlocked the Chakra Gates. Granted you could do either of those now but they wouldn't do you much good. If anything, they would only tire you out faster, the Gates more than your weights." He told Lee and then turned back to Guy. "Now, Guy here is different. He has plenty of stamina and a good amount of his chakra left to use. He hasn't brought out any weapons or unlocked the Chakra Gates. All-in-all, he hasn't been serious about this fight since we started."

"How can you tell?" Guy asked him with both suspicion and curiosity.

The smirk he wore became a foxlike grin. "Because neither was I," He announced.

The members of Team Guy were stunned. "You mean all this time…you were playing with us!?" Neji demanded.

"I have only been serious when someone poses a threat or tries to kill my princess." He told them. "And you four are not a threat to her." He began again to walk away.

"We will come after you, Naruto." Guy said. "We will follow you and we will take the girls hostage."

He stopped. "And what would you do them?" He asked.

Neji smiled. _"We have him." _He thought. "We'll take them hostage and if you don't come with us, we will kill them."

"It is unyouthful, but we will do it." Lee said.

"You could do that." Naruto acknowledged. "But then that would mean the failure of your mission and the Fire Nation's victory in the war, I think Azula wouldn't care if you killed her if that was the outcome."

"What do you mean?" Tenten asked with suspicion.

"It's simple. You take me hostage or kill the girls, the Avatar and his friends die."

"How would…?" Neji began to say until he got the meaning. "You've had a clone tracking us since Tu Zin!"

"Then all we'd have to do is knock you unconscious when we take you with us!" Guy said.

"Wouldn't work," Naruto replied as he pointed to the woods behind him. "Did you think the first clone only made one other clone?"

"_There's a second clone!" _Guy realized. _"He's watching us right now. The minute we take Naruto hostage, he'll dismiss himself and that will let the other clone know what will happen, thus allowing him to kill everybody back at the rock quarry!"_

"I am leaving now, you can try and follow me in order to take the girlsbut I know where the Avatar is at this moment and I could put you on a false trail that would lead you nowhere near the girls. So, good-bye," He walked away for the third time. When he was about to disappear from their view, he stopped again. "By the way, you'll have until dark."

"What!?" shouted Lee. "What do you mean!?"

"He means that if we don't get back to the others by the time its dark, the clone's going to…" Neji didn't finish that sentence; they all knew what would happen.

"We must go, now!" Guy ordered. They all eat soldier pills and ran back the way they came at full speed.

(Location: Sokka)

Sokka was trying to reach for the creature but was having a hard time considering the creature was behind him and was pulling on his wolf tail. "Okay, Karma person or thing, whoever is charge of this stuff. If I can just get out of this situation alive, I will give up meat and sarcasm…okay?"

The creature finally pulled off the small piece of leather that held the wolf tail together, making Sokka give a small yelp in pain and also giving him some really messy hair. "That's all I got." Sokka continued. "It's pretty much my whole identity. Sokka, the meat and sarcasm guy, but I'm willing to be Sokka the veggies and straight talk fellow…deal?"

"**You might want wait on that idea." **A now familiar voice told him.

"Sifu," He greeted the spirit. Turning his head to look at the creature, he saw that it was frozen in mid-motion. "Frozen in a moment?"

The spirit nodded. "Are you in charge of this whole karma thing?" Sokka asked.

"**No but I happen to be good friends with the person who is. But more importantly, I'm here to talk to you."**

"What do you want to talk about?"

"**You, you don't have to put yourself down like that. Meat and sarcasm is not your whole identity."**

"Well, what else is there?"

"**How about the fact that you're a planner, a thinker, an inventor or that you're good with weapons?"**

"And a Paragon as well?" he asked.

"**Yes there is that but again, that is not your entire identity."**

"What are you trying to say, Sifu?"

"**Do you know why you're with this group?"**

"I have to come up with the plans?"

"**True, but you're also here to remind the Benders that they are still human. You're here so that they never get a swelled head and think that they are all-powerful. They see you and they see what they can become without their Bending."**

"So I'm a reminder that they could just be as weak as me?"

He couldn't see it but Sokka knew that Sifu was grinning. **"Did I ever say that you were the weakest? If anything, you're the strongest one in the group."**

"…Thanks Sifu, I needed that."

"**That's what a sifu does, he teaches and encourages." **With that, Sifu disappeared and time began to flow again.

At that point, Aang showed up. "Aang, thank goodness! Have you got any meat?" Sokka asked.

Aang ran up to him. "Sokka, are you okay?" He asked. He reached for Sokka's arms and tried to pull him out of the crevice. It didn't really work.

"Stop, stop! You're going to pull my arms off!" Sokka told him.

Aang stepped back. "Hm, I bet I can Airbend you out of here." He said but Sokka could hear the uncertainty in his voice. He tried to bend a huge column of air from underneath Sokka's feet but the only result was Sokka's hair being poofed up, which was flattened by the hilt of his machete.

"Seriously Aang, I know you're new at it but I could use a little Earthbending here, how about it?"

Aang turned to face away from him. "I can't, I can't do it."

"Well, if you can't Earthbend me out of here, go get Toph."

"I can't do that either."

"You can't, why not?"

"It-it would just be really…uncomfortable."

"Uncomfortable, well I wouldn't want you to feel uncomfortable." Sokka said with obvious sarcasm.

"Thanks Sokka." Aang told him as he sat down next to the crevice, completely missing the sarcasm. "This whole Earthbending thing really has me confused. There's so much pressure. Everybody expects me to get it right away; i-it puts me in a really awkward position."

"Awkward position, I think I know the feeling." Sokka said again with obvious sarcasm (he's just being true to himself).

"I-if I try, I fail. But if I don't try, I'm never going to get it. I feel like I'm caught between a rock and hard place."

Sokka just looked at him. "Aang, can you do me a favor?"

"What?"

"Bring your head down closer." Aang wasn't sure what he was doing but brought his head down. "A little closer," He brought it closer. "That should do it." And without warning, Sokka proceeded to smack Aang upside the head.

"What was that for!?" Aang demanded with tears in his eyes.

"Are you done whining? Stop being a little kid who stops doing something because you got yelled at for doing it wrong once. Get your act together."

"I just told you I—"

"I don't care, Aang! Stop having a pity party! This morning, you woke up everybody because you were so excited to learning Earthbending. You say it's hard for you to learn this, well no duh! Did you expect it to be easy? Toph said it herself, it's a stubborn element. That means you have to be stubborn as well. Stop complaining about it being hard and deal with it!"

Aang sat there in silence until he nodded his head. "You're right, Sokka. Sorry about complaining there."

"Don't apologize to me; I've been here all day." Just then the creature came back. "Aang this is my friend, Foo Foo Cuddlypoops. Foo Foo Cuddlypoops, Aang."

Aang picked up the creature. "Oh, what a cute name for a little baby saber-tooth moose lion cub," He said.

"Really?" wondered Sokka. "He looks nothing like a saber-tooth mouse lion."

"It's hard to tell before their giant teeth and horns grow in." He looked closer at Foo Foo. "Whatcha you doing out here, little guy. Did you lose your momma?"

The loud growl behind him was his answer. Turning around, Aang saw Foo Foo's mother, a fully grown saber-tooth moose lion.

(Location: Ruined shack)

"Waterbenders deal with the flow of energy." Iroh explained to Zuko as the two of them practice a basic Waterbending move. "A Waterbender lets their defense become their offense, turning their opponent's energy against them. I learn the way to do this with lightning."

"You can teach me how to redirect lightning?" Zuko asked.

Iroh nodded. "If you let the energy in your own body flow, the lightning will follow it. You must create a pathway from your fingertips, up your arm to your shoulder, then down to your stomach. The stomach is the source of energy in your body; it is called the sea of chi, only in my case, it is like a vast ocean." He gave out a laugh.

Zuko said nothing, so he continued. "From the stomach, you direct it up again and out the other arm. The stomach detour is critical; you must not let the lightning through your heart or the damage could be deadly. You may wish to try a physical motion, to get a feel for the pathway's flow." He took a stance. "Like this."

Zuko copied the stance and began to mimic his uncle. Slowly but surely, they went through the motions. "Now, are you focusing your energy? Can you feel your own chi flowing in? Down? Up? And out?"

"I think so." Zuko said.

"Come on, you've got to feel the flow." Iroh moved his arms like a worm to emphasis his point. They kept practicing a few more times. "Excellent, you've got it!"

"Great, I'm ready to try it with real lightning!" Zuko exclaimed.

"What? Are you crazy? Lightning is very dangerous."

"I thought that was the point. You teaching me how to protect myself from it."

Meanwhile, Iroh had a look of semi-panic on his face. "Yeah, but I'm not going to shoot lightning at you! If you're lucky, you will never have to use this technique at all."

Zuko looked out to the horizon and saw storm clouds gathering. "Well if you won't help me, I'll find my own lightning." He took off on the ostrich horse in the direction of the storm clouds.

(Location: Aang & Sokka)

"Hey there," Aang said to what only a drunk veterinarian or a drunk geneticist could come up with. "We found your cub." He held up Foo Foo to emphasize his point. Then he put him on the ground and watched as he ran into the bush behind his mother. "See? We have no problem with you, we're friendly."

Mrs. Cuddlypoops didn't seem to agree with what he said. She lowered her head and looked like she was about to charge.

"Aang, I don't think that worked." Sokka warned him.

Mrs. Cuddlypoops roared her challenge and charged at them. When she got close to Aang, he bent the air to send over his and Sokka's head. She landed safely and looked like this was about to charge.

"This is bad." Sokka said. "Get me out so I can fight."

"I don't think that's—"

"We don't have the time, Aang, Earthbend me out of here!"

Aang did the Earthbending motions but Sokka was still trapped in the crevice. Meanwhile, Mrs. Cuddlypoops began to paw the ground.

"Oh no!" said Aang before he jumped over to a nearby rock. "Woohoo, look at me!" He started to do a silly dance to get her attention.

It didn't work as she charged directly at Sokka. Realizing what was about to happen, Aang hopped of the rock and knock her aside via Airbending.

Again, Mrs. Cuddlypoops landed safely. "Please don't leave me like that again." Sokka asked.

"I won't." Aang told him.

For the third time, Mrs. Cuddlypoops charged but this time Aang was ready. When she got close, he blasted her with a lot of air, which sent her skidding backwards. She finally got the hint and decided to leave.

At that moment, both Sokka and Aang heard someone clapping. Turning their heads to the sound, they saw Toph sitting on nearby rock.

"What are you doing here?" Sokka asked.

"Just enjoying the show," She answered.

"What? You were there the whole time?" Aang asked her.

"Pretty much," She told him.

"Why didn't you do something? Sokka was in trouble! I was in trouble! You could've gotten him and help us get away"

"Guess it just didn't occurred to me." She tossed a nut down to the ground, pulled out Aang's gilder staff and swung it down to crack the nut.

The idea was stopped when Aang grabbed hold of the staff. "Enough, I want my staff back!"

Toph hopped down from the rock. "Do it now." She ordered.

"What?"

"Earthbend, Twinkle-toes. You just stood your ground against a crazy beast, and even more impressive, you stood your ground against me. You've got the stuff."

"But—"

"Do it!"

He did as he was told. He took the stance and pushed the rock. It went sliding away before falling over.

"You did it! You're an Earthbender!" Toph told him.

"I can't believe it!" Aang said with joy.

"Ah, this is really a wonderful, touching moment." Sokka said with subtle sarcasm. "So could you get me out of her so I can give both a big, snuggly hug?"

"No problem, Sokka." Aang told him. He was about to try and do it when Toph stopped him.

"Actually, you should probably let me do that. You're still a little to this, you might accidently crush him." She warned.

"Yeah, no crushing please," Sokka said.

She walked over, bent him out of the crevice up to his knees and pulled him the rest of the way out by his hair.

Later, they got back to the camp area where they met up with Katara, Momo and Akela.

"You found him." Katara cried as she gave her brother a hug.

"Sorry about that." He apologized. "I was hunting a saber-tooth moose lion cub and ended up being stuck in a hole." He threw a look at his wolf. "Don't even start, Akela." He warned.

"Hey Katara, look what I can do!" Aang called out. He bent a large piece of rock down to the ground.

Akela barked out something. If Kiba had been there, it would've translated to "Show-off."

"You did it! I knew you would." She told him. She then whispered to Toph. "You tried the positive reinforcement, didn't you?"

"Yep, it worked wonders." She answered.

The resident sky bison decided to make an appearance. "Appa, Appa!" Aang said excitingly. "I can Earthbend now. The key is being completely rooted, physically and mentally unmovable."

Appa decided to give Aang a big lick, which sent him flying. This sent both him and Sokka into hysterics.

"Hey, guys." Toph called out. "Team Guy is back."

Sure enough, Team Guy appeared in under a minute. "Spread out, we have to find that clone!" Guy ordered.

"Hey, what's going on?" Aang asked.

"Naruto had a **Kage Bunshin **tracking us since we left Tu Zin. If we don't find it before nightfall, it's going to sneak in and kill you."

"That's impossible." Toph protested. "I would felt him. There's nobody here except us."

"She's right." Neji said, as he looked around with an activated Byakugan. "I don't see anyone except for us."

"Hang on." Lee said. "It's possible that he knows about Toph being able to see via the ground and he definitely knows about the Byakugan. He might be staying just out of range so that we won't see him."

"If that's true, we have to look for him now before he gets to us." Guy said. He turned to the others. "You four stay here. Under no circumstance should all of you go to sleep!"

"Guy, wait!" Sokka yelled, stopping Team Guy before they ran off.

"What is it?"

"There's a piece of paper in your headband." He pointed out. Guy reached for the piece of paper, opened it and read what was written.

"Guy-sensei, what does it say?" Lee asked.

Guy didn't say anything, he just simply handed the paper to Neji, who read it to the group. It said:

You people sure are gullible. There was only the one clone.

Naruto

"He was…bluffing?" Lee asked as if he couldn't believe it.

"He couldn't have been!" Tenten protested. "He told us about the hidden clone."

"No he didn't." Neji said as he remembered the conversation. "He only asked us if we thought the first clone had only made one clone. He also never actually said that he had sent a clone after us, we came to that conclusion ourselves."

"He must have put the note in my headband during the fight." Guy noted. "That means…" He stopped talking as all members of Team Guy realized what it meant.

"It means what?" Toph asked.

"It means that Naruto knew what we were going to try to do if he tried to leave the fight. He knew that we would threaten to go after the girls. He had his bluff ready before we had even gotten there."

Katara then saw that Guy was crying. "What's the matter Guy? What's with the tears?"

He smiled. "These are tears of happiness; he really was a fine Konoha shinobi."

(Location: Mountain top)

The storm raged all around Zuko and yet he stared defiantly at it. "You've always throw everything you could at me. Well, I can take it and now I can give it back!" He yelled.

Thunder boomed and lightning struck in the distance but none of it came near him. "Go on, strike me!" He roared. "You've never held back before!" and yet the storm seemed to mock him. Finally, his tears mixed with the rain and he howled his frustration to the sky.

As he cried on the mountain top, he heard a voice in the distance. **"Why?" **it said faintly.

"Who's there? Show yourself!" Zuko commanded as he rose to his feet.

"**Why?" **it asked again, this time more clearly.

"What do you mean 'why'?" He wasn't sure but he thought he saw a faint shadow moving in the clouds.

"**Why do you do this? What are you trying to prove?"**

"That I am not as weak as everyone thinks I am. To prove I don't have to fear lightning!"

Thunder boomed but oddly enough there was no lightning. The voice chuckled. **"You should always fear lightning boy, fear it and respect it."**

Zuko kept his eyes fixed on the faint moving shadow. "If you want to say something, then come out and face me instead of hiding like a coward!"

"**INSOLENT CHILD!" **roared the voice. Before Zuko's eyes, he saw a pair of solid gold eyes flash briefly in the storm clouds. **"DO YOU NOT KNOW WHO YOU INSULT!? IF YOU WISH SO MUCH TO BE STRUCK BY LIGHTNING, THEN COME AND TAKE IT!" **

He heard a bestial roar before he saw a large stream of lightning coming directly at him. He quickly took the stance his uncle showed him. He realized something just as the lightning struck. _"The booming thunder sounded more like the flapping of wings."_

He took the lightning in through his arm and let it travel down, but it wasn't easy. _"Arrgh! The pain! It's too much! Let it stop, dear Agni, let it STOP!" _His mind screamed as it was clouded by pain. As the lightning was about to reach his heart, he broke through the cloud of pain. _"No! I will not die because of this!" _He then forced the lightning down into his stomach and up into his other arm.

"I think I have something that belongs to YOU!" He yelled out as he returned the lightning in the same direction it came.

He stood there, panting in the rain. _"I think Naruto's been rubbing off on me." _He thought as he tried to get his breathing under control.

Then he heard the voice again and this time it was laughing. **"It has been a long time since someone has insulted me to my face, and an even longer time since someone has tried to fight me. You remind me so much of him."**

"Who's him?" Zuko asked cautiously.

Lightning struck down in front of him, making him leap back. But what he saw surprise him. In the exact spot where the lightning struck stood another Zuko. It was the same face, the eyes and the same build. That's where the similarities ended. To start off, Zuko could see through him a little bit, so he knew that it was a shade. He wore an ancient set of armor but it was the scars that set him apart. Like Zuko, his left eye had been burned. But unlike Zuko, his right eye has also been burned, giving him an almost mask-like appearance.

"Who is that? I-is that me?"

"**No but you are related to him."**

"How?" he asked. Then he looked closer and saw that the shade wore something familiar around his neck. "That's the Fire Nation Paragon Medallion. This man was a Paragon of the Fire Nation?"

"**He was the first. He was a good man."**

Zuko looked out into the storm again, looking for the shadow. "Who are you?" He called.

Again, the eyes showed themselves and this time, they came with a head. It was vague and cover by the storm clouds but Zuko could tell it was a dragon's head. **"I am the dragon that many search for but only a few will meet. You have joined those few."**

The head, eyes and voice disappeared and the storm kept on raining, this time without the thunder and lightning. Zuko had fallen to the ground in surprise. You see, he had just insulted, talked to and threw lightning at a legendary dragon that his great-grandfather, grandfather and father all searched for in their youth.

He had just met the Dragon King, Bahamut.

(Location: Naruto)

It was midnight when he finally reached the tank-train. "They certainly went far." He noted.

"**You did tell they had to leave. You didn't tell them to stop after a certain distance." **Kyuubi told him.

He ignored the fox and walked to the car that held Azula, Mai and Ty Lee. He walked in and saw that they were all asleep. He smiled, walked down to where Azula slept and knelt down beside her. "Azula, I'm back." He whispered.

She opened her eyes to look at him. "Did you win?" She asked sleepily.

He nodded. "Yeah, I did."

"That's good." He was about to leave when she grabbed his hand. "I want you to always come back, Naruto."

He smiled as she went back to sleep. "As you wish my beautiful hime (princess)," He told her as he stroked her hair.

**End**

**Author's Note: **Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

To start off, I've been toying around with an idea for this story. I've been thinking of putting in a Bleach element and put in Zanpakutō. Now I wouldn't put it in randomly, I would give a little backstory as to why they're there in the first place. I would also only keep it to three people which would be Zuko, Sokka and Naruto. I was planning on having them get the Zanpakutō much later in the story, not in the next few chapters. Also, they wouldn't become Soul Reapers when getting the Zanpakutō. I've got the names, releases and basic Shikai and Bankai ideas for Sokka and Zuko. I'm still working on Naruto, which is why they get them later. So let me know what you think of this idea.

If the fighting between Naruto and Team Guy was too short for your taste, I apologize. I'm still trying to figure out how to write a battle scene. But at least I'm trying, there are authors out there who will put in a (Insert fight scene here) and ask others to help them.

I know I used Bahamut for the name of the Dragon King, but can you blame me? If I said "Dragon in a video game." what would be the first name that popped into your head? Plus to me, the ending in that episode always seemed a little weak.

Also, I do know I changed Sokka a bit in this chapter. Aang was doing "Poor, poor pitiful me" a lot in this episode and I thought he desperately needed to be hit on the head. I also thought that Sokka would be the one to do it. Some of you out there might call it bashing, I call it much needed dose of tough love. The way the kid mopes in some of those episodes, he needs it.

If I had translated Twin Fist in Japanese wrong, please let me know. The Internet cannot always be trusted with these things.

The next two chapters are going to be original ones. The first will be a Zuko-centric and will also reveal what to Naruto after he washed up on Ember Island. The second one will bring in Itachi and Kisame, the second ability of the Paragons will be revealed and will have meeting between Naruto and a team of Konoha shinobi that he truly did not want to see again.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	8. Zuko in commmand

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 8: Zuko in command

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

They rode on the ostrich horse in silence. It had been more than a week since Zuko learned how to redirect lightning. They decided to head back to the western coast of the Earth Kingdom, in order to avoid Azula and Naruto.

"Are you alright, nephew?" Iroh asked.

Zuko had been staring straight ahead in a trance. His uncle's question snapped him out of it. "Huh? What?"

"I asked if you were alright."

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just have a lot on my mind."

"You've been acting like this ever since you back from the storm. What happened out there?"

Zuko didn't really know how to put it. "I just…ran into someone I wasn't expecting."

"Oh? Who was it?"

"I can't say."

Iroh was silent for a few minutes. "Very well, if you do not wish to tell me, I will not ask."

"Thank you, uncle." Zuko said. He stopped the ostrich horse and reached for the map. "Anyway, we're low on supplies and the only town that is nearby is the Fire Nation colony of Akawan." He turned to face his uncle. "Should we risk it?"

"Perhaps we should, also it would to be nice to be back civilization for a little while."

Zuko put the map away and motion the ostrich horse on. An hour later, they arrived at Akawan. The colony was fairly important to the Fire Nation. While Yu Dao made the finest metals, Akawan was the Fire Nation's access into the Earth Kingdom; it was their most important harbor, not just for the military but also for trade.

Zuko and Iroh rode through the city gate and headed into a nearby market. "I think it's best if you got the supplies." Zuko said to his uncle. "People won't recognize another old man in the market. I'll stay with the ostrich horse."

Iroh nodded in agreement and walked off to get the supplies. While he did that, Zuko just watch the crowd go by. When he saw some preteens play around, he smiled a little bit. _"That reminds me of the day we actually met Naruto."_ He thought as he remembered what happened.

(Flashback: three years ago. Location: Ember Island)

"Uncle, can we go talk to the stranger now?" Zuko asked as Iroh left the room where the stranger was. "He's been cooped up in that room for over a day."

Before Iroh could answer, they heard a voice from behind the door. "Shouldn't you be asking me that question?" Stepping away from the door, Iroh revealed Naruto standing in the doorway. The clothes he originally wore were ruined, so he had to borrow some of Zuko's clothes.

"You're up after only a day in bed?" Zuko asked with surprise in his voice.

"I heal quickly." Naruto lied easily. "I believe we should introduce each other, my name is Naruto Uzumaki."

"Oh, right. I'm Zuko, prince of the Fire Nation."

"Which Ember Island is a part of, correct?"

"Yes."

"Good to know."

"Come on, everybody else wants to meet you." He ran off and Naruto followed.

Azula, Mai and Ty Lee were waiting in the backyard. Zuko came running out of the house. "He's awake!" He announced.

Ty Lee hopped from where she was sitting. "Then where is he?"

"Right behind him," Naruto stated, appearing right behind Zuko, making him jump in surprise.

"Whoa! Don't sneak up on people like that!" He protested.

Naruto gave a sheepish laugh. "Sorry, sorry!" He apologized while scratching the back of his head.

Azula and the girls took a long look at the newcomer. Like Azula had said, his hair was blonde, his eyes were blue and he had whisker-like birthmarks on his face. But what she didn't mention was the fact that his eyes were the kind of blue that put the ocean to shame or that the color of his hair almost seemed to be the same color of the sun or that the whiskers were almost begging to be touched.

They had different reactions: Mai just ignored him, Ty Lee openly ogled him and Azula had a look of disinterest. "Well, what's your name?" She asked.

"It's Naruto Uzumaki. Are you Azula?"

"That's princess Azula to you, peasant."

Naruto was a little offended but moved on. "Thanks for getting me out of the water. I might have died if it wasn't for you."

She turned away to hide a faint blush, the only person who saw it was Iroh. "Whatever."

"Okay then, ignoring the rather rude princess over there…"

"Excuse me?"

He turned to look at her. "You heard me, you were rather rude. Do I have to put in deaf as well?"

"You shut your mouth, peasant!"

"Make me, you arrogant little…"

At that point in the conversation, both were whacked in the head by Iroh. "Both of you are being rude. Now apologize." He told them sternly.

"Sorry." Azula muttered.

"Sorry back." He said. Then he noticed that Ty Lee was ogling him. "Uh…is there something on my face?"

"No, you're just really cute!" She chirped.

"W-what!?" he asked with shock as he began to blush.

"You heard me, you're really cute."

"Not really, no. I'm not that cute."

"_This boy will have the girls flocking to him if he keeps that attitude." _Iroh noted.

"Hm, that's strange." Ty Lee suddenly announced. "You have two auras."

"I'm sorry?" Naruto asked. "Auras, what do you mean?""

Zuko decided to help. "Ty Lee thinks she can see people's auras and can tell their emotions from the color."

"I don't think," Ty Lee objected. "I _know_ I can see auras and you have two of them." She pointed at Naruto.

"I don't have any idea what you're talking about." He told her, meanwhile, in his head. _"Kyuubi, I don't know how you're going to do it, but stop making her notice you!"_

"Just let go, Ty Lee." Mai told her. "You're making him uncomfortable."

She gave a huff and began to pout. "Fine," She grumbled.

Naruto turned to Mai. "Thanks for that. You are…?"

"Mai," She simply stated.

"So where are you from?" Zuko asked. "You don't look like you're from the Four Nations."

"Dum-Dum's right, where are you from?" Azula asked.

"Don't call me that, Azula!"

"I am from somewhere else." Naruto told them. "That much is true."

"So why did you come here?" Azula asked with genuine curiosity.

"Because I wanted to," He told her, deflecting the question.

Before Azula could press him, Iroh stepped in. "That's enough introductions, how about some tea?"

After a little groaning, everyone did take a cup of tea.

(End Flashback)

The preteens ran off and he saw that Iroh had appeared again. "Did you get everything we need?"

"Yes, but there is a slight problem," Iroh told him.

"What's that?"

"The gate closed a few minutes after we came in. We will have to stay the night."

He gritted his teeth. "Agni!" He swore.

"Calm yourself, nephew. I have taken measures and got us rooms at an inn for the night." He began to walk away. "Follow me."

Zuko took the reins of the ostrich horse and began to follow. "When does the gate open in the morning?"

"So impatient nephew, don't you want to enjoy a bit of the city life?"

"Uncle, please remember that this is a Fire Nation colony and we're fugitives. If someone recognizes us, Azula will be notified. Also, your idea of city life would be to find the nearest teashop and drink every kind of tea the shop has."

Iroh said nothing in his defense, which made Zuko groan and put his head in his hand. "How close?" he asked.

Iroh turned to face him. "What do you mean?"

"How close is the teashop to the inn?"

"Oh, it's right next to the inn." He answered with a straight face.

Zuko took a deep breath to calm down. "Fine, just promise me that you won't be so critical about their tea. That way, we can avoid another debacle like the one three years ago."

Iroh winced. "Are you ever going to forget about that?"

Three years ago, when Zuko had just started on his quest for the Avatar, they had made port at a new Fire Nation colony. After restocking the supplies, the entire crew went to a teashop to relax. However, things did not go smoothly after that. Iroh had taken one sip of the tea and spat it out. He demanded to see the owner and when said owner appeared, Iroh proceed to chew him out about his lack of knowledge on tea.

The local military arrived at that point and attempted to arrest Iroh. The crew tried to stop them and the result was a brawl in the tea shop. In the end, Zuko, Iroh and the crew had to flee back to the ship when local military reinforcements showed up.

"You almost had us arrested over one bad cup of tea!" Zuko accused.

"And yet, we all managed to get back to the ship safely." Iroh pointed out. "It was also one of the few times that you and Lieutenant Jee worked together. The two of you were the last ones to get on the ship."

He fell silent when he heard this. "…Do you think everyone got okay from the Siege?"

"It's possible since Naruto showed up and ordered everyone to return to the ships. But beyond that…I don't know."

They arrived at the inn and Zuko agreed to get a cup of tea in the morning before they left.

(Location: Zuko's dream)

He knew where he was. He was on Ember Island. He could by the fact that the nearby beach was the one he used to play on as a child. He could also tell by the fact he just saw himself as a little boy ran by and onto the beach.

"**Such a carefree life you once lived." **A voice spoke out.

Zuko turned around to look for the person who spoke. Even though he didn't see who it was, he knew that voice. "Lord Bahamut?"

He heard a deep chuckle. **"From calling me a coward to calling me Lord Bahamut, what brought this about?"**

"Well, I don't think it's every day one talks to the Dragon King. Also, sorry about what happened on the mountaintop."

"**Don't worry about it; I won't hold it against you."**

Zuko watched as his younger self tried to build a sandcastle. "Why am I watching this?" he asked aloud.

"**So you can understand something. Your uncle told you that there is energy everywhere."**

"So? What does trying to generate lightning have to do with a childhood memory?"

"**Every Firebender who has been able to generate lightning has always taken energy from the same place. There are other ways to generate lightning; this is a way for you to learn a different way."**

"What are you talking about?"

"**Look over there." **Despite not actually seeing a finger pointing in a direction, Zuko knew where to look. He turned to look at the cliff wall and saw, standing against it, was the Blue Spirit.

"What the…What's he doing here?"

"**He's a clue, just like your younger self is a clue. Find out what they mean and learn what they can teach before it is too late."**

Before he could even ask what the dragon meant, he woke up due the sound of bells ringing. "What's going on?" He asked Iroh.

"I don't know but I know that those are the warning bells!" He replied.

Zuko grabbed his swords. "Come on, let's go find out what's going on." Iroh nodded in agreement.

The two of them ran to find pandemonium was rampant. "What's going on?" Zuko asked a nearby person.

"It's General Fong's army, they're attacking the colony!" The person screamed before following the crowd.

"Get to the shelters!" Somebody, an infantryman, a Firebender judging by his armor and lack of weapons, ordered. As soon as the words left his mouth, a nearby house collapsed and Earthbenders appeared. Nearby infantry engaged the enemy but they weren't well coordinated, they were slowly being pushed back.

Zuko charged directly into the fray. He saved a nearby Firebender by stabbing his attacker. Meanwhile, Iroh grabbed the nearest soldier to him. "Who's in charge here?" He asked urgently.

"I don't know sir!" The soldier replied. "They went after the higher ranked officers first! We've been given no orders, so we don't know what to do!"

"Keep it together, son!" He barked out. He turned to the rest of the infantry. "All Firebender troops break up the enemy troops, don't let them keep formation! All non-Bender troops get close and push them back!"

"Who are you to give orders!?" A nearby soldier asked.

"My name is Iroh."

The entire field of battle fell silent. "It's the Dragon of the West!" an Earthbender cried out in fear.

Zuko took advantage of the silence. "You heard the General!" He shouted. "PUSH THEM BACK!"

There was a chorus of agreement and the Fire Nation infantry followed orders. "Uncle, we're going to need reinforcements if we want to hold out or possibly break though. Can you go find the officer in charge?"

"That is sound thinking, nephew." Iroh complemented before heading off.

"You're his nephew!?" A soldier asked. "That means you're—!"

"No time for that, soldier!" Zuko barked out. "We've got a job to do!"

They re-engaged the enemy. The tactics worked. The enemies Earthbenders tried to separate the Firebenders and non-Benders by bending a wall between them. It didn't stop them for long as some of them went over the wall, some went around and some followed Zuko's example and burst through the wall via Firebending.

Eventually, they pushed them back to the city gate. It was there Zuko that the four other streets were fighting as well and reinforcements for the Earth Kingdom army were coming through the gate.

"Sir!" cried a soldier as he ran up to Zuko. "We've just received news from command. General Iroh has dispatched the Yuyan archers as well as cavalry. It'll take some time for the cavalry to get here, but the archers are coming in fast from the rooftops!"

He nodded in acknowledgement. "Tell the Yuyan archers that when they get here, I want them to stay on the rooftops, and take positions there. Have them thin out the enemy's numbers in the other streets, so the troops can push through! After that, have them get onto the walls and aim for the reinforcements!"

"Yes sir!" the soldier saluted and ran off. "What are your orders, sir?" Another soldier asked.

"I want you men to assist the other streets. Attack the enemy from behind so they have to deal with attacks from two directions."

"Yes sir!" the men split off to attack the other streets but Zuko stayed where he was. "Sir, what are you going to do?" the same soldier asked.

He reached for his Dao swords. "Something incredibly stupid," He said. _"Now I know Naruto's been rubbing off on me!"_ was the thought going through his head before he charged directly at the city gate. He attacked the incoming reinforcements with full use of his Firebending and his swordsmanship. While you couldn't say that he tore through them like a tornado set on fire, he was good enough to push them back to outside the city and held them there.

The gate was narrow, which helped him tremendously. It forced the enemy soldiers to come at him in smaller numbers, which he could handle. He took some injuries pushing them but none of them were fatal. His mind was on auto-pilot now; he had to fight the enemies in front of him.

Thankfully, he didn't have to do it for long. "Sir!" called a soldier, snapping him out of auto-pilot. "You might want to consider getting out of the way. The rhinos are coming through!"

He pulled back into the city and out of the way of the cavalry. They came through and smashed into the enemy troops, which sent them into a retreat.

Amidst the chorus of victory cheers, Zuko was found by the leader of the Yuyan archers. "General Iroh wants you at the command center." He said.

Zuko nodded and followed the archer. "How bad is it?" He asked.

"Casualties were surprisingly light but I don't think that what General Fong had in mind. Before the attack began, every officer the rank of colonel or above was assassinated. My guess is he wanted to spread confusion within our ranks."

"Then it's a good thing General Iroh was here."

The archer stopped and turned to face. "That reminds me. As I made my way over to retrieve you, I heard some of the soldiers talk about how the General called you his nephew. Is it true?"

He kept silent, so the archer turned back around and continued walking. "I will not push you for answers but I must warn you. If you are his nephew, then don't expect a warm welcome here."

"What do you mean?" Zuko asked. The archer stayed silent and so they continued walking until they reached at the command center. Iroh stood outside waiting for them.

"Here he is, General. If you'll excuse, I must get back to my men." The archer said.

"Thank you, Lieutenant Bao-yu. You may go." Iroh told him.

As the archer left, Zuko turned to face his uncle. "That was good timing on your part, uncle. The rhinos arrived just in time."

"That's funny, from some of the reports I've been getting, they probably weren't needed. The enemy was already outside the colony when they arrived." He replied with a pointed look.

"I did what I had to do." He looked at the building that held the command center. "How many officers did you have to go through in order for them to believe your identity?"

Iroh gave a smile. "Actually, I only had to talk to one person and he allowed me to take command immediately."

"Who was he?"

"A familiar face to be honest, you know him as well." He led Zuko into the building. When they reached the map room, Iroh opened the door and Zuko's eyes widened in surprise. "Lieutenant Jee!" he blurted out.

The aforementioned person turned to see who was at the door. "Well, at least we know who was leading the troops at the gate." He simply stated.

"You made out of the Siege!" Zuko said as he walked into the room.

"Yes sir, me and the crew. Although it's not lieutenant anymore, it's captain."

"You've been promoted?"

"My promotion was given when our ship docked in the harbor and we reported to both the mayor and the general. But given the present circumstances, I think it's safe to say that I am currently the highest ranking officer in the colony of Akawan."

"What of the mayor?"

"He was assassinated as well."

"Which brings us to our current problem," Iroh announced as he walked over to the table. "We must figure out how they were assassinated so that we can prevent it from happening again."

"Yes. We know that each and every one of the people who were assassinated was killed in their homes and without being detected. The current theory is that some of the enemy soldiers have some considerable skill in silent killing."

Zuko was currently reading a report on the enemy general, General Fong. "It's not that. The killers weren't so much undetectable as they were unnoticed."

"What do you mean, Zuko?" Iroh asked.

Zuko handed him the report. "It's the information about the enemy general, General Fong. It's said that he is well known for his unusual tactics in a fight. So it's possible that he used the same thing when it came to the assassinations."

"You're right about the tactics." Jee admitted. "The last time he tried to besiege the colony; he had his soldiers disguise themselves as civilians and they were to start the attack from within the colony. Thankfully, they revealed themselves in front of the city gate and we were able to push them out of the city."

"When did this happen?"

"About a month ago or so," He answered.

"Perhaps he tried the same method again." Iroh suggested. "Only this time he had them be more subtle in their mission."

Zuko shook his head. "Like I said uncle, the killers were unnoticeable, not undetected." He put the reports on the assassinations on the table "Look at each person who was assassinated. What was it that they all had in common?"

"They all had significant amount of power?" Jee suggested.

"That's why they were killed but not allowed them to be killed. I was thinking more of their houses."

"Their houses, what do you mean?"

"Each person lived in decently sized house. Given their positions and the fact there is a constant threat of an Earth Kingdom attack, they would also have guards. But they would also have another thing."

"They would have servants." Iroh realized.

He nodded. "My guess is that either the Earth Kingdom spies got close to the servants and used the fact that they were both Earth Kingdom to have them kill the target, or they disguised themselves as servants and took out the targets themselves." He looked over to Jee. "If you want to avoid this from happening again, I recommend that the remaining officers sleep in the barracks and never use servants."

The other two looked at him in silence. "That was well reasoned, nephew." Iroh complemented.

"Yes it was." Jee said. "Since that is solved, the problem now is leadership." He turned to face Iroh. "General Iroh, I think it would be best if you took command."

Iroh shook his head. "Besides you, Captain Jee, no one here has served under me and they have all heard of what happened at Ba Sing Se. They'll question my orders because of that."

"Then who do you think should lead, sir?"

He took a thinking pose. "Hmm…I think it would be best if Zuko leads."

"What!?" both Jee and Zuko said with surprise.

"No doubt, stories about the person who effortlessly took command in the streets and retook the city gate single-handily are already spreading. If we say that he has taken command until reinforcements arrive, then the soldiers would be pleased."

"But sir, the soldiers have also heard that the Dragon of the West was here and so was his nephew. There is a good chance that it will have the opposite effect if we announce that he has taken command." Jee argued.

"It is a chance that we will have to take. Go tell the remaining officers and have them inform the soldiers." Iroh ordered.

Jee saluted and left the room. "Uncle, why would me being in command be a problem with the soldiers?" asked Zuko.

"It is something I learned when I arrived. The entire military force in the colony of Akawan is composed of the 41st division."

Zuko went shock still. The 41st division, it was the division that was the discussion of that meeting, the division that he had spoken in defense for and it was the division that earned him the scar on his left eye.

"…Perhaps it's best if we got some rest. It does not look like we will be leaving the colony soon." Iroh suggested.

Zuko nodded numbly in agreement. He left and was able to find a room with a bed before falling asleep.

(Location: Zuko's dream)

He wasn't on Ember Island this time. Thus time he stood in the center of the Agni Kai chamber in the Royal Palace.

"**So you're in command of a division now." **A voice spoke out. Turning his head, he saw the Blue spirit was standing on one end of the chamber floor. **"Congratulations."**

"**Don't listen to him!" **Another voice cried out. It was coming from the other end of the chamber floor. This time, when he turned his head to see who was talking, he saw himself as a little boy. **"You should be glad that they put you in charge, they must think you're quite something."**

"**Or they're so bloody desperate that they'll put anyone in charge." **The Blue Spirit growled.

"**If that's true, then why isn't uncle Iroh in charge?"**

"**Uncle said himself; men do not want to follow a disgraced leader." **He turned his gaze on Zuko. **"Which is exactly what you are, you coward."**

"**No he's not! You leave him alone"**

"**He's going to have to choose sooner or later, you little brat! I say we force his hand and make him chose now!"**

Zuko then decided to open his mouth. "What do I have to choose? What are you two talking about?"

They both looked at him but before they said anything, the morning bell rang and Zuko awoke. He got out of the bed and walked to the window to stretch his legs and to take in the morning air. As he did, his eyes traveled downwards and he noticed that the room he was in looked to the Yuyan archers practice field.

"_That's nostalgic." _He thought as he remembered another memory.

(Flashback: three years ago. Location: Ember Island)

Azula walked into the backyard to find her brother writing something. "What are you doing, ZuZu?"

"Don't call me that." He told her without taking his eyes off the paper.

"Well, what are you doing?"

"Calligraphy," He answered.

"What for? Were you bored?"

"No, Sifu Piandao wanted me to take time to 'stamp your identity on the paper', as he put it."

Ty Lee perked from where she was sitting (which, in her case, meant on her elbows). "Wait, Piandao? I've heard of him. He's a famous swordmaster and blacksmith."

Zuko nodded. "That sounds like Sifu."

She frowned. "But I thought he didn't take students."

He shrugged. "I guess I somehow impressed him."

"Wait, swordmaster?" Azula asked. "You're a Firebender; you don't need to learn how to use a sword."

"Maybe it's possible he wanted to try something new." Naruto told from where he sat. "Someone can be a prodigy in one art while also being an embarrassment in another."

She snorted. "Just what I'd expect to come out of your mouth," She said.

"And what do you do in your free time?" He fired back.

"I practice my Firebending skills."

He cocked his head. "Are you sure? From what I've seen and I've only been here for a week, you haven't done anything of the sort. Zuko, on the other hand, did and ironically enough, that's what got him into sword training in the first place."

"Only because you dragged me over to Sifu Piandao in the first place!" protested Zuko.

"And that's a bad thing? He's training you, isn't he?"

"Enough!" Azula shouted. "A Firebender doesn't need to learn any other skills! His ability to bend Fire alone will allow him to win!"

Naruto smirked. "Oh really?" he stood up. "So you're saying that I can't beat you with a couple of knives if you're using your Firebending?"

"Of course," She told him.

"You want to put it to the test?" He stepped into what they started calling the practice area. She followed him and took a Firebending stance.

She made the first move by launching a simple fireball at him. But her first turned out to be her last. Naruto simply ducked under the fireball and threw the knives at her. The end result was Azula being pinned to a nearby tree.

"Knife beats Firebender." He said cheekily. He turned and came face-to-face with Mai. "Can you teach me that?" She asked.

He was taken aback. "Well…um…yeah, I can show you the basics. But why do you want to learn how to throw knives?"

She shrugged. "I'm bored."

"…That's a good motivator."

(End Flashback)

"_Those first few days when Mai first started to throw those were some close ones." _He remembered. He had often wondered whether she kept throwing at below his neither regions on purpose or not.

The door to the room opened and Bao-yu entered. "Sir, General Iroh wishes to remind you that you are supposed to have a cup of tea with him in the morning."

Zuko went over to the wardrobe and began to get dress. "Did he specify where I should meet him?"

"He said that it would be the tea shop next to the inn."

"Thank you." He stepped away from the wardrobe, fully clothed. "Care to join us?"

"The General has already made the offer. I've accepted."

Zuko took a look at him. He was in civilian clothes and did not have the face paint on. "Shall we?" He asked.

"Lead the way."

They walked out of the building and down the street. "Lieutenant, may I ask you something?" Zuko asked as they walked.

"What is it you want to know?"

"Have the Yuyan archers always been stationed here or is this just your recent assignment." He asked the question with a normal face. He knew the answer to the first part of the question, so he had to be careful.

"It's our recent assignment. Admiral Zhao took us with him when he decided to invade the Northern Water Tribe. But the armada was ordered to leave before we got a chance to go into action."

"So you were on the same ship as Captain Jee?"

"Correct."

"May I ask another question?"

Bao-yu nodded.

"Why do you wear the ancient symbol for fire? I thought that only the Paragons knew of those symbols?"

"…Do you know the history of the Yuyan archers?" He asked as they stood outside the tea shop.

"No, I'm afraid not." Zuko admitted.

"According to our history, the first Yuyan archers were trained by the First Paragon of the Fire Nation. The Paragon was a hunter at first and was gifted in both the bow and the sword. In the later years of his life, he began to pass on his teachings of the bow to his students, who became the first Yuyan archers. We wear the ancient symbol for fire as well as the face paint to show who it was that taught us in the beginning."

"The face paint, how does that symbolize the First Paragon?"

"Much like you sir, the First Paragon had been burned by fire. But instead of one eye being burned, both eyes were burned. Over the years, the face paint has been formalized but it still represents where the Paragon had been burned."

Zuko stayed silent for a second. "Does Naruto know of your relationship with the Paragons?"

Bao-yu nodded. "When a new Paragon is named, we swear our allegiance to them. A Yuyan archer is loyal to the Paragon first and the Fire Nation second."

"So if Naruto told you to go attack Ba Sing Se…?"

"We would be on the boat leaving for the Earth Kingdom within minutes. Is that all?"

"Yes." Zuko walked into the tea shop and went over to the table where Iroh was sitting. "Uncle," He greeted.

"Nephew," Iroh greeted in return. "And Lieutenant Bao-yu, please sit."

They sat and ordered tea. "So Zuko, what are you planning to do this day?" Iroh asked him.

Zuko thought it over. "I'm going to the walls and examine the defenses as well as the surrounding land. Then I'll visit the barracks."

"Is that all? You're not going to take the time to relax?"

"Uncle, you've put me in command of a colony and of a military force. I don't have time to relax."

He was silent for a minute. "…Spoken like a true leader of men." He finally said with approval.

"I recommend you been careful when visiting the barracks." Bao-yu told Zuko.

"That reminds me. You told me that I shouldn't expect a warm welcome here. Why?" Zuko finally asked.

"Three years ago, the 41st division was about to be moved to the front lines when a messenger came. He announced that because of the Fire Nation prince's actions, the 41st were regulated to defending the colonies indefinitely." He looked Zuko in the eye. "Some of them blame you for not being able to fight on the front lines."

"…I see" He finished his tea and got up. "Then I better go over there." He left the tea shop.

Both Iroh and Bao-yu stayed and continued to drink their tea. "Does the Fire Lord know of what has happened?" Iroh asked, being all business.

"A messenger hawk was sent after the attack last night." Bao-yu answered. "Reinforcements will be here within six days."

"Hopefully, Zuko will be able to defend the colony that long."

"I'm more concerned with how the soldiers treat him."

(Location: Zuko)

He decided to look at the defenses first. He walked along the wall, taking in the surrounding area. As he did all that, he was reminded of another memory.

(Flashback: three years ago. Location: Ember Island)

Zuko stood in front of the backyard with his Sifu, Piandao. "You want me to manipulate the backyard to my advantage?" He asked, just to be sure. Piandao just nodded.

"What's the matter, ZuZu?" Azula called out. "Can't do it? I guess this means you're not that good at swords either, Dum-Dum!"

Zuko turned around and scowled but then noticed where she was standing. "Sifu, what if my advantage was to help someone else on the battlefield?"

"It is the same thing, it is your advantage." Piandao told him.

Zuko then motioned Naruto to come over. He whispered something in his ear and they both gave mischievous grins. Zuko moved two big rocks in front of a tree. Naruto then ran up to and jumped off of said rocks to land on the tree. He jumped to another tree that had a branch hanging over the house. He landed on the house and knocked over the bucket that was up there on purpose. The bucket tipped and spilled it contents onto Azula, completely soaking her.

Zuko grinned at a wet and stunned Azula. "What was that about not being able to do it?"

(End Flashback)

"_That was one of the few times I got Azula." _He remembered fondly. _"It also made Ty Lee more interested in acrobatics."_ He heard the midday bell ring. It had taken him most of the morning to look at the defenses.

He headed down to the colony and decided to look for a place to eat. He soon found a restaurant and sat down to eat.

Suddenly there was a shattering of dishes. "What was that!?" A nearby man in a military uniform roared as he held another person by the throat. "What did you say!?"

"I-I'm sorry!" The other man, Earth Kingdom going by his clothes, wheezed out. "I didn't m-mean it!"

"You liar!" the first one, a big man, shouted. He then had to release the second man so his arm would not be in the way of the fireball that sailed passed. Heads turned to see who had bent the fireball, it was Zuko.

"Who are you to interfere?" The first man asked.

"What's your name?" Zuko asked.

"What?"

"I asked you for your name, soldier. What is it?"

"It's Sheng."

"What did the other man say?"

"He insulted the 41st division!"

"All I said was the 41st was never going to see the front lines!" The other man protested. "I didn't insult them!"

"YES YOU DID!" Sheng roared. He lunged for the man but Zuko stood in his way.

"Stand down, soldier!" he ordered.

"Who's telling me!?"

"I am telling you." A new voice said. Everyone turned to see Jee standing at the entrance.

"Captain Jee!" Sheng gave a salute.

"I saw the whole thing. Sheng, I know that you're proud of being in the 41st and I know you hate the fact that the 41st was denied the chance to be on the front lines but you cannot take that out on a civilian. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir." Sheng growled.

"Good, then get back to the barracks. The new commander will be joining you shortly."

Sheng walked towards the entrance. As he passed Zuko, he growled "I don't appreciate it when someone stops me like that. You better hope that we don't meet again." He continued on walking.

"Alright people, back to your business!" Jee ordered. Everybody continued on with what they were doing. "Sorry about the mess, we'll pay for the damages." He told the owner.

The owner nodded and left. Both Jee and Zuko sat down at the table. "Sir, do you try to find trouble or does it find you?" Jee asked him.

"That's not funny." He answered. "Who was that soldier?"

"You already know his name. Sheng's a good man on the battlefield and off it. He's loyal to the 41st and takes it personally when someone insults the division."

"I noticed. What's my uncle doing?"

"He's found some of the old crew and is playing Pai Sho with them."

Zuko shook his head. "Will they ever learn?"

"In their defense, the last time I checked they lasted longer."

Zuko chuckled at that. After being told that reinforcements will arrive in six days, they eat the rest of their lunch in silence. "Are you ready to go to the barracks?" Jee finally asked after an hour.

Zuko said nothing, only nodded. They left the restaurant and walked towards the barracks.

"**They will never accept you." **The voice of the Blue Spirit hissed inside his head. **"You should make an example of them, humiliate them."**

"**No, you shouldn't." **The voice of his younger self warned. **"Put yourself on your knees and ask for forgiveness. Apologize for your actions."**

"**He would have you choose the path of a coward!"**

"**And he would have you be a tyrant!"**

"_Just what are you two?" _Zuko thought.

"**I thought it was obvious." **Young Zuko said. **"I am the one who stands in the light with hope and determination."**

"**And I am the one who stands in the darkness with rage and hatred."**

"_You two are…different parts of me." _He realized. _"You're two parts of the same coin."_

They didn't respond which, to Zuko, meant he was right. Then he saw what he was standing in front: Akawan's military barracks.

"I'll ask again sir: are you ready?" Jee asked.

"Let's go." He simply said.

They walked through the gate and onto the training ground. As they walked in, the call was given to fall in. Both Jee and Zuko watched as the troops fell into ranks. "Soldiers," Jee called out. "Your officers have already told you who has taken command, yes?"

"Yeah, it's the person who's responsible for having us kept away from the front lines!" A voice angrily called out. "So now he's here to lead us?"

Jee was about to speak but Zuko stepped forward. "If you have something to say, then come and say it to my face!" He called.

The soldiers moved out of the way, so the person who spoke out could come forward. Zuko recognized the person.

He did as well. "I remember you!" Sheng growled. "You're the punk who stopped me back at the restaurant. You're the exiled prince? You're Zuko?"

"Yes, I am." Zuko admitted. "Captain Jee told me that you are loyal to the 41st division."

"I am. But that also means I hate you."

"Why?"

Sheng stepped forward and, shocking everyone, buried his fist into Zuko's stomach. Zuko collapsed onto the ground in pain. "I hate you for what you did to us." Sheng told him. "It is because of you that we have never seen the front lines. It is because of you that we are known as the cowards division in the entire Fire Nation army! It is because of you we will never have an emblem on that flag!" He pointed to the division's flag, which was just a red flag. "Neither will we have a nickname for the division!"

"Sheng, stand down!" Jee ordered.

Sheng gave a snort, turned around and walked away. He stopped when he felt someone grab his arm. He turned around and was met with a fist in the face. He fell to the ground, dazed. He felt his shirt being gripped and was brought up to look into Zuko's scarred face.

"So you consider me to be worthy of your never-ending hatred, is that it?" He asked. "You hate me for my actions? What if my actions saved you and this division, did you ever think of that!?" He let go of the shirt and turned to face the rest of the 41st division. "Listen, all of you!" He shouted. "I know that you were denied the chance to go to the front lines. But do you what cause that? I do!"

The soldiers were silent, no dared to speak. "I was there when they discussed how this division was to be used. They were going to send you to the slaughter! You were to be used as bait when you were all new recruits! The general who came up with this plan said what could be better bait be then fresh meat!"

Now the soldiers were shocked. "I was the only one who spoke out against the plan, I said that the division loved and defend the Fire Nation and I asked them how could they betray them like that. Do you know what the result of my outburst was?" He pointed to his left eye. "THIS! This is what my father gave because I stood up for this division!"

He went silent, trying to calm his breathing. He then noticed that Sheng was trying to get up, so he gave him a hand. "Look," He told Sheng. "I have denied you the chance to fight on the front lines and I have denied you the chance to put an emblem on your flag, I will admit to that. But I promise you this; you will have your emblem by the time the reinforcements come."

All of a sudden, the warning bells went off. "We've got incoming Earth Kingdom soldiers! They'll be here within minutes!" A sentry cried.

Zuko looked back to face the troops. "The enemy is coming right now, are you willing to stand by me and fight them together?"

Sheng looked at the troops and looked back at Zuko. "Sir, after that little show, if you went to face Agni himself, I think most of us would be right behind you." He stated.

Zuko smiled. "Then why don't we explain to these Earth Kingdom rock-heads why they should fear the 41st division of the Fire Nation?" He turned to the soldiers. "WHAT SAY YOU!?"

He got a very positive, very loud chorus of agreement. Frankly, what most of the soldiers said was "HELL YEAH, SIR!" They all then moved towards the wall.

"Jee, I need you to send relay commands from command center, notify my uncle and have him help you." He told the man.

"Yes sir!" Jee automatically replied. "But…what will you be doing?"

"I'll be on the wall. I think it's best to lead by example." He answered following the troops.

(Location: Akawan walls)

Zuko arrived at the top of the wall. "Where are they?" He asked.

"They're still incoming, sir." A nearby soldier answered, pointing out to the field the enemy wasn't moving. They just stood there like nothing could touch them.

"They're out of arrow and fire range, sir." Sheng told him, appearing by his side.

Zuko gauged the distance, and then smiled. "Yeah, however there is something that can hit them. Sheng, are the trebuchets loaded?"

"Yes sir."

"Tell them to adjust their settings and when I give the signal, rain fire."

Sheng moved away to give the orders. Ten minutes later, he returned. "They're ready sir."

Zuko raised his hand and the soldiers on the wall tensed. The Earth Kingdom army began yelling out catcalls and taunts, trying to goad the Fire Nation soldiers into action. Finally they fell silent and that was when Zuko dropped his hand.

The trebuchets flung their payload onto the enemy forces. They soon realized that in order to avoid being crushed by a flaming hunk of rock, they had to move forward, which they did with gusto.

But Zuko was planning on that. "Archers!" He called out. The archers drew back their bows. "Drop them!"

A decent amount of the enemy forces died from the hail of arrows, but they still kept coming. The artillery teams began hurling their salvos at the walls. They smashed against the walls but the walls held. The rocks that hit the top of the walls also took some of the troops.

"Stay calm!" Zuko barked. "If you run, you're only making yourself an easier target!" He watched as the enemy got even closer. "Firebenders, take your stances!" He ordered. He took his stance as the rest of the Firebenders did the same. "I've got a question for you, Sheng."

"What, sir?" Sheng asked, clutching his pike.

"How should we do them? Rare or well done?"

The question loosened the tension among the men on the wall as they chuckled. Finally, the enemy soldiers reached the bottom of the wall. "Roast'em!" Zuko yelled, he and the rest of the Firebenders bent a wall of fire down on them.

The screams that followed did not stop the Earth Kingdom army. If anything, it only spurned them on. Bending the earth smother the flames, the Earthbenders that were close to the wall then bent a large column beneath them to push them to the top of the wall. Earthbenders, who were still at the bottom, strengthen the column and bent out of the earth more shorter ones which, in effect, created something like a stepladder, allowing troops to breach the walls.

"Firebenders, keep the heat on them!" Zuko ordered as he reached for his Dao swords. "Non-Benders, keep them off the walls!"

"Look out!" Sheng cried out before pushing Zuko out of the way of a sword strike. He plunged his pike into the offending enemy swordsman, and then pushed him off the wall. The enemy soldier fell to the ground below as Sheng yanked his pike out of the body. "You okay, sir?"

Zuko's answer was to move past him and decapitated an Earthbender who was about to strike him. "Does that answer your question?" he asked Sheng, who only grinned in response.

They, along with the rest of the defenders, continued to fight the enemies on the wall, while the Firebenders continued to bombard the enemies below. They took lives but lives were also taken from them as well. The walls were continuously being hit by rock salvos. Earthbenders who had a greater accuracy would throw rocks at the troops on the top of the walls. Also, the gate was being bombard by a great stone ram.

As they fought, the defenders saw the gate break open from the pressure of the ram. The Earthbenders who were bending the ram stood aside so that the ostrich horse cavalry could charge through.

"Sir, how are we going to deal with the ostrich horses?" A nearby soldier asked Zuko. His answer was Zuko giving a sharp whistle. As the ostrich horse cavalry poured through the gate, they discovered that they were trapped by a half-ring of tundra tanks. They were then slaughtered by a barrage of arrows. During the fight, Zuko had given a message to his uncle and Captain Jee to position the Yuyan archers as well as some of the reserve archers in buildings surrounding the gate as well as move the tundra tanks into a half-ring formation around the gate. He knew that the enemy would send in the cavalry to quickly end the fight.

As the last ostrich-horse fell, Zuko quickly sent two fireballs into the air. It was the signal for their cavalry to charge. "The enemy is out of the city!" Zuko yelled out to the wall. "Now let's send them packing!" With that, he leapt onto one of the rock stepladders and ran down it, killing the enemy infantry along the way.

Sheng turned to the other soldiers on the wall. "You can take the stairs and go through the gate if you want. I'm following his example." He leapt onto another of the stepladders and ran down it as well. The two of them reached the ground at the same time and began to fight the enemy soldiers back-to-back.

The rest of the infantry poured out of the colony and smashed into the enemy forces, the komodo rhinos that the catapult attachments hammered away at the stepladders until they fell. The tundra tanks were the ones who sent the enemy troops packing. Whether they ran over the troops or burned them, either one worked for the tundra tanks.

As they watched the last enemy troops disappear from sight, the soldiers let out a cheer. Zuko looked at Sheng. "How many did we lose?" He asked over the cheering.

"It's nothing we can't recover from, sir." He answered.

Then, all of a sudden, the crowd pressed in on Zuko, the cheering turned into chanting. "ZUKO! ZUKO! ZUKO! ZUKO! ZUKO! ZUKO! ZUKO! ZUKO! ZUKO! ZUKO!" They chanted before hoisting Zuko up onto someone's shoulders.

"I think we've all earned ourselves a drink, how about it boys!?" Sheng called. He got a chorus of agreements. "Then let's show our new commander how the 41st celebrates!"

The only thought Zuko had when he was being carried back to the colony was _"Why does this remind of that one hide-and-go-seek game we played with Naruto?"_

(Flashback: three years ago. Location: Ember Island)

Zuko kept himself hidden in the bush. He don't know how long it had been since the game had started and he didn't know if the others had been found or not. He peered out into the forest and saw Naruto was looking in his general direction.

"I know you're there, Zuko. It's just a matter of time." He called out before moving away out of Zuko's sight.

"_He knows where I am!" _Zuko thought. _"I have to move!" _He broke out of the bush and ran in the opposite direction of Naruto. He wasn't exactly sure of what to do next, his brain was on auto-pilot.

"I see you, Zuko! Here I come!" Naruto's voice called to his right. He immediately bank left and kept running. Every time he heard Naruto's voice, he went in the opposite direction of where the voice was coming from. Sometimes he would go a different direction, but basically kept to the same idea of moving away from the voice.

Before he knew it, he was back at the house's backyard. He saw the girls before being tackled by Naruto. "Gotcha!" He crowed. "That's the last one!"

"You mean no one got back safely?" Zuko asked.

"Are you kidding?" Naruto asked before getting off him. "It took me the longest to find you."

"Really, how long was it?"

"About an hour and a half," He answered.

"He's not kidding." Ty Lee chirped. "He found me in twenty minutes."

"Found me in twenty five." Mai said.

"What about you, Azula?" Zuko asked his sister.

"It's none of your business!" She told him harshly.

"She stepped on a trip wire and found herself tied up by the foot and hanging upside down from tree branch." Naruto told him. "I found her in five minutes."

Zuko just stared at her and began laughing. "It's not funny!" She told him.

"Yes it is!" He howled. After finally managing to calm down, he looked back at Naruto. "Wait, trip wire, what do you mean?"

He smirked. "I had booby-trapped the forest. I knew that you would all run into there, so I took precautionary measures. I also manipulated you into coming here, Zuko."

"What?"

"I knew that you would try to run away from my voice, so I used it to make you go in the direction I wanted you to go. Granted, there were a few times you didn't do what I wanted but hey, you still came here."

The four of them, Ty Lee, Mai, Azula and Zuko just looked at him. _"He had planned that far ahead?" _was the shared thought between them. "Wait a minute." Zuko said. "I heard your voice every few minutes, there is no possible way you could have stayed close to me the entire time!"

Naruto's smirk grew wider. "You underestimate me, Zuko." He neglected to mention the fact he was using clones to move Zuko. He turned to everyone else. "So, have we figured out the lesson for today?" He asked.

"There was a lesson?" Ty Lee asked with surprise evident in her voice.

"How could there be a lesson from all that!?" Azula demanded.

"It's a simple one really." He told them. "You simply have to look underneath the underneath."

(End Flashback)

"_He explained the concept to us after that." _Zuko thought. _"Why does it keep coming back to me?"_ His silent question was stopped when he was handed a drink. "Come on sir!" Sheng told him. "Loosen up a little and drink up, you've earned it!" He raised his drink. "A toast to our new commander, Zuko!" he yelled out.

"ZUKO!" the soldiers chorused.

Zuko smiled and drank what was in front of him. Sheng was right, he did to loosen up. He spent half the night celebrating with the troops. Jee joined in at one point but Iroh was content to drink his tea and beat the pants off any soldier who dared to play Pai Sho against him.

All-in-all, it was a good night.

(Location: Zuko's dream)

"**You've been fighting well." **a voice he recognized now spoke. **"But you have yet to figure out the lesson those two can teach you."**

"I've been a little busy trying to defend this colony, Lord Bahamut." He replied. "I don't have a lot of time to figure what my younger self and the Blue Spirit are supposed to show me."

"**It's not what they are supposed to show** **you, it's more what they don't want you to do."**

Zuko looked out to the setting sun that shined down on Ember Island. "What they don't want me to do?"

"**They've been trying to make you choose, haven't they?"**

"Yes, I assumed they want me to choose between one of them."

"**You assume correctly. However, there are more than just two choices."**

Before he could ask, he was again awoken by the morning bells. He got out of the bed and began to dress. It had been four days since he and his uncle had come to the colony and for the past four days, he had fighting off the Earth Kingdom army led by General Fong.

He had spent many hours in the map room, trying to figure out how the General Fong would attack them next and how the 41st division should respond. When the Earth Kingdom army actually attacked, Zuko was on the walls or the frontlines fighting against them alongside the men.

He had gotten along well with the troops as well. After the initial hostility disappeared in the fight, the 41st was proud to be under Zuko's command. He didn't treat his troops like disposable tools. He eat with them, drank with them and if two soldiers were fighting each other, he tried to break it up and find the problem the two had. Jee said that he was acting more like his uncle then his father. He took it as a compliment.

He walked out of the building and made his way over to the barracks. He saw that the soldiers were already going morning practices. One of the soldiers saw him as well. "You're a little late, sir!" Sheng called out with a grin.

"I'm here now, aren't I?" Zuko asked before joining the practices

Once he realized that his hatred for Zuko was misplaced, Sheng got along well with Zuko. As mentioned before, he was a big man but he wasn't fat (he's in the army, you expect him to be fat?). He was an easy man to get along with unless you did something earned his ire (Exhibit A: his original attitude to Zuko). In battle, he was deadly with a pike. He was one person Zuko trusted to cover his back while in a fight (which had been proven in the attacks by General Fong's army).

"You okay sir?" Sheng asked after the morning practices were done.

"Something's bothering me." Zuko admitted. "Something feels off about the last few attacks. They always seem to pull out just as we push them back. During the last attack, they practically ran once we forced them off the wall."

"So they ran." Sheng shrugged. "It just means they know they're outclassed."

Zuko shook his head. "I don't think so. A while back, Naruto tried to teach me and my sister something."

"You mean Paragon Naruto?"

He nodded. "He told us to always try to look underneath the underneath."

Sheng looked confused. "What does that mean?"

"I'm not quite as well. I think it means that things are not always what they seem."

"Well, whatever he meant, you can worry about it later."

They soon came across Iroh. "Uncle," Zuko greeted. "How was your night?"

"Not bad, I played Pai Sho against some of the crew again as well as some of the soldiers." He replied. "I almost lost at one point."

"I'm sorry?" Zuko stopped in the middle of the street. "Did you just say that someone had beaten you at Pai Sho!?"

"No, I said I almost lost. I managed to win in the end."

"Well, that's good. Truth to be told uncle, the day you say that you lost a Pai Sho game is the same day I find out that I am somehow related to the Avatar." He stated.

Meanwhile, in the Spirit Realm, a certain white-haired and bearded man sneezed.

"Be careful about you say, Zuko." Iroh warned. "It may come back to haunt you."

"You jest, General Iroh." Sheng said as he laughed.

They continued to walk through Akawan. They stopped by the walls to see the defenses and to check the surrounding area. By the time they were done, lunch time had come around and they went to the same restaurant where Zuko met Sheng.

They sat and ordered their meals. As they eat, a group of girls at a nearby table giggled and talked. When their meals finally came, one of the girls got up from the table and came over.

"Is there something we can help you with?" Iroh asked politely.

The girl ignored him. "Hey, you're Zuko, right?" She asked.

"That's Commander Zuko to you, young lady." Sheng told her.

She ignored him as well. "So you are him."

"What do you want?" Zuko asked her, already getting a bad feeling.

"Well, me and my friends," she gestured back to the table with the group of girls. "Were wondering if you wanted to come over and eat with us instead of these old farts."

"Old!?" demanded Sheng. "I'm 32, you little brat!"

"So?" She asked in a condescending voice.

"Young lady, you should always respect your elders." Iroh told her.

"Oh, shut up, you old geezer." She said in an irritated voice. She then turned to Zuko and asked in what she thought was a sexy voice. "So, are you going to come and join us now?"

Zuko was silent for a minute, and then he spoke. "Had you not insulted both Sheng and my uncle, I might have considered joining you. But since you did, I won't. Please leave."

"Excuse me?" The girl asked. "Did you tell me that instead of eating at a table with hot girls that want to talk to you, you would rather eat with the way too-beefed up soldier and the stupid old man?"

A flash of light went across her eyes, causing her to step in surprise, as a fireball sailed right by her and hit the wall. Zuko had not even turned to look at her; he had just stuck out his arm and curled his hand into a fist. "Next time you insult my uncle like that, I won't miss. Leave."

The girl huffed, walked back to her table, sat down and was immediately engulfed by her friends who wanted to know what he said.

"That was nicely done sir." Sheng complimented.

"Perhaps a little more diplomacy could have been used?" Iroh suggested.

Sheng shook his head. "It wouldn't have helped, General. I know those kinds of girls, you have to be blunt with them if you want to get your point across."

"Even if she was being polite, I wouldn't have gone over there." Zuko stated.

"Why not?" asked Iroh. All of sudden, one loud voice cried. "Lord Zuko defended his uncle!? He's so cool!" Turning around to the direction of the voice, they saw it was a different girl who spoke. What she said had the rest of the girls start squealing. And not just any kind of squealing, oh no no, they were Fangirl squealing.

"That's why." Zuko said. "Anybody else want to leave?" They couldn't have left the restaurant faster.

"I take it that you've dealt with those kinds of girls before, sir?" Sheng asked.

Zuko then gave a smile. "Well there was that one time on Ember Island…"

(Flashback: three years ago. Location: Ember Island)

Zuko stared at the wall, trying to get in all the details it had. Once he was certain, he turned around and was about to draw the wall when Naruto burst through the door. "Zuko! Hide me!" He said with desperation as he stood in only his borrowed swim trunks.

"What's going on?" Zuko asked.

"Not important! Just hide me!"

"What did you do?"

"I don't know! I just went down to the public beach. Next thing I know, I'm getting swarmed by girls!"

"…Isn't that a good thing?"

"Not when they start getting really touchy and screaming that they want my children! I mean, why me!? I am not that good looking!" He protested.

"_He's still keeping up with that?" _Zuko thought. "Wait a minute, if you're here, then where are the girls?"

His question was answered when they heard the faint but distinctive yelling of "FIND THE BLONDE HARIED ONE! WE MUST HAVE HIM!"

"You led them here!?" Zuko asked.

"I panicked! Just hide me, please!" Naruto begged.

"Alright, follow me. I know a place where you can hide. Stay there while uncle and I deal with this."

And so five minutes later, Naruto found himself in a closet. **"Why are you hiding? There are a lot of girls out there are practically begging for what is dangling between your legs!" **Kyuubi groused.

"_It is how they want to use what's dangling between my legs that I don't agree with!" _Naruto silently replied.

"**So what!?" **demanded the fox. **"I know I found some of those suggestions to be a little kinky and now you're telling me that you didn't!?"**

"_Yes!"_

"**LIAR!" **the fox roared.

Whatever conversation they were going to have next was interrupted when Azula, who was halfway in changing into her swimsuit, opened the closet door. It was then that Naruto realized that Zuko had purposely hid him in Azula's room.

"_Zuko is so going to be pranked!" _Naruto thought with almost murderous intention. Meanwhile, in the real world, the two of them just stared at each other. Naruto spoke first. "Is it possible that you'll believe me when I say that your brother hid me here in order to avoid a mass horde of girls and that this is in no way shape or form me being a pervert?" He asked.

"…No," She finally answered.

He sighed. "Well, one could always hope." After that, he tore out of the closet and ran out the door, Azula chased after him with fire in her hands, screaming about him being a pervert. Unfortunately, Naruto chose to run out the front door, right past Zuko, Iroh and the mass horde of girls who were looking for him.

Needless to say, he spent the rest of the afternoon getting a workout.

(End Flashback)

"I don't think Naruto has ever forgiven me for that." Zuko said as he finished up the story.

Sheng nearly fell to the ground in laughter. "I would have never thought that the Paragon of the Fire Nation would have trouble with women."

"It's not that he has problems with women." Zuko tried to explain. "It's just that he hide himself from Fangirls."

All of a sudden, the earth started to shake and rumble. "What's going on?" asked Sheng. "Is it some kind of earthquake?"

As if to answer his question, parts of the street give way to form holes in the ground. Out of these holes came the non-Benders of General Fong's army.

"How are they here!?" Sheng demanded as he reached for his pike, which was strapped on his back.

Zuko then realized why Naruto was trying them to teach to look underneath the underneath. "I'm an idiot. This is why the last few attacks have been so weak! Fong was distracting us while Earthbenders were tunneling beneath us!" He ducked to avoid a swing from a non-Bender wielding an ax and sent a fireball into the man's stomach.

"What do you want to do, sir?" Sheng asked as he attempted to make a human shish-kabob on his pike.

Zuko looked around and saw that there other Fire Nation soldiers fighting nearby. "TROOPS, RALLY TO ME!" He bellowed. He then turned to Iroh. "Uncle, find Captain Jee and the lieutenants. Find other soldiers fighting in the streets and take command. Have the Firebenders throw fire down the holes and have the non-Benders take care of the enemies up top. We'll try to push them back through the gate. See if you can get someone to coordinate the soldiers that are still in the barracks!"

Iroh nodded. "I'll notify the captain and the lieutenants. I'll take care of the coordination myself." He ran off to find Jee and the lieutenants.

"Sheng, relay the orders to nearby soldiers," He approached one of the holes. "I'll take care of this." He took his stance and breathed. He started off by launching a one-two combo of fireballs down the hole. Once he saw just how far down the hole went, he bent the fire into a continuous stream into the hole. He listened to the screams coming from the hole but he ignored them. Once the screams were done however, he stopped the stream. To make sure the hole wouldn't be used again, he sealed the exit with a ring of fire that would make its way down and into the tunnel.

"Sir, are you okay?" A nearby soldier asked.

'I'm fine, soldier." He answered. "Now's not the time for talking. We've got work to do!"

It was slow, mostly because they had to seal off the tunnels, but the 41st slowly pushed the enemy forces back to the city gate. Because of the surprise created by the tunnels, many Fire Nation soldiers died. Zuko wasn't going to let the soldiers be demoralized by that, he kept them together. As they push the enemy back, they met up with other soldiers of the 41st. They were being led by the lieutenants. By the time they reached the city gate, the 41st was out in full force.

"We got them on the run!" One of the lieutenants cheered. It did seem like it, the non-Benders were falling back through the opened gate.

Feeling that victory was all but secured, Zuko took the lead. "Let's kick these rock-heads out of Akawan!" He roared just before charging through the gate with the 41st hot on his heels.

It was when they ran into the fields outside of the colony's walls that Zuko realized that the non-Benders weren't being pushed back. They were luring the 41st into a trap. Waiting for them, were the Earthbenders of General Fong's army, with rocks ready to be used.

"Fire!" commanded one of the Earthbenders and they released their barrage.

"Fall back!" Zuko ordered before falling to the ground in order to avoid the barrage. The 41st tried to flee back into the colony but there were those who were not fast enough and were bludgeoned to death by the rock barrage. By the time the gate had been closed, the only people who were left outside was Zuko, Sheng and a few other soldiers who didn't make it through the gate in time but managed to avoid the barrage.

Zuko began to stand back up when he heard a voice yell out "Sir, look out!" He felt someone shove him out of the way and back to the ground. As he regained his balance, he looked up and saw something that he didn't really want to see. "SHENG!" He cried.

As Zuko had been trying to stand back up, an Earthbender bent an earth column out of the ground at him. The main difference between an ordinary earth column and this was the fact that the end of this earth column was sharpened and meant to kill. That was why Sheng pushed Zuko out of the deadly earth column and it is also why he now had the same column end lodged in his chest.

"Damn, I missed the brat." The Earthbender who bent the earth column said. "Well I'll just have to—"

Whatever he was going to say, nobody knew because that was the exact moment Zuko decapitated him with one swing of his Dao swords.

"Get him inside!" He ordered the Fire Nation soldiers who were still in the field. As they pulled Sheng out of the earth column and hurried back into the colony, Zuko turned back to the Earthbenders. "You're going to regret that." He snarled at them.

Another of the Earthbenders laughed. "What are you going to do about it kid?" He asked.

That proved the very wrong thing to say. Zuko tore into them and this time, you could say that he fought like a tornado that had been set on fire. He made full use of his swordsmanship, his Firebending and even his rage. The non-Benders tried to support the Earthbenders by trying to fight Zuko themselves but that was like bringing lambs to the slaughter. Eventually, both Earthbenders and non-Benders ran away from him.

He was about to go after them, when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around, ready to attack the person, only for him to find it was Iroh.

"Control yourself, Zuko." He commanded. "The enemy has retreated. We must tend to the wounded now."

He snapped out of it when he remembered who was among the wounded. He raced back through the gate and towards Sheng. "Where's the medic!?" He demanded.

"Medic's on the way sir." A nearby soldier answered.

"That won't be ne-necessary." Sheng said as he gasped for breath.

"Take it easy, Sheng." Zuko told him. "You're going to be alright, the medic's coming."

"The medic sh-should attend to ones who need it. S-sorry sir, but I'm n-not going to make it." He raised his arm and gripped Zuko's shoulder. "Pro-promise me one thing Com-commander Zu-Zuko, promise me that the f-flag will get an em-emblem."

Zuko smiled. "I did promise that, didn't I?"

"Ye-yeah, I guess you're right." And with that said, a good man died. Ironically, the medics arrived at the same time to help the wounded.

Zuko stepped away from Sheng's body. "Uncle," He spoke to a nearby Iroh. "Can you oversee this?"

Iroh said nothing, he simply nodded. Zuko proceeded to head back to the command center. Along the way, his mind was a battleground.

"**So you're mourning because one soldier died?" **The Blue Spirit snarled. **"People are dying every day. You just mourn him because you let your cowardly instinct take over when he pushed out of the way. You let him die!"**

"**No he didn't!" **argued Young Zuko. **"He didn't see the earth column coming. So it's not his fault!"**

"**He let someone else get hit by something that was meant for him!"**

"**He was pushed out of the way!"**

"**He could've reacted quicker! Instead he acted like a coward!" **

"**Enough let him mourn."**

"**He doesn't have time to mourn; he still has to defend this colony!"**

"**He can still mourn!"**

"**No he doesn't!"**

_"Damn it all to Agni and back, would the two of you just shut UP!?" _Zuko mentally yelled at them. _"I know I still have to defend this colony but I can still mourn the loss of a good man!"_

As he continued walking, the two began to talk to each other. **"He did not side with either of us." **Young Zuko said.

"**He instead chose both of us." **The Blue Spirit said. He shook his head. **"He cannot do that, he must choose."**

Young Zuko nodded. **"He must choose between the two of us. There's no other choice."**

Zuko ignored them as he walked into the command center, past the map room and into his room. He sat down on the bed. Today's battle kept going through his mind. It reminded him of the day he and Azula saw what Naruto was in a fight.

(Flashback: three years ago. Location: Ember Island)

The storm grew heavy as Azula and Zuko made their way back to the beach house. "Why did we even go there?" Zuko asked as they walked through a forest.

"Someone said that a dragon lived on the other side of the island. I wanted to go see if it was true." Azula reminded him.

"What were you planning to do if we found the dragon? Fight it?"

"Well of course. Why else would I bring you along?"

"You actually wanted my company for once?"

She scoffed. "I needed someone who would back me up if we actually found the dragon. Ty Lee would exaggerate, Mai would skip details and I don't trust the foreigner."

"Why do you dislike Naruto?" Zuko asked, genuinely curious.

"He's insufferable, arrogant, smug, and he makes fun of me whenever he can!" She listed off.

"…Sounds like a match made in the Spirit World if you ask me."

"What did you say, Dum-Dum?"

"You two act an old married couple some days. And the way you just described him, he sounds just like you."

"Well, isn't this sweet." A nearby nasally voice said. "The little girl has a crush."

"It does not change the fact that she and the boy must be killed." Another voice, a deeper one, spoke.

"Who's there!?" demanded Azula as she looked.

"Oh, looks like they heard us. We might as well as reveal ourselves." The first voice said. They heard bushes rustling and two men appeared.

There was only one word that could describe each man. For the first one, it was weasel. He was small, his eyes were shifty and his face looked like a weasel. The second man was big, just big. His muscles looked like they had muscles. His nose looked like it had been broken and reset several times and his face looked like it never had an emotion since he was born. But despite the differences of the two men, they both wore the same kind of green cloth.

"What are Earth Kingdom rabble doing on Ember Island?" Azula asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" The weasel-looking one (now known as Mr. Weasel) asked back.

"By the order of the Earth King, both the prince and the princess of the Fire Nation are to be taken out." The big one (now known as Mr. Big) stated in a monotone voice.

Azula scoffed. "As if you could beat a Firebending prodigy," She told them.

"Oh, the little girl thinks she's ready to play with the big boys." Mr. Weasel said with a laugh. Quicker than they could see, he drew two knives and threw them at the tree Azula and Zuko were standing next to. "She fails to realize that she's still wet behind the ears."

At that point, Zuko threw the two rocks he had picked up at the would-be assassins. While they were distracted, he pulled out the two knives out of the tree. "C'mon Azula, we need to run!" He told her as he grabbed her arm and ran down the forest trail. They ran and ran, too afraid to see if the assassins were chasing them or not.

They made to the beach below the house when the assassins caught up. "Now that wasn't very nice, little kiddies." Mr. Weasel told them.

"Azula," Zuko whispered. "When you get a chance, run up to the house and get uncle. I think I can hold them off for that long."

"With what?" she hissed. "You only have the two knives and your Firebending is pathetic."

"Oh, Agni take it all!" He swore. "Azula, for once in your life, trust me!"

They heard the sound of rock breaking away from rock. They turned and saw a huge block of rock come out of the cliff side coming straight at them. They duck and the thing flew over to where Mr. Big was.

"Now are the little kiddies done whispering to each other?" Mr. Weasel asked, an evil grin slowly appearing on his face. He threw another knife at them.

Zuko pushed Azula out of the way and ducked, the knife only nicking him in the shoulder. "Azula, go!" He yelled. She took off at a dead sprint up to the house, all-the-while shouting out "Uncle, help!" with all she could.

Mr. Big took one look at her. He broke the chunk of rock into smaller pieces. He then bent a wall to appear in front of her, making her stop and becoming an easy target. But now, movement could be seen in the beach-house. Azula ran in the opposite direction of the wall, which led back to the beach.

Zuko had engaged Mr. Weasel when this happened. When he saw Azula come running back, Mr. Weasel took advantage of the distraction by knocking the knives out of Zuko's hands and knocking him over.

Mr. Big began to throw the rocks at Azula. She dodged most of them and was about to launch a fireball at him when she got a rock in the stomach. It knocked the wind out of her, thus making her lose the fireball. She fell to the ground, clutching her stomach in pain.

"This has taken too long." Mr. Big said. "We should kill them now."

When they heard that, both Zuko and Azula tried to get away by crawling. But it didn't work as they both suddenly felt a sharp pain in the leg. Looking down, they saw a knife sticking out of their legs.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk." Mr. Weasel said, waving his finger. "Didn't you know it's rude for you to try and leave when you're the guests of honor?" He reached for more knives. "Now, let's get to the killing!"

"If one more knife goes anywhere them, you will lose the ability to throw them." A voice told him. Azula and Zuko turned to see who had come to help them. "Naruto?" said both of them in surprise.

"Well, well." Mr. Weasel said. "Another little kiddie who went and stuck his nose in the wrong place, are you going to try and help them?"

"Not try. I am going to help them." He heard a foot move in the sand. He turned to Mr. Big. "You take another step, pal and you're dead."

Mr. Big ignored him and took another step. It was at this point when the sound of metal cutting through flesh was heard. Mr. Big had his throat cut from ear to ear. He dropped the rocks he was bending and began choking on his own blood, out from behind the dying assassin came another Naruto. "I did warn you but you didn't listen." The second Naruto said. He walked back over to the first Naruto as Mr. Big died before disappearing.

"How is that possible?" Zuko asked in stunned wonder.

"Wait…I know about your kind." Mr. Weasel said.

"My kind?" asked Naruto.

"Yeah, you're from across the sea, aren't you? I heard that there people over the sea that are master of stealth, assassination and weaponry. I even heard that some of those people are masters of the knife." He gave a psychotic grin. "I've always wanted to fight one of you guys. I want to see which one of us is the better knife-hand. We'll start on three, okay? One—"

He was cut off when Naruto appeared in front of him and shoved a knife into his throat. "Three." Naruto whispered in the dying man's ear. He pulled the knife out and Mr. Weasel fell to the ground dead.

Naruto walked over to Zuko and Azula and pulled the knives out of their legs. "Can you guys walk?" He asked.

They stood up and tried to walk, they could do so but they needed help. "Alright," Naruto quickly made two clones. He had one clone help Zuko while the other help Azula. As they made their way up the hill, Naruto walked out into the ocean until his feet were submerged. He looked at his blood-splattered hands and then saw his refection in the water; it was also covered in blood. It was then Naruto realized that even though he was a shinobi that was the first time he had actually killed someone.

He fell to his knees and began to wash his hands and face vigorously. Even when they were clean, he continued to wash them. It was like the blood wasn't coming off.

(End Flashback)

His musings were interrupted when his door opened and Iroh stepped in. "Are you feeling better, nephew?" He asked.

"I don't know, uncle." He answered honestly.

"It's alright. I have been where you are now many times. I have lost friends on the battlefield, some even in front of my eyes. You will never forget them but you learn how to deal with the pain."

"Like you did with Lu Ten's death?"

Iroh was silent; he went over to the open window that looked out the harbor. "Yes." He finally said.

Zuko arose from the bed. "I think I understand uncle, thank you."

Iroh looked at him and smiled. He turned back to the window and saw a flock of birds flying inland at a fast pace. He closed his eyes and breathed through his nose. "There is a storm coming." He announced.

Zuko joined him at the window and looked at the sky. "Uncle, it's completely cloudless…" He stopped as he remembered the last time Iroh warned him about an oncoming storm. An idea began to form in his mind. He ran out of the room, leaving a bewildered Iroh who soon followed.

Zuko ran into the map room and saw Captain Jee and Lieutenant Bao-yu were there. "Perfect, just the men I needed." Zuko said as he walked over the center table.

"Uh…sir?" asked a clearly confused Jee.

Iroh entered the map room. "What caused you to dash off like that, Zuko?" He asked.

Zuko poured over the maps. "Uncle, the incoming storm, would you say that it's as big as the last one?"

He thought it over. "No, if I had to guess, it'll be at least half as dangerous."

"Then we can use it to our advantage."

"Sir, with all due respect, what are you talking about?" Jee asked.

"We are about to go on the offensive and attack General Fong's fortress, captain." Zuko explained.

"That's going to be a siege that we can't afford for long, sir."

"It won't be a siege, not if what I have in mind works." He turned to Bao-yu. "Lieutenant, how good are the Yuyan archers at nights ops?"

"We're quite capable of doing night ops, sir."

"Good, then here is the plan." He brought up the map that showed both Akawan and General Fong's fortress, including the local area. "Considering its late afternoon now, the storm will probably hit us after dark. Once it's dark, the Yuyan archers as well as a support team will cross the river and infiltrate General Fong's fortress."

"What are we to do then?"

"The same thing Fong did to us when uncle and I arrived here. You are to assassinate the officers, all of them."

"Even the general?"

He shook his head. "No, I think the general would be expecting it. So don't try to murder the general or the whole plan could go out the window."

"What is the support team's role in this, sir?" Jee asked.

"The support team is to act as back up to the Yuyan archers, the other objective they have to unlock the gate to the fortress."

"What are we to do when the officers are dead?"

'I want the archers to break up into squads. Each squad is to find a room that is both defendable and has a good view of the main courtyard. The support team will also break up into squads, their job then will to hold the room the archers have chosen. To put it basically, they will make sure that no one gets in while the archers fire into the courtyard."

"What about the rest of the 41st, Zuko?" Iroh asked. "Or to you intend this to only be an assassination mission."

"I plan to have the division banging on the door by dawn tomorrow, uncle. If this works, the threat to this colony will be over." He looked at the three other men. "Any questions?" he asked.

"Just one sir," Bao-yu said. "Who is to be in the support team?"

He turned to Jee. "Captain, I need you to do something for me."

"What's that, sir?"

"I need you to get the crew together, they're the support group."

He saluted. "Yes sir."

(After midnight, Location: Outskirts of Fong's fortress)

The storm had indeed provided them with good cover. They were able to cross the river without any damages. Now they stood in front of the fortress's walls. No one would have been able to see them, they all wore black clothing. The Yuyan archers had even changed the face paint's color and had removed their headbands.

"Are we all ready?" Bao-yu asked both the archers and the support team. Both nodded. "Support team, you are to first unlock the main gate. Then you will find your respective archer squad and provide them with cover. Once you find a secure location, you are to signal via bird call. We need to be done by dawn, understood?"

He got nods of acknowledgement. "Alright then, archers, use grapple arrows." He ordered.

The archers selected the required arrow, nocked and fire it up to the top of one of the side walls that led into the fortress. They all hooked up and began to climb. Once they reached the top of the wall, they split up and went to do their jobs.

(Just before dawn, Location: in front of fortress's gate)

Zuko stood in front of the gate that led into the fortress. He knew that the strike team did their job successfully because had they failed, the fortress would have been on alert looking for him or the 41st.

"Are we all set?" Zuko asked Jee.

"Yes sir. All we need to do now is receive clarification." He answered.

"Alright then, send the question." He ordered. Jee took a couple of steps back and sent a small, weak fireball up into the air. Once the fireball had gone past the gate, it faded away. They waited a few minutes before they received their answer. A single arrow was fired from within the fortress and it landed right in front of Zuko's feet. Tied around the arrow was a single strip of green cloth.

"We're good to go." Zuko announced. They waited a few more minutes for the sun to rise and when it did, Zuko stepped forward, closed his eyes and began to breathe. When he was sure of himself, he took a step forward and launched a big fireball at the gate.

The fireball hit the gate with tremendous force, tearing them from their hinges and sent them crashing into the walls opposite of the gate. Alarm bells began to ring from within the tower.

Zuko turned to face the men of the 41st division, _his _men. "For Sheng!" He yelled.

"SHENG!" the 41st roared as they charged into the fortress.

The fighting turned into something quite vicious. General Fong's army knew that if they lost here, that would be it. They put all they had into fighting and despite all the officers being dead; they were putting up a hell of a fight.

However, the 41st knew that if they won here, not only would the colony be safe but they would also be given the chance to have an emblem put on their flag and also be given a nickname. Their pride and honor were riding hard on this battle.

Zuko was in the thick of it, fighting with both sword and Bending. He kept on fighting but despite what he did, the enemy soldiers always seemed to act like they had orders to follow. It was after he got close enough to the tower, he discovered how the enemy army was acting like they had orders. They were actually getting orders.

Standing on the balcony on the top floor of the tower was General Fong. He watched the battle go back and forth, like it was a game of Pai Sho. Zuko took a quick look around and saw both sides losing a lot of lives. That was when Zuko turned his gaze onto Fong and roared "GENERAL FONG! MY NAME IS ZUKO! I AM THE PRINCE OF THE FIRE NATION AND HEIR TO THE THRONE! I AM THE COMMANDER OF THE 41ST DIVISION OF THE FIRE NATION ARMY AND I CHALLENGE TO SINGLE COMBAT, HERE AND NOW!"

The entire fortress went silent as everyone wanted to hear General Fong's reply. He then leapt off the tower balcony and landed on the ground, causing a crack to emerge. "Why do you wish to challenge me to single combat?" He asked.

"No more lives need to die today for what we want." Zuko answered.

The general seem to think it over. "Your terms?" he finally asked.

"I win, your troops leave and the fortress is claimed for the Fire Nation. You win and you get Akawan."

"How should we fight?" asked the general. "By weapon or Bending?"

"By either or both," Zuko answered. "And we fight until one of us is dead."

This caused a gasp in the surrounding soldiers; it was rare when someone fought to the death in single combat. They usually just went until one of the combatants was knocked unconscious. To say that single combat went to the death meant the person was (pardon the pun) dead serious.

Fong laughed. "So be it!" He declared. The two combatants were given more room, while the crowd formed a circle around them.

The two combatants circled each other slowly. Neither one made the first move. "You know, I'm quite surprised." Fong suddenly said.

Zuko narrowed his eyes. "About what exactly?" He asked cautiously.

"That after all your father and your nation did to you, you're still willing to fight for it. It is truly astonishing."

Zuko knew what he was trying to do. He was trying to bait him. "If I am to rule my nation, I must learn how to first fight alongside its soldiers. Unlike you, who would rather stay in his tower and direct his soldiers like it's some sort of game." He decided to try and bait him in return. "You know, you're quite well known in the Fire Nation and the colonies."

Fong was angry at the comment about him staying in the tower but he kept his calm. "Really, am I someone who is feared? Do mothers tell their children to behave or General Fong will get them?"

Zuko shook his head. "No, we know you as the rock-head idiot who sent his nine tenths of his army to slaughter because he was stupid enough to try and fight Naruto, the Paragon of the Fire Nation."

That did the trick. Fong bent a big chunk of stone out of the ground and hurled it at Zuko. He rolled forward to avoid the rock and went in low on Fong. He swung his swords but Fong kept dodging. Despite his size, he was fairly agile.

It didn't last long as Zuko managed to nick Fong on his right shoulder and left side. Fong responded by bending the earth beneath Zuko's feet to upheave him. Zuko react quickly by back flipping off the upheaved rock. Once again the two faced each other.

"It's been a while since someone has managed to nick me." Fong stated.

"Expect a lot more. We are fighting to the death." Zuko reminded him.

"Indeed." He looked over to a large stack of giant stone rings. Using his bending, he sent ring after ring at Zuko. Zuko responded by bending his fire onto his swords edge's. He then hacked his way through the barrage of rings towards Fong.

He leapt at Fong, going for an airborne strike but Fong jumped away and sent a decent sized rock at him. He tried to block with his swords but the impact jarred his hands, forcing him to release his grip on his swords, which in turn were sent flying.

"Now why don't you try fighting me like an actual Bender?" Fong taunted. "Or are you worthless without your swords?"

Zuko grit his teeth but said nothing. He went into a Firebending stance and sent a fireball at Fong. He dodged and sent a hail of small rocks at him. He rolled to the side but saw that two rock walls were about smash him to little pieces. It would have work had he not rolled forward and sent a low stream of fire at Fong.

"'_Break his roots' uncle used to tell me." _He thought. _"I wonder if it's the same for an Earthbender."_

Fong saw the low fire stream and moved back to avoid it. Zuko sent it again and again the general moved backwards. This time, he sent a fireball at Fong and when he avoided it, he got in close and did a leg-sweep to knock Fong's feet from underneath. Fong moved back again but this time he stumbled, He had not regained his balance yet.

Zuko pressed the advantage. He dimly heard the cheering from the 41st in the background but he couldn't worry about that at the moment. He kept pushing Fong back and back until finally, Fong seemed to trip. He moved in with an overhead fire-kick to finish it off but it did not end the way he thought it would.

As soon as Fong hit the ground, he rolled backwards and bent the earth to jut out an earth column. The column hit Zuko hard in the stomach, which sent him rolling away on the ground.

He tried to stand up but when he did, Fong appeared and slugged him across the face. It sent him back to the ground. As he tried to stand up again, he heard Fong say something. "Is that all…sniveling little brat?" He asked before punching him in the stomach, making him fall to the ground.

"Is that all…pathetic little charcoal-sucker?!" Fong asked him before kicking him in the stomach. He grabbed him by the shirt and lifted him so that they were face to face. "Is that all the prince of the Fire Nation has to offer me, huh!?" He asked a third time before throwing him to the ground again.

Zuko could hear the soldiers calling for him, telling to get up, not to give in or to fight back. He tried to stand up but was kicked by Fong again; he wasn't even bothering to use Earthbending now.

Zuko lifted his head and saw that time seemed to have stopped. Once again, he saw his younger self and he saw the Blue Spirit.

"**The time has come." **The Blue Spirit hissed. **"Use your anger and hatred and destroy this man!"**

"**No!" **Young Zuko shouted. **"Bring forth your hope and your determination to stand up again!"**

"**You must choose!"**

"**If you do not, you will die!"**

"**Choose!" **

"**Choose!"**

"**Choose!"**

"**CHOOSE!"**

Zuko didn't know what to do. He couldn't choose one over the other, it felt wrong to him. But if he didn't choose, he would die.

"**Choose!"**

**"Choose!"**

"**CHOOSE!"**

"**CHOOSE!"**

Then he suddenly remembered everything that Iroh, Naruto and even Bahamut tried to teach him.

"_There is energy all around us. The energy is both yin and yang, positive energy and negative energy."_

"_**There are other ways to generate lightning."**_

"_**I am the one who stands in the light with hope and determination."**_

"_**And I am the one who stands in the darkness with rage and hatred."**_

"_You simply have to look underneath the underneath."_

"_**It's not what they are supposed to show **__**you, it's more what they don't want you to do."**_

"_**There are more than just two choices."**_

"_**He must choose between the two of us. There's no other choice."**_

All that information went coursing through his head, and now he finally understood.

"I know who I must choose." He said.

The two spirits grew silent. **"Who?" **Young Zuko asked.

"**Who do you choose?"** The Blue Spirit asked.

"I choose neither and I choose both."

"**What?"**

"**What?"**

"I am neither light nor dark. I am neither positive nor negative."

"**Stop!" **cried the two spirits as they began to come closer together.

"I am not just a memory that is ever hopeful and determined to do the right thing. Nor am I just a dark spirit who hates the world and fights using rage!"

"**Don't do this!"** The two spirits cried as they came closer and closer to each other.

"I am none of these things! I am all of these things!"

"**NOOO!" **screamed the two spirits as they finally fused together as one.

"I. AM. ZUKO!"

Then time resumed it pace. Fong stood above his body with a fist ready. "IS THAT ALLLL?!" He roared as he swung a punch at Zuko.

But this time, Zuko was ready. Swinging his legs upwards, he knocked the punch away. Flipping himself onto his feet, he now stood across from the Earthbending general. Then he did one simple thing: He roared.

But it was more than just a roar. It was something that no one had ever seen in the history of Bending, something so incredible. When Zuko roared, he didn't just roar. He also breathed _lightning_!

Fong was lifted into the air by the lightning and was flung to the wall. When the lightning finally stopped, Fong had a fist-sized hole where his heart should have been. He was dead.

Zuko stood there, panting for breath. It was the only sound in the entire fortress. The silence lasted for an entire minute before the 41st division just lost it. You would have never heard any louder cheering or screaming for the rest of your life had you been there.

"Zuko!" cried Iroh as he got close to Zuko. "Are you alright!?"

"I'm fine, uncle. I'm just a little winded." He tried to get to his feet, but it felt like the strength had left his legs. "Can you help? I want to go see the general's body."

Iroh nodded and helped Zuko stand. Soldiers from the 41st were already going into the tower, to see if there was any useful information or just plain old treasure. As Zuko walked over to the body with his uncle's help, he felt the strength in his legs return. By the time he reached the body, he could walk on his own again.

General Fong's body was now slumped against the wall. His body was guarded by a single Earth Kingdom soldier. "Stay back! I will not let you discrete General Fong's body."

"Relax." Zuko told him. "I just want to look at him." He stared at the body. "He really was an incredibly general."

The soldier nodded. "I know, he saved my battalion from being used by the Fire Nation as bait. We were all grateful for him to have rescued us."

Zuko looked at the soldier. "Is there anyone in your battalion named Sensu?"

The soldier stiffened. "That's my name, how do you know my name."

Zuko laughed. "I met your family. They're worried sick about you. Your father was planning on going to the front lines to search for you."

"R-really?" the soldier asked.

"If you want my advice, then go home after this. They deserved to know you're still alive."

"Y-yeah, you're right."

Zuko and Iroh walked away from the body of General Fong and Sensu. They sat down on a nearby staircase. They were soon joined by Jee and Bao-yu.

"It has been a very interesting day." Bao-yu said after a few minutes of silence.

"I think that's an understatement." Jee replied, which all made them chuckle. They watched as Earth Kingdom soldiers were being led out of the fortress by a Fire Nation soldier on a komodo rhino.

Suddenly, a voice yelled out "SWEET AGNI IN HOLY FLAMES!" Then a soldier came running out of the tower. He looked frantically around and saw Zuko's group. "Sir, you have to come with me!" the man said as he gave a hasty salute.

"What's the matter, soldier?" Jee asked as he rose from where he sat.

"We just found something…incredible! They're bringing it up out of the tower basement now!"

They hurried over to the tower. A hole in the tower that was the size of a sky-bison was created during the battle. There was now a crowd encircling the hole. Zuko and Iroh made their way to the front of the crowd. "Everyone, back up! We're coming out and we're going to need a lot of room!" A voice from inside the hole called out.

The crowd back up considerably. Four soldiers came out of the hole; it looked like they were pulling something. What they were pulling became obvious in a moment. It was a long platform on wheels but it was what was on the platform that had everyone's attention.

"That should be impossible!" One soldier cried out.

"It can't be real!" Another shouted.

Zuko just stared in wonder. "Is that what I think it is?"

Iroh simply nodded his head. "Yes it is."

Zuko turned to look at his uncle. "But I thought you defeated the last living dragon!"

"Apparently, I was mistaken."

Sitting on the platform, covered in chains to hold it down, was a dragon.

"What is a dragon doing underneath an Earth Kingdom fortress?" Jee asked as he joined Zuko and Iroh.

"If I had to hazard a guess," Bao-yu said as he joined the group. "I'd say that General Fong was trying to tame it so he could use it against the Fire Nation."

"Then it's a good thing that dragons are stubborn creatures, especially the young ones." Iroh said as he looked closer at the dragon. Said dragon tried to bite him when he got too close. "Well, he's a feisty one."

"What should we do, uncle?" Zuko asked.

"That is once again your decision, nephew." Iroh told him. "You are the one who brought us this victory; he is a part of your spoils of war."

Zuko just stared at the dragon. Its coat was a deep, deep red, almost crimson. Its whiskers and horns had not fully developed yet and it looked like it was still growing. But there was one thing that caught Zuko's attention. Around its right eye, the scale color was black, not red. It almost looked like that his eye was burned, like Zuko's.

Zuko knew what he had to do. "Does anyone know where my swords flew to?" He asked the soldiers.

"I have them sir." One of the soldiers answered him, handing him his Dao swords back.

He walked around the platform, cutting every chain that was attached to the platform. Finally he had only one chain left. Looking the dragon directly in the eye, he struck the chain, cutting it loose. All the chains fell off the dragon, it was finally free. It gave a roar of excitement but the roar turned to growling as he faced Zuko.

Iroh, with the help of Jee and Bao-yu, managed to push the crowd back further, giving Zuko and the dragon more room.

The two of them faced each other without moving. Zuko slowly raised his swords and to the surprise of everyone there, he sheathed them. "You probably don't understand me." He told the dragon. "But we are both young creatures, we have yet to attain our true level of power. If you wished to fight me, then I will gladly provide. But let that day be when we are older, wiser and more powerful. Until then…" He gestured to the open sky. "Be free."

The dragon seemed to get the point. It opened up its wings and flew off into the sky. After watching it disappeared from sight, Zuko looked back to what was left of the 41st division. "Alright, break's over." He called out. "It's time we went back to Akawan. When the reinforcements get here, we'll let them know about the fortress."

The journey back to Akawan was normal. Soldiers were talking about who had done what in the fortress, people telling jokes and a sense of relaxation settled into both soldiers and officer. But somehow, Zuko knew that it wasn't going to be that easy.

His suspicions were confirmed when they reached Akawan. They were told to report immediately to the barracks. When they arrived, they saw that there was a new division in the barracks. They were brought to the new commander of the Akawan military force, a Colonel Ying.

"Ah, so these are the traitors to the Fire Nation." He began. "Captain Jee! Why were these men not thrown into jail when their identities were discovered?"

"General Iroh and Prince Zuko revealed themselves during an attack by an Earth Kingdom army, sir." Jee explained. "They offered their services in the fight. We needed every man we could take."

"I see." Ying sniffed condescendingly. "And who was it that led your forces for the past six days? Was it you or General Iroh?"

"No sir, it was Prince Zuko who lead the men."

"So, you willingly let a traitor lead the men, why?"

This time, Zuko spoke. "I lead them because it was because of my actions that they were kept here guarding the colonies."

"Oh, so you felt like you had a responsibility to them, is that it?" Ying asked. "Doesn't matter now, you'll be thrown into prison and there you'll await your execution."

"Sir!" protested Jee. "Prince Zuko and General Iroh have been protecting this colony for the past six days! Had it not been for them, the colony would've surely fallen!"

"But the colony hasn't fallen, has it? These traitors will face execution for their crimes and we will finish off those rabble you seem to have a hard time getting rid of—" Ying never finished that sentence because of an arrow pierced through his top knot.

"If you finish that sentence, the next one will go through your brain." Bao-yu threatened with another arrowed nocked.

"How dare you?!" Ying spluttered.

"The 'rabble' of which you speak of was led by one of the top Earth Kingdom generals. Furthermore, the 'rabble' was defeated this morning when Prince Zuko fought the enemy general in single combat to the death. Prince Zuko killed him when he used the breath of _lightning _on the enemy general."

"Breath of lightning?" repeated Ying. "That is ridicules! Such a technique does not exist!"

"It was created today by Prince Zuko. When we searched the fortress for valuable information, we had found a living dragon."

"Where is it!?" Ying demanded. "It should be brought to the Fire Lord."

"The dragon belongs to Prince Zuko by right of spoils of war. Prince Zuko freed the creature from its chains. When it wanted to fight, Zuko told it to come back when they were older and in their prime. After that, he let it go free."

"You FOOL! Do you realize what you just did!?" Ying yelled at Zuko, which earned him the sound of every bow held by a Yuyan archer being ready to use and pointing at him.

"Prince Zuko has spent the last six days fighting for the people in this colony, never for his own glory!" Bao-yu continued. "Combined with the actions of today, I believe Prince Zuko is to be granted a great reward. So, as head of the Yuyan archers and as such, second to Paragon Naruto, I give Prince Zuko the title of Dragon!"

"You don't have that right!" Ying shouted.

"Actually, he does." Iroh stated. "Only the Fire Nation Paragon can revoke a decision made by the head of the Yuyan archers."

"I have the 41st division as witnesses to what Prince Zuko had done! From today on, Prince Zuko will be known as the Scarred Dragon!"

Ying just stared hopelessly at Bao-yu. Then he turned to the soldiers of the 41st. "Is what he says true?"

"SIR! YES SIR!" the 41st replied as one.

"In regard to the 41st division." continued Bao-yu. "They fought bravely and with honor for the past six days. As such, I believe it is their right to earn an emblem and a nickname." He gave Ying a pointed look.

"Y-yes, they do." Ying gave in.

Bao-yu turned to Zuko. "My lord, would you give them the honor of an emblem and a nickname?" He asked.

He nodded and stepped forward. "I can honestly say that I had never given the nickname much thought. I was too busy fighting to protect this colony. However, if you all agreed for me to be a Dragon, then I think it's only fitting I give you a nickname that makes you dragons as well." He took a deep breath. "41st division of the Fire Nation army, from this day on, you will be known as the Dragon's Fangs! Let your emblem be that of a roaring dragon, proudly showing its fangs!"

The 41st busted out into cheering and celebrating. Ying had just stood shock still in the middle of the parade ground. He had come to the colony with a new division to claim honor and glory for him and the new division while also throwing the traitors into jail. All of that was gone now.

The celebrating had turned into a full-blown party that had the entire colony going.

Zuko turned to look at Iroh. "Maybe now would be the best time to leave?" He suggested.

Iroh looked at all the celebration going on. "Yes, we should leave."

They left the barracks, grabbed their supplies from the command center and went to get their ostrich horse. When they found the ostrich horse, there was a note on the saddle. It read:

We knew that you would try to leave the festivities. Don't worry, we'll tell the 41st why you two disappeared.

Jee & Bao-yu

P.S. Bao-yu sent the fastest massager hawk we have to Lord Naruto, explaining what happened. With any luck, he'll give his response to Fire Lord Ozai the same time he gets the official report.

They read the note once more and then burned it. They got on the ostrich horse and left the colony of Akawan in the late afternoon.

After an hour of riding, Zuko spoke. "Uncle?" he said.

"Yes?" Iroh replied.

"I'm ready to tell you about what happened in the storm."

And so, two dragons, one who came from the west and once who was scarred, continued on their journey.

(Location: Sensu)

It was early evening when he finally got to the house. He had spent the afternoon trying to find out about what happened to his father. It turns that he came back two weeks later, having found out that Sensu was rescued by General Fong.

Now, he was home. He walked up to the door and knocked on it. It opened up to reveal a women's face. When she saw who it was, she was shocked to see who it was.

He could only think of one thing to say. "Hi mom, I'm home."

(Location: Fire Nation Capital, Royal Palace)

Fire Lord Ozai read the report that came from Akawan. Initially, he was furious that his traitor of a brother and his disgraced son just decided to waltz into one of the colonies! Then he was surprised and pleased at how Zuko acted like a leader during the attacks, perhaps he had some useful qualities after all.

His mood turned sour when he read about how Zuko breathed lightning, freed a young captive dragon and was in turn, given the title of Dragon by the head of the Yuyan archers. He had just finished reading about how the 41st division was nicknamed the Dragon's Fangs, when a servant came into the throne and bowed low.

"What is it?" The Fire Lord asked.

"My lord, this message just came in from Lord Naruto. The instructions say that you should read this after you have the report from Akawan."

"I have already read the report. Give me the message and leave me."

The servant did as he was commanded. As he left, Ozai opened the scroll to read the message from his daughter's bodyguard:

To the Royal Flaming Asshole

To start off, yes your daughter is safe (do you think I let her be anything else?).

Now I know you've just finished reading the report from Akawan. The reason I know is because Bao-yu sent a hawk to me with the report. And just so you know, I find the reasons justifiable. He has my backing.

Now about Zuko, can't you be proud of him? He was to generate lightning inside of himself and was able breathe it! I know for fact that had Azula come with the idea, you would have thrown a party just for her when she was able to do it!

Now about the dragon, so he let it go so that he could fight it when he was more powerful. What does that tell you? It tells me that he is going to try his hardest to improve his Firebending, just so he could fight a dragon in its prime!

For Agni's sake Ozai! You should try at least to be proud of both of your children! So your son was a late bloomer, it doesn't mean you should automatically think him a failure! Give him some time to improve himself and he just might actually surprise you. And, in case you didn't notice, HE ALREADY DID! THREE TIMES!

But when have you ever listened to me? Sometimes, I wonder what would have happened had you treated your children equally. Maybe you wouldn't have such a dysfunctional family.

Paragon of the Fire Nation

Naruto Uzumaki

P.S. I've already sent my reply about the report back to Bao-yu. He knows that I stand by his decisions. So don't try to do anything funny with Bao-yu or the Yuyan archers, Ozai. Remember, they're loyal to me first and to you second. I have no doubts that I could find an one of them who would be willing to make an arrow in the forehead seem very fashionable in the Fire Nation if you try to do anything that would endanger and/or kill them or me.

**End**

**Author's note: **Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

I would also like to personally thank Kyuubi16 for sending me a harsh review. We've been talking back and forth about what he meant on his review. He's been pointing out stuff that I need to work that I didn't realized I had. This is why you should always pay attention to the harsher critics; odds are they're the ones who will actually help your story.

Rock-head and charcoal-sucker are derogative terms for Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation respectively. I don't know if I'll come up with derogative terms for Water Tribe or Air Nomad. It was kind of a spur of the moment thing.

I always wanted to know what happened to the 41st division in the actual show, so here is my version. Which is also why I somewhat brought the crew for Zuko's ship back as well while also reuniting the family in "Zuko Alone"

I also wanted to add in something about the Yuyan archers because their headband. It's explained in the chapter, I wanted to kind of expand the Yuyan archers. Give them a little backstory.

If you thought that the Naruto flashbacks were a bit short, don't worry. I'm planning on putting in a few in the next chapter.

Also, don't worry. The dragon will be back. The question of whether or not the 41st division comes back is still up for grabs but they'll be an important factor in a later chapter.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	9. Bridge and Old Friends

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 9: Bridge and Old Friends

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Aboard Appa)

Appa flew on. It had been about two and a half weeks since training in the rock quarry. Since then, they've kept moving so that Azula and Naruto couldn't find them.

"Hey, look down there." Sokka pointed downwards. Everyone looked down to the ground. They were passing over an Earth Kingdom military camp. "It looks like someone is trying to flag us down."

"What should we do?" Katara asked. She looked over to Team Guy. "Should we land?"

"At the very least, we can see what they want." Aang said, like he was trying to convince them.

"It is your decision to land or not, Aang." Guy told him.

"In that case, please land." Toph said. "I'd liked to feel earth beneath my feet again."

"Alright then," Aang had Appa fly down to the ground. They landed just outside the military base.

A soldier came running out. "You're the Avatar, right?" He asked breathlessly.

"Do you not see the giant sky bison?" Sarcasm-Fu, Sokka style was in full use.

"Come with me, the colonel will want to see you ASAP."

He walked back into the base and everyone followed.

(Location: Tank-train)

"We haven't seen the Avatar in quite some time." Naruto noted.

"Maybe he wised up and is evading us?" Mai suggested.

Azula shook her head. "He wouldn't come with the idea himself, he's too naive. One of the others came up with the idea."

"If it was my guess," Naruto said. "I'd say it would be Sokka or…"

"The group who came after you in the forest?" asked Ty Lee.

He simply nodded.

"Naruto, you can trust us. Who are these people?" Azula asked him.

He looked away. "I knew them once…a while back. That's all I'm going to say."

"Naruto, please," She said, almost begging.

He started to walk away. "I'm going to check in with the engineers."

As she watched him disappear, she was reminded of the last time that happened.

(Flashback: three years ago. Location: Fire Nation Capital)

The boat was being docked in the harbor. Once it was, everyone disembarked. Zuko then noticed that both Iroh and Naruto were heading in a different direction. "Uncle, aren't you coming with us?" He asked.

He shook his head. "No, Naruto and I must go somewhere."

"Where?" asked Ty Lee.

"I've decided to join the Fire Nation army." Naruto said before Iroh could even open his mouth.

"You?" snorted Azula. "Why would they take you?"

"I think you of all people would know why they would take me." He fired back.

"But you're our age!" Zuko protested. "The army won't take you."

"I think they'll be able to make an exception this time." Iroh said.

Naruto walked over to where Zuko and Azula stood. "For what it's worth, it was fun being with you guys on Ember Island." He gave them a hug, surprising them both. Before they could even protest or, in Azula's case, demand why he did that, he and Iroh left.

"_Hey, fox!" _Naruto called out in his mind.

"**What do you want, kid?" **Kyuubi replied in a bored voice.

"_Do you know anything about the shinobi arts?"_

"…**Do you not know HOW long I've been around?"**

"_No, because the last time I asked how old you were, you got all huffy and acted like an old woman!"_

"**No I didn't! But to answer your question, yes I do know about the shinobi arts. I know a LOT about the shinobi arts. Why?"**

"_I want you to teach me to be a better shinobi. I'm going into a war and I need to be the best. Kami, I need to better then the best."_

The fox thought it over. He approved of his host's drive. **"Alright, then I'll teach you what I know. I just have one thing to mention."**

"_What's that?"_

He couldn't see it, but Naruto knew that the damn fox had a _very _evil grin on his face. **"Gaki, you are going to feel my own personal brand of Hell."**

(End Flashback)

"Hey Azula, what are you thinking about?" Ty Lee asked.

Azula came back to reality. "Nothing," She said.

That was when Naruto came back. "We may have a problem." He announced.

(Location: Aang's group)

"Greetings, young Avatar," The colonel in charge of the base said. "I am Colonel Qing."

"Hello." Aang replied as they walked into the colonel's room. "What do you need my help with?"

"Ah, straight to the point but I feel I must inform you of recent events." The colonel walked over to the map on the wall. "Tell me, Avatar, do you know General Fong?"

Aang shared a look with Katara and Sokka. It was Sokka who spoke. "Yeah, we met the guy."

Colonel Qing turned around. "I'm sorry; I was talking to the Avatar. Who are you?" He asked with contempt.

"My name is Sokka, Paragon of the Water Tribe." He replied without hesitation, showing his Paragon Medallion.

"My apologies Lord Sokka," Qing told him, Sokka could tell he didn't mean it but didn't push it.

"Anyway, we met the guy. He wanted Aang to use the Avatar State so that he could invade the Fire Nation." He scoffed. "Glory hound, it came back to bite him in the ass."

"Well the glory hound is dead."

The silence was almost deafening, except for the fact that both Team Guy and Toph had not met the man.

"What?" Katara asked.

"Almost a week ago, General Fong tried to attack a Fire Nation colony. He besieged the colony for five days and was close to succeeding but was defeated when the forces at the colony retaliated by attacking his fortress. He died in single combat and the fortress fell underneath Fire Nation control."

"He…he really is dead?" Katara asked.

"Yes." He looked to Aang. "Avatar Aang, what do you know of the Fire Nation colonies?"

"Um…not much?" answered Aang. It was funny, half the reason he was trying to stop the Fire Lord was because the Fire Nation colonies do not belong in the Earth Kingdom but he didn't really know about them.

Qing had a look of brief irritation but it soon passed. "There are three colonies that are the lifeline of the Fire Nation here in the Earth Kingdom. They are Yu Dao, Akawan and Kouzan." He turned back to the map and pointed out the locations of the colonies on it. "Yu Dao is the manufacturer and Akawan is the harbor but Kouzan is arguably their most vital one."

"Why?"

Guy was the one who answered. "It's where most of their resources come from, isn't it?"

Qing nodded. "Yes, Kouzan sits on top on what seems to be an almost endless amount of metal ore. They mine the ore and send it to Yu Dao who, in turn, sends it to Akawan so that it reaches the Fire Nation. For quite some time now, the Earth Kingdom army has been trying to disrupt the trade routes between the three colonies but has had little success. With the events at Akawan, I believe we should go directly to the source."

"What do you mean?" Neji asked him.

"I intend to go to Kouzan and convince the Fire Nation colonists to leave. After which, Kouzan will be held by the Earth Kingdom and the Fire Nation will lose an important colony. I believe with your help, Avatar Aang, we can take over the colony much more smoothly."

"Alright, I'll help." Aang said without hesitation, surprising the group.

"Hold on, sorry, group talk." Sokka told the colony as he dragged Aang outside the room. 'What are you thinking, Aang!?"

"What? He's going to convince the colonists to leave the colony peacefully." Aang said.

Sokka smacked his forehead. "Aang, he's going to have the colonists killed. That's what he means by convincing them to leave."

"No, he's not." Toph said. "I could feel his heartbeat; he wasn't lying when he said he was going to convince them to leave."

"Sokka, would you stop being so paranoid?" Katara asked her brother with exasperation.

"He did sound sincere." Tenten said, her Team nodded in agreement.

"Look, I'll make Colonel Qing make a promise not to have any of the colonists killed, okay?" Aang told Sokka. Everyone went back into the room, except for Sokka and Akela.

"This is going to come back and bite us in the rear, I just know it." Sokka told the wolf, who nodded in agreement.

(Location: Tank-train)

"What's the problem?" Mai asked with no concern.

"The wheels and the tracks are getting rusty and according to the engineers, they don't have enough of the oil needed to clean them. Also add in the fact that we're low on supplies and like I said, we may have a problem." Naruto explained.

Azula thought it over. "What's the nearest Fire Nation colony?"

"We're about an hour away from Kouzan." He replied without hesitation.

"Then that's where we're going."

He nodded and went to inform the engineers.

An hour later, the tank-train came upon Kouzan. The colony was located next to a cliff that dropped into a very deep and very long gorge. What attracted a person's attention if they were to look at Kouzan at a distance was the large bridge being built across the gorge.

"I'm sorry but you'll have to excuse me, Azula." Naruto said as they walked into the colony. "But I have to check on some things." He looked over to the other girls. "Mai, Ty Lee, keep her out of trouble." And with that, he disappeared.

"I hate it when he does that." Azula groaned.

"Don't worry," Ty Lee said with a mischievous grin. "Your boyfriend will be back soon enough."

"Knock it off Ty Lee! He's not my boyfriend!" She growled at her friend.

"Can we please not have this in the middle of the street?" Mai asked. 'Let's just get to the mayor's house and talk to the mayor about what we need."

The two of them calmed down and they proceeded to make their way to the mayor's house and made their presence known to the mayor. "It is a great honor to have you in my house, princess Azula." He told her as he bowed before her. "May I ask why you have decided to come to Kouzan?"

"We are tracking the Avatar but we have run short of supplies and thus need to restock. Once that is done, we will leave."

The mayor winced. "I'm afraid that will be impossible, your highness."

"…Excuse me?" She asked in a dangerous voice. Meanwhile, Mai and Ty Lee were preparing themselves to restrain her should she get really mad.

"Forgive me but you were going in this general direction, yes?" Azula nodded at the mayor's question. "The gorge runs for a lot of miles, had you continued in this direction you would have to come here eventually. The only bridge that crosses the gorge is the one here in Kouzan."

"So we'll cross the bridge once we get the supplies."

"The bridge was collapsed a few months ago by enemy Earthbenders. It's currently under reconstruction."

"Well, I guess we'll go talk to the builder." Azula walked out of the room and back into the streets with Mai and Ty Lee right behind her. At a brisk walk, they soon arrived at the bridge. "Who is in charge here?" She demanded.

"Who's asking?" A burly worker asked.

"The princess of the Fire Nation, where's the builder?"

The worker turned his head to where a young teenager and an adult were talking. "Hey boss!" He called out. "Somebody wants to talk to you!"

Both the teenager and the adult turned their head, to the girls surprise; it was the teenager who came over, not the adult. "Who needs to talk to me?" He asked.

"Who are you?" Ty Lee asked in a bewildered voice.

"My name is Inari; I'm the bridge builder here." He looked at the three girls. "What exactly do you need?"

"You're the bridge builder!?" Azula asked in disbelief. "You're a kid!"

He turned to look at her. "I will admit that this is my first solo job but I'd like to think I'm doing a good job. Now, what do you need?"

Azula managed to regain her composure. "I have a question, how long until construction of the bridge is done?" She asked.

"It'll probably be two days at least until we're done." He answered after giving it some thought.

"That'll be impossible."

"Excuse me?"

"You have a day to finish the bridge." She commanded, expecting him to salute and to bark orders to the workers.

He didn't. "…Did you just tell me to do something about my bridge?"

"Yes."

He looked straight in the eye. "Look lady, the bridge will be done when it's done, no sooner or later. So don't start giving me orders on how I should build my bridge."

"Do you not know who I am?" She asked with outrage. "I am the princess of the Fire Nation!"

"And you're currently standing on my bridge, so that means I'm in charge." He fired back. "If you don't have anything to say or do, get off my bridge."

"Why, you little…" She was about to set his hair on fire as a warning not to disagree with her when the end of a wooden staff appeared front of her face.

"Lady, I would appreciate it if you didn't attack the bridge builder." A voice told her. Looking around the end of the staff, she saw a slightly older boy with brown hair, a green jacket, a long blue scarf and _the same headband the people from Omashu and Tu Zin wore!_

Mai and Ty Lee would have reacted had they not felt the point of a blade in their backs. "It would probably be best if you ladies left." A boy wearing glasses and had a small drip of snot hang from his nose said from behind Ty Lee.

"We really don't want to cause an incident." A girl with two large orange pigtails spoke from behind Mai.

The tension was pretty thick until Azula surprised them all. "Very well, we will leave." She announced before turning back to Inari. "I apologize for my rudeness. You are correct, this is your bridge and I have no business interfering with how it's built."

She turned around and left with Ty Lee and Mai right behind her.

Once they were a safe distance from the bridge, Ty Lee opened her mouth. "Okay Azula." She began. "What was that? There is no way you would have let somebody challenging your authority slide."

"I let it slide for a reason." She replied. "You two saw the headbands. If I had caused a scene, Naruto would have found out and when he did, he would have us leave and abandon the hunting of the Avatar. Also, there's a chance that group will find him and will want to fight him. So if we keep quiet about the group while with Naruto and make sure that he doesn't meet the group, we'll be fine."

Both Mai and Ty Lee just stared at her for a minute, and then looked at each other. "Did she just give a valid reason for backing off when someone challenged her authority?" Ty Lee asked.

"Yes, yes she did." Mai answered.

"I did not back off!" Azula growled.

"Yes you did." Ty said in a sing-song voice.

Azula snarled. It was stuff like this that reminded her of when Naruto had just become her bodyguard.

(Flashback: two years ago, Location: Fire Nation Capital, Royal Palace)

Azula walked back to her room after her Firebending lesson. It was a grueling one, so she was tired. She entered her room, ready to take a nap. It was then a small wooden ball flew out of nowhere and thwacked her on the head.

"OW! What in Agni's name…?" She yelped as another ball hit her on the head. "Who's throwing those?!"

She received no answer, only another ball hitting her in the head. She kept looking around; the balls never came from the same direction but she didn't know where the person who was throwing them was.

Finally, another ball flew at her. This time, she dodged it by ducking. However, it didn't really worked as another ball came at her and hit on the forehead, making her fall to the floor completely.

"Lesson number 1: Just because they're coming at you in one way, doesn't mean they won't come at you in another." A voice spoke.

She looked up to see someone that was both familiar and yet, unfamiliar to her. "Naruto, you…!" She growled. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to teach you a lesson," He replied. "I don't know if it's working or not yet."

"Why are you here!?" She demanded of him.

"…I'm here because I am your bodyguard." He said.

She then remembered the week before. How she fought against twelve opponents in an Agni Kai and lost to the one person who wasn't a Firebender. "If that's so, then where have you been?"

"Observing you from a distance," He told her. "To see if you have changed in any way."

"What do you mean, change?"

"Let me put it to ya this way, would you still try and kill me if I was using your closet to hide from a rabid horde of girls?"

Having been able to stand up again, she answered his question. "Yes." She then lunged at the spot where she thought Naruto was hiding. Her hands grasped nothing and had she not stopped herself, she would've hit the wall.

"Lesson number 2: Just because you can hear someone, doesn't mean they're there." His voice spoke from the other side of the room. He sighed. "This might take some time."

(End Flashback)

"_Never thought I would get used to Naruto's 'lessons',"_ Azulathought to herself as she and the other two girls walked through Kouzan. _"But in the end, I did."_

"Hey." Mai spoke up. "Let's stop somewhere and get something to eat."

"Ooh!" Ty Lee exclaimed. "That restaurant over there looks good!" She pointed to said restaurant.

They went into the restaurant and placed their orders, which they soon received. As they eat, they listened to what other people were saying. It was one such conversation that got Azula's attention. "Did you hear what happened at Akawan? Prince Zuko himself showed up and led the defenses!" A girl at a nearby table said.

"I heard that on the first day, he pushed the enemy out of the city by himself." Another girl said.

"From what I heard, when he met with the 41st division he got his on knees and begged them to forgive him. They were so moved that they put him in command." A third said.

"That's not what I heard. I heard that General Iroh was offered command but refused and gave it to Prince Zuko. He said that young blood must lead young blood."

"Regardless, we can all agree that what Prince Zuko did was nothing short of amazing."

"Well of course! Fighting off a besieging army for five days, and then turning the tables by attacking the enemy forces and winning? Prince Zuko is so cool!"

"I was told that he found a dragon that was held captive by the enemy. He released it and then set it free, telling it to find him when they were both stronger. The leader of the Yuyan archers was so moved by his actions that he immediately gave Prince Zuko the title of Dragon!"

"Yeah, I was told the same thing. Prince Zuko was to be known as the Scarred Dragon!"

It was then all the girls at the table (the ones who just listened as well) chorused. "Prince Zuko is so cool!"

"We're leaving." Azula said after she saw and heard that display. She was up and out of the restaurant before Ty Lee and Mai could even get up from the table.

Azula walked with an angry pace until she felt a hand on her shoulder. Whipping her head around to demand who touched her, she found it was Naruto. "Azula, what's the matter?" He asked with concern.

"She's upset because she heard people talking positively about Zuko." Mai told him as she and Ty Lee caught up with the two.

"Meanwhile you're ecstatic about it, aren't you, Doom and Gloom?" He asked her. She didn't reply.

"Why are they talking about him like he's a hero? He's a traitor to the Fire Nation, why does he get the title of Dragon!?" Azula demanded with annoyance in her voice.

"Because when he goes to fight the dragon, the only way he'll come back alive is if he defeats the dragon. That's the kind of drive Zuko has." Naruto stated.

"And how is it that you know about it?" She demanded.

"Because Lieutenant Bao-yu sent me a messenger hawk two nights ago with a report of what had happened."

"…You knew?"

He nodded. "I believed his report and I have told your father that I support his actions." He looked at Azula. "Azula, why do you dislike listening to what happened at Akawan? Is it because of the fact Zuko might not have been as useless as you thought?"

"It's not important anymore." She told them with a shrug, all three of them knew that she was lying, that she pushing it aside. "By the way Naruto, I want you to stay away from the bridge and the mayor's house."

He grew confused. "Why?"

"I think some of the servants at the mayor's house and the workers at the bridge are Fangirls of yours." She lied with a straight face. "So if they see you…"

"We might potentially have another Great Chase on our hands which, in turn, could possibly level the colony and/or destroy the bridge they're rebuilding?" He asked. She nodded in acknowledgement. "Alright, I'll stay at the tank-train at night. Other than that, I will observe from afar unless you're at the mayor's house or the bridge."

"Thank you." As Naruto stepped into a nearby alley and was lost to their sight, Ty Lee leaned in close to Azula's ear. "That was a nice lie you came up with, Azula." She whispered.

"It wasn't exactly a lie." Azula whispered back.

Naruto watch the three girls walk down the street. **"Are you going to tell them why you up at night when the massager hawk arrived?" **Kyuubi asked him. **"Or why you were up the next night as well?"**

"No, I won't." He silently told the fox. "It's not their concern."

"**Kit, you need to talk to someone about it. It's not healthy to keep it bottled up like this."**

"I talk to you, don't I? Beside compare to me, Azula's issues are much more imposing."

"**Funny, to me both of your issues are on par with each other."**

"Enough, what has happened, happened. There's nothing I can do to change it."

"**But what if you could?" **Kyuubi wondered. **"What if you could change what had happened? Would you do it? Would you leave Azula to go save him?"**

"Why are you asking me these questions, Kyuubi?"

"**I ask them because we share the same pain. Despite the fact that we didn't really like each other, the Akatsuki took my brother from us."**

"…When you say 'us', do you the Biju or the Jinchūriki?"

"**Both."**

He stopped talking to the fox, and focused on watching Azula. He didn't want to talk about or remember the nightmare that he dreamt. He didn't want to remember how he watched as the Akatsuki had captured and killed Gaara by extracting Shukaku from him.

(Location: Aang's group)

"It'll take us a day to reach the bridge that connects the two sides of the gorge." Qing told them the group as he pointed it out on the map. "By the time we arrive however, we should reach the bridge just as it's finished."

"Does the colony have a military force?" Guy asked.

"Yes but most have been put to work building the bridge. They will be tired and will be slow to respond. We can capture most of the soldiers on the bridge and force the colony into surrender."

"When you say 'capture', do you mean you will actually capture them or will you kill them?" Sokka asked from where he stood against the wall.

"Sokka, that was uncalled for!" Katara admonished her brother.

"It's alright, I will answer his question." Qing turned to face Sokka. "I plan to capture them, of course."

"Why don't I believe you?" He asked.

"Sokka that's enough," Aang told his friend. "Look, if you're going to be like that, perhaps it would be best if you left."

Sokka simply headed for the door. "I see even a Paragon will bow to the whims of the Avatar." Qing said with a sneer. Sokka didn't reply, he just left and went back to where Appa and Akela were. He sat himself down against Appa's leg and proceeded to wait by watching the sun rise.

He didn't have to wait long. "What has you acting so unyouthful, Sokka?" Lee asked him as the others arrived.

"I don't trust that guy." He simply said. "He rubs me the wrong way."

"You're still going on about that?" Toph asked. "The guy isn't lying; he's not going to kill the enemy. He's only going to convince them to leave."

"Pardon me if I have a hard time believing him."

"Sokka, will you let it rest?" Katara said with exasperation. "The colonel is not a bad guy. He's loyal to the Earth Kingdom and his troops love him."

"There is such a thing as being too loyal." He muttered.

"Guys," Aang tried to play peacemaker. "Let's just leave Sokka alone for now. If we give him some time to calm down, maybe he and the colonel will be able to get along."

The others in the group nodded in agreement and left Sokka alone. Aang was the last one to leave and he was the only who heard what Sokka said to Akela. "I'm not the one making the mistake here."

(Location: Azula)

The sun had yet risen but there was still light enough in the sky for Azula to stand in front of a training dummy in the mayor's backyard. Normally, when she could, she would rise with the sun and practice her Firebending. But this time, she wanted to practice something different. She could still remember the first time she tried it. Or rather, the first time Naruto made her try it.

(Flashback: two years ago, Location: Fire Nation Capital, Royal Palace)

"What exactly are we doing in the training yards at three in the morning?" She demanded.

"Lesson number 3," He answered cryptically.

"What in Agni's name is Lesson number 3?"

"Just because you're good at one form of combat, doesn't mean you shouldn't try another." He told her. "Your Firebending is good but it's a little weak when it comes to close combat." At that point, he pulled out two sheathed military daggers out of a nearby chest. "Therefore, you will learn how to use daggers in close combat to make up for this weakness."

She scoffed. "I don't need to learn how use these daggers, my Firebending is all I need."

"Didn't you say the same thing before I pinned you to a tree?" He asked with a straight face. "Besides, you're not leaving this yard until I'm satisfied."

"And what's stopping me from leaving?"

"The fact that the cooks will not serve you breakfast until I approve it. I won't stop you from leaving but you'll just be hungry."

Snarling, she yanked the two daggers out of his hands. "Alright, fine." She muttered.

"You're holding them wrong." He told her.

"Do you want to be a eunuch?" She growled.

He snorted and crossed his arms. "Please, you couldn't even touch me with those."

(End Flashback)

She hated it at first and she hated him for making her do it but she eventually got used to it. She wasn't a master at it but she could hold her own with the daggers.

She held the daggers low in front of her and started to attack the training dummy. Once she was done, She looked at where she had stabbed, sliced and nick the dummy. _"I'm rusty."_ She noted. Due to the fact she was chasing the Avatar and her father had been keeping a closer eye on her, she didn't really have time to practice.

She practiced the motions again and again until she was satisfied. She put the daggers away and noticed the sun was rising. She closed her eyes and began to breathe. Slowly she breathed in and out as the sun rose slowly on the horizon. Once she felt ready, she began to practice her Firebending. She started slowly then began to get faster and faster until both the fire and she seem to be parts of an intricate dance.

Finally, she finished the practice by again controlling her breathing. Once she was done, she walked backed into the mayor's house. As she made her way to her room, she passed an open door and saw something that caught her eye.

Standing on a rack against the wall, stood a sword. But it was no ordinary sword. She knew a few swords that were as tall as a man but they didn't have cut outs in them. This sword had two of them; one was a full circle near the tip of the blade and the other was a semi-circle near the handle. Handle from the handle by a strap was a mask with a red wavy design on the bottom and a symbol on the top. She walked into the room to examine the two things closer.

"May I ask what exactly are you doing in my room?" A voice to her side said.

She turned around and saw that it was Inari, dressed for the day. "I'm sorry." She apologized as she tried to think of an excuse. "My brother is a swordsman, so your sword caught my eye. I've never seen anything like it before."

"Most people on this side of the world haven't either." He told as he walked up to the sword. Azula stepped out of the way and watched as he took the mask off the handle and laid it on the bed. She then watched as he took the sword off the rack and held it.

He held it for what seemed like a long time. In the end, he put it back on the rack and then hung the mask from the handle. Even though he wasn't breathing hard, Azula could see that he was sweating. "Is it heavy?" She asked.

"It's taken me three years just to hold the thing without dropping it." He answered.

"Is it a family heirloom?"

"No…" He touched the blade gently. "It's more of a memento."

"Who did it belong too then?"

"…A demon who died to defend my home." He answered.

She would have asked more questions but the three children from yesterday as well as a man with dark shades, a green jacket of sorts and a bandana with the same leaf symbol the kids had on their headbands appeared at the door.

"Hey Inari…" The blue scarfed one spoke up before he saw Azula. "You're that lady from yesterday!" He pointed at her.

"My name is Azula." She told him with a little annoyance. "Who are you?"

"Huh?" He grew confused before realizing what she meant. "Oh right, we never told you our names. Well, my name is Konohamaru. This is Udon," He pointed to the other boy who had the glasses. "This is Moegi," He pointed to the girl with the orange pigtails. "And this is our teacher, Ebisu." He pointed to the adult.

"Good morning ma'am." Ebisu said to Azula. "I'm sorry but we must go now."

'Please, don't let me stop you." She told them. As they left, she went back to her room. She took use of the nearby tub of water to wash and clean herself. After that she changed into a fresh change of clothing. That was when she heard a knock on the door.

"Who is it?" She asked. The door opened and Ty Lee and Mai came in.

"Hey Azula!" chirped Ty Lee. "What are you planning to do today?"

"I figured I get breakfast and then do some more practice. I need to work on my dagger techniques, I'm rusty."

"You can work on those later! Don't you realize what we have right now?"

"Please, do tell."

"We have a day off!"

Mai sighed at her antics. "Ty Lee, we're not in school anymore."

"A day off is a day off." She replied. "Besides, I know the perfect thing to do today."

"What's that?"

"We can go shopping!"

The room was silent for a few minutes until Azula broke the silence. "I'm getting food first." She said before walking out the door.

(Location: Aang's group)

"Is everyone on?" Aang asked from where he sat on Appa's head. The colonel's forces were getting ready to move and they had too as well.

"Everyone except Sokka and Akela," Guy told him.

"Where are they?"

"He said that he was going to march with the soldiers. He said he was going to practice for when we didn't have Appa." Neji answered.

'That's ridiculous, when would we not have Appa?" Katara asked.

"I asked him the same question, he told me that it's better to be safe than sorry."

"If he wants to walk, let him. It's his choice." Aang told them. "Appa yip-yip," He told his sky bison.

As they flew, Team Guy had a conversation. "Why do you think Sokka wanted to march with the troops?" Tenten asked Neji.

"If I had to hazard a guess," He replied. "I'd say he was looking for information about Colonel Qing."

"Why does Sokka not trust the colonel?" Lee asked. "It is most unyouthful."

"I don't know Lee, but we can't do anything about it now."

"Well said Neji." Guy told him. "Once we make camp for the night, we'll talk to Sokka about what he has been doing."

(Location: Azula's group)

"Come on! Let's go!" Ty Lee urged.

"Calm down, Ty Lee. The stores aren't going anywhere." Mai told her.

"Also, we really can't bring anything with us." Azula pointed out. "What are we going to do? Blind the Avatar and his friends with our fashion sense?"

"You guys are no fun!" Ty Lee pouted. "Come on, at least try to enjoy this."

Both Azula and Mai looked at each other and sighed. "Fine," Mai said.

Thus they spent the day at the stores, browsing, trying things on and just having a good time. Even Mai got into it after a while (once they found the weapons store). Azula smiled, she couldn't really remember the last time she enjoyed herself with her friends.

In the middle of the afternoon, they managed to find themselves a clothes store. They went into the store and began to look around.

"Hey Azula, what do you think of this?" Ty Lee called out. She was holding a dress in front of her that was a blinding pink.

"Try finding something that isn't an eyesore." She stated.

"…It is a little too pink, isn't it?"

"That would be an understatement." Mai told her.

She huffed. "Fine, but I know what would look good on Azula." She said as she put the pink dress back.

"What would that be?" Azula asked.

"This!" She said as she showed another dress.

Azula was shocked. "Are you crazy!? I am not wearing that!"

"Okay then." Ty Lee walked over to the clerk. "We'll take it."

"No we are not!"

"Oh relax," Mai told her. "It's for your own good."

Azula could only splutter as the dress was bought. "You'll thank us later, Azula." Ty Lee told her. "Probably when someone asks you out on a date or you ask him."

"Naruto is not my boyfriend!" Azula snapped.

Both Mai and Ty Lee smirked as Ty Lee said. "I never said Naruto or anything about a boyfriend."

Azula growled at her as she looked around. "You know, I kinda wish he was here right now. I want to know what he thought of what we got."

It was at that point a piece of paper floated down from the sky. Mai plucked it out of the air, looked at it. "Read this out loud." She told Ty Lee.

She took the paper. It read:

Ty Lee

If I was actually with you three right now, the only way I would actually entered the store of my own violation was if your lives were at stake.

Naruto

"Well that's a little rude." She huffed. "He makes it sound like we're going to torture him." Another piece of paper floated down from the sky. She grabbed it and looked at it. It read:

Asking me of what I think of this shirt or these pants as you pose with them on, trying to get my "honest opinion" on some piece of lingerie or swimsuit, calling me a pervert if I accidently ogle you. Do I need to go on?

Naruto

"He has you pegged." Mai told Ty Lee.

"What I want to know is how he's doing that." Azula said. A third piece came floating down, this time in front of her. She grabbed it and read it. It said:

Lesson number 4 Azula, Lesson number 4.

Naruto

"Ah, of course, Lesson number 4." She said. "Sorry about that, Naruto." She called out. A fourth piece of paper came down. She grabbed it and read it. It said:

Apology accepted.

Naruto

"Hey Azula," Ty Lee said. "What's Lesson number 4?" As if to answer her question, a _fifth _piece of paper came down from the sky. Azula caught it and read it to the other two. It said:

If you have to show people something, don't tell them how you did it.

Naruto

"Well, I still wish he'd come out and join us." Ty Lee said with a pout.

"Do you not remember the last time he walked into a clothes store with us?" Mai asked her.

The three of them shuddered at the memory.

(Flashback: one year ago, Location: Fire Nation Capital, Marketplace)

"Hey cutie!" called out Ty Lee. "What do you think of this one?"

Naruto took one look and swerved his head to look at the wall. "I am not even going to comment on that one Ty Lee." He told her.

"Oh come on." She purred. "I just want your honest opinion."

"Stop teasing my bodyguard, Ty Lee." Azula ordered.

"Thank you, Azula." He told her.

"By the way, what do you think of this?" She asked him.

He turned to look and immediately brought his attention back to the wall. "You're doing the same thing she did!" He accused.

"Am I?" She asked with a smirk.

He groaned. "Please stop asking me for my opinions on undergarments."

"But it's so much fun!" Ty Lee told him.

He growled at her, and then marched right past her. "What are you doing?" Mai asked.

"We are in a clothing store and I need a new shirt." He told them. "So if you'll excuse me…"

He went over to where the shirts were, picked one and went to the back where the changing rooms were.

"Maybe we pushed him a little too much?" Ty Lee asked with concern.

"Maybe we did." Azula admitted. "We should apologize when he comes back out."

"Wait, since when have you been willing to apologize?" Mai asked with disbelief.

"Doesn't matter, I'm willing to apologize."

They heard a rumbling coming from outside. "That sounded like thunder." Ty Lee noted. "But I thought the skies were completely clear."

"They are." Mai announced as she looked outside the store's entrance. "There's not a cloud in sight."

"So where is the rumbling coming from?" Azula asked.

They soon got their answer when the front of the store was filled with girls. "Can I help you ladies?" A nearby clerk asked.

"Where are your changing rooms?" The girl in the front demanded.

"They're in the back." The clerk answered. Any other questions she had weren't answered as the horde of girls charged towards the back, unintentionally bringing Azula, Mai and Ty Lee along.

"What's going on!?" asked Ty Lee as she tried to make sure she wasn't trampled.

"What is with you…?" The question Azula was trying to ask was answered when the horde of girls had stopped in front of a changing room to be more specific, the changing room that had Naruto in it (Who had also accidently pushed the door open at one point).

He only wore his pants and boots, having already taken off his shirt and his vest. He held the new shirt in his hands and was in the midst of putting it on when the horde of girls arrived. "Uh…is there something I can help you with?" He asked hesitantly.

"Oh yes, there is something you can help us with." The lead girl murmured, almost like she was dreaming. Azula, Mai and Ty Lee noticed that there were a few adult women in the horde of girls and said horde was looking at Naruto like he was the only man on the planet. "You see, there is something that we want."

"What would that be?" He asked.

"YOU!" screamed the lead girl as she lunged for him. Thankfully, his reactions were quicker. He slammed the door shut and put his back against it to brace.

"Please come out, Lord Naruto!" The horde of Fangirls cried as they tried to open the door.

"Why do you want me?" He shouted at them from behind the door. "I'm not that special or that good looking!"

"LIES!" screamed one girl. "YOUR BEAUTY IS LIKE NO OTHER! YOU WOULD PUT THE MOST HANDSOME MEN AND THE MOST BEAUTIFUL WOMEN TO SHAME JUST BY LETTING THEM BE IN YOUR PRESENCE!"

"Please come out Lord Naruto! I just want to look at you one time and I will die happy!"

"I want you to marry me!"

"I WANT YOUR BABIES!"

(End Flashback)

"It took us six hours to get him out of there." Azula said.

"But you have to admit, it was funny." Ty Lee replied with a small giggle.

"It always surprises me how tolerant he is with the Fangirls. Even with the Great Chase and the countless other times they've gone after him." Mai told them.

Azula then grew somber. "He's not always so tolerant. You guys know what happened at Shizhi as well as I do."

They nodded gravely. What had happened at Shizhi reminded them that Naruto wasn't just a nice if yet mischievous guy. He could be a dangerous person.

They were silent for a minute. "Let's go. The mayor wanted us back for an early dinner." Azula finally said.

They nodded in agreement; they walked out into the street and made their way back to the mayor's house.

(Location: Aang's group)

They had landed away from the Earth Kingdom encampment to make their own camp. They all sat around the fire, just relaxing and eating dinner before going to bed.

"Sokka and Akela are coming back." Toph told them without turning to look around. Sure enough, Sokka and Akela arrived.

"Hey guys." He greeted them as he sat down. He took a bowl from Katara and began to eat.

"So, Sokka," Neji began. "How was marching with the troops?"

"Tiring," He answered. "After a while, you can't feel your feet. But at that point, your brain's on autopilot, so you just keep walking."

"It is still very youthful of you to have marched throughout the entire day!" Lee told him with the utmost conviction.

"Indeed!" Guy chimed in. "It proves that you are still in the springtime of your youth!"

"If you say so, I just feel tired."

"So did you talk to any of the soldiers?" Tenten asked.

"Why are you asking?"

"I'm just curious."

"Why do I have a hard time believing you?"

"Sokka, did you ask the soldiers about Colonel Qing?" Katara demanded of her brother.

"…Yeah. Yeah I did."

"What did you ask them?" Aang asked.

"Just basic ones, what they thought of the colonel, is he a good leader, that kind of stuff."

"And what did they say?"

"That he was probably the best leader they ever had, he was a good tactician and strategist and how he cares about them."

"There, do you see that the colonel is a good man?"

He shook his head. "It seemed like they were too energetic to talk and defend the colonel. Something feels off."

"Oh, for La's sake Sokka, give it a rest!" Katara snapped. "There is nothing wrong with the colonel! He's a good man who just wants the Fire Nation out of the Earth Kingdom!"

"Did you know that he captured some of the colonists from Kouzan? He captured two colonists who were hunting with their sons?"

"Yes he did." Aang answered. "He said that when we arrived at the colony, he will release them after he convinces the other colonists to leave."

"Right, of course, after he 'convinces' them to leave." Sokka muttered.

"Sokka, if you keep this up, I will have Appa take you back to the South Pole. That way you can act like a child there." Katara warned.

"Act like a child!?" demanded Sokka as he stood with anger evident in his eyes. "Something is not right with that guy Katara. Just once, will you believe me?"

"You're being paranoid and you're acting like a child." She told him. "Grow up."

He stiffened and then looked around. "None of you are going to believe me, are you?" He asked the rest of the group. They shook their heads. "Alright fine, I'll be there when Colonel Qing reaches the bridge that leads to Kouzan; I'll stand next to him. And if he does anything, I won't try to stop him."

"Nice to know that you can still act sensible, Sokka."

He stifled a snarl and walked away, Akela was close behind him.

"What's up with him?" Toph asked.

Katara sighed. "He gets like when things don't go his way. Give him some time, he'll calm down."

(Location: Sokka)

He stomped through a nearby forest, not caring if he was causing a racket. Akela trotted behind him. "Stop acting like a child!?" He asked himself. "I haven't being a child since dad left! Ever since that day, I have tried to protect her and my friends. But does she thank me? No! She just ignores me whenever I have a bad feeling!" He punched a tree. "Argh, there are some days when I just to want slap my sister!" He kept walking until he stopped outside a cave.

He felt a jolt of pain in his leg. Looking down, he saw that Akela had bitten him in the leg. They were like that for minutes until Akela let go of his leg. Sokka sighed. "Sorry about that Akela. I was just…so angry." Akela gave his arm a lick. Looking down at the wolf, he realized something. "You've gotten big."

Akela gave him a look that was a combination of "No, really!? What tip you off?" and "It took you long enough." The wolf now reached Sokka's waist. There wasn't any trace of the starved, soot-and-ash covered puppy he had rescued.

"Sorry." He apologized. "You know how things have been lately." He looked around and finally noticed the cave. He couldn't explain it but it felt like he had to go in there, and he had to go alone. "Akela, I want you to stay outside this cave. I'm going in to see what in there."

Aklea flattened his ears, let his tail fall and whined. "I know, I know. You don't want me to go in there but I feel like I must." He told the wolf before scratching him behind the ear. "Don't worry, I'll come back." He set off into the cave.

As he went further and further in, Sokka realized that it wasn't getting darker. In fact, the light stayed the same. Looking around, he saw that torches were placed along the walls; they looked like they were recently put in. He also noticed that as he went deeper into the cave, it was looking less and less like a cave tunnel. Finally, he arrived at the end of the tunnel, which now looked like a corridor. In front of him stood a door, a wooden door that seemed to be unlatched.

He reached for the door handle and as soon he touched it, the door swung open. "Well, that's not creepy." He told to himself. "Not creepy at all."

He walked forward into the room, when he discovered that it was a tomb. The fact that there was a stone coffin in the room tipped him off. This coffin wasn't carved out of the rock and shaped it into a crude form. No, Sokka would say that this was a coffin made of the highest quality of stone and was craved by the greatest stonemasons. It was made with both white and black marble. On top of the coffin, lay a sword.

This sword was the definition of "Oversized cleaver". The blade was big enough that Sokka was pretty sure that even if he used two hands to pick the sword up, he would have a hard time holding it. The blade's edge curved inward at the top and at the bottom it dropped a little bit, as if to protect the handle. The handle itself had a silver hilt, grey wrappings and a short chain at the base.

At the bottom of the slab covering the coffin, near the tip of the sword, were two inscriptions. One was long and the other was short but they were both of foreign writing, so Sokka didn't know what they say.

Suddenly the door behind him slammed shut and all but one of the torches in the room went out. The one remaining torched burned so low that it only barely illuminated the room.

Sokka reached for his boomerang on reflex but stopped when he heard a rattling of coils. **"It's been a long time since someone has entered this tomb willingly…and walked into my claws." **A voice whispered from the darkness in the room.

"Who is there?" Sokka called out as he slowly brought his hand away from the boomerang.

"**Hmm…It seems that the Avatar didn't tell you about what happened to him at the North Pole." **The voice said.

Sokka stopped. In truth, Aang did tell them what had happened at the North Pole during the Siege, not only that, he told them how to survive if they ever encountered him. "You are Koh, the Face Stealer." He announced to the room in an emotionless voice and with a neutral expression on his face.

The rustling of coils quickened and Sokka was suddenly staring at arrogant male face from the Northern Water Tribe. He knew that face was from the Northern Water Tribe because he had the original owner of that face before. "Huh." He said neutrally. "So that's what happened to Hahn."

"**Oh? You know this face?"**

He shrugged. "Met him a while back, he was an ass."

Koh gave a sinister chuckle. **"Indeed he was, and arrogant as well. He came into my territory and tried to challenge me." **The face changed into a blue demon face. **"One look at this and he screamed in fright. The sounds were so…satisfying." **He looked at Sokka who hadn't said a word in response. **"You will not avenge your friend?"**

"I never said that he was my friend, I said he was an ass." He looked at the coffin as Koh coiled around his body. "So whose tomb did I walk into?"

Koh had switched his face to one that was painted white and had grey eye markings. He uncoiled his body and scuttled over the ceiling to look at the coffin from above. **"The tomb of a…interesting man," **He finally said. Sokka couldn't be sure but he could have sworn there was a tiny amount of sadness in Koh's voice.

"How was he interesting to a spirit?" He asked with genuine curiosity.

The Face Stealer, having heard the curiosity in his voice, turned around and rushed towards him, wearing the face of blue nose baboon. But Sokka still wore the emotionless face. Koh changed his face to that of an old man and began to chuckle. **"Very impressive boy, but how long can you last?" **He crawled back to look at the coffin. **"This man lived a long time ago and yet lived for a long time. He came to me once and demanded that I show him the way into the Physical World. I refused and he drew his blade. I found out two things that day, I discovered that his blade could hurt spirits and that I could not take his face."**

"So did you kill him?"

The face changed again this time into a brutal looking man. **"On the contrary, I showed him to enter the Physical World." **The face turned back into the white mask. **"And for many years afterwards, he would come visit either when he wanted a fight or to talk. It seemed that he could walk either world with ease."**

"Why would he talk to you?"

"**I had ask him that myself once. He told me that it's better to trust an enemy that you know then an ally you don't. When it came time for his death, he called me here to the Physical World and asked me to watch over his tomb from that day on. I asked why he would ask such a thing of me. He told me that he trusted me to keep away and terrify those who would try to discrete his tomb."**

"And so you do." Sokka finished for him.

The spirit was silent for a minute. **"Indeed…I do. And do you know what that makes you?" **He asked as he turned to face Sokka, once again wearing Hahn's face. **"That would make you a desecrator. Your face will soon belong to me."**

"But I haven't taken or ruined anything." Sokka pointed out. "Also, you can't take a face that doesn't show emotion."

The face changed again, this time into an owl. **"I have ways of making you express emotion, **_**boy**_**. I will enjoy making you scream." **Koh coiled up to launch himself at Sokka.

"If you're going to kill me, may I ask a question?" Sokka asked, catching the Face Stealer off guard.

"**What would that be?"**

He pointed to the inscriptions on the coffin. "Do you know what those mean?"

"**Yes, I do but you don't need to worry about them now!" **The spirit lunged at the Water Tribe Paragon when all the torches suddenly flared back to life, making Sokka cover his eyes and Koh to coil back with a hiss.

"**Koh," **A different voice, one Sokka knew well, spoke out. **"Did you forget what I told you the last time you tried to take one of my Paragon's faces?" **He opened his eyes and saw Sifu standing (or rather, floating) over a cowering Koh.

"**S-sifu!" **squeaked Koh, he now wore the face of a child; probably to make Sifu think he wasn't dangerous. **"We were just talking! That's all, I swear!"**

"**Koh, if you're not gone in the next five seconds…" **Koh heard the warning in Sifu's voice because he hurled himself at the darkest corner in the room. Sokka didn't the sound of anything hitting the wall, so he guessed that Koh fled back to the Spirit World.

"**There are days when I wonder why I let him exist." **Sifu said with annoyance.

"Has this happened before?" Sokka asked the spirit.

"**Did the Avatar tell you about where he lived?"**

"He lives under a tree, right?"

"**Not always. He pissed me off one too many times." **He looked at the coffin. **"So you found him, huh?"**

"Who is 'he', do you know him?"

"**Not at first. You know I was the last teacher of the first Paragons?"**

"So I've been told many times."

"**Well, he taught them before I did. When I first met them, they were carrying swords that felt like they came from the Spirit World. Once they learned everything I could teach them, I asked them where the swords had come from. They told me that they learned from a lost swordsman. I spent quite some time looking for that swordsman after that. He was difficult to track down."**

"Koh said that he could move through either world easily."

"**Which is probably why it took me so long to find him." **admittedSifu. **"By the time I found him, the first Paragons had already trained their successors and retired. The first thing I asked him was how he was able to walk in both the Physical and the Spirit Worlds. He said that he could do that because he was essentially half-dead."**

Sokka grew confused. "How can he be half-dead?"

"**Don't know, thought it was better not to push it. I asked him what kind of sword did the first Paragons carried. He told me that they weren't just swords, they were Zanpakutō's."**

"Zanpakutō?" repeated Sokka as he tried the word out.

"**Yes, he said that a person creates a Zanpakutō from their own soul. Where he came from, it was a weapon used by the dead."**

"Then how could the first Paragons create their own Zanpakutō if they were alive?"

"**I asked him the same** **thing. He said that a Zanpakutō can be created from a living person's soul but they would have to anchor it."**

"Anchor it?"

Sifu nodded. **"The creator would have to use their own blood to help create it. But they had to be careful, too little and the Zanpakutō wouldn't be created, too much and the person would die. It was a risky process and the swordsman only did it with five people, four of which were the first Paragons."**

Again, Sokka grew confused. "Who was the fifth?"

"**Someone he taught long before the first Paragons came to him. He was an interesting man. He was stubborn, short-tempered, strong-willed and always scowling. And yet to those who were his friends, he would have protected them to the end. He could have made a life for himself here."**

"You mean he didn't?"

"**He was not of this world and kept trying to find a way back to his own. When I found out that he was truly dying, he told me that with his death he could probably go back to where he belonged."**

"Did he?"

"**I haven't seen him in the Spirit World and it's been a long time since he died."**

"How long did he live here?"

"**I was never sure. I think because he was half-dead, he aged slowly. When the first Paragons spoke of him, they talked about how young he seemed and yet, when I finally found him, his hair had started to go grey. His hair only turned white only after a very long time."**

Sokka walked towards the coffin and looked at the inscriptions. "Do you know what these mean?"

Sifu shook his head. **"He never tried to teach his language and writing, I'm sorry."**

Sokka touched the first inscription and his fingers brushed against the blade. He felt a brief pain in his head and drew back his hand. After the pain had past, he looked at the inscriptions again but this time for unknown reason, he could read them. The first one said:

Here sleeps a man who fought against the one who wanted to sit on Kami's throne, who fought against those who wished to use his powers for themselves and who fought against the ones who wished vengeance on those he cherished.

Here sleeps a man who protected his friends' lives at the cost of his own. Who went up against almost unbeatable odds to save a friend twice and succeeded. Who risked his own life so that the ones he guarded could live in peace.

Here sleeps the one who protects.

Sokka took his eyes off the first inscription and looked at the second inscription. This one said:

Abandon your fear. Don't give an inch. Advance and never stop. If you retreat you will age. Be afraid and you'll die.

Sokka looked away from the inscriptions and saw that he was alone in the tomb. _"Perhaps it's best if I leave now." _He thought to himself. He walked towards the door and then stopped. He turned back around to face the tomb and gave the warriors salute his father taught him to the coffin. He then walked through the door and closed it behind him. He walked out of the cave and back into the forest, where Akela waited for him.

The wolf rose from where he laid and walked over to Sokka and woofed once. Sokka interpreted it as "You took your sweet time."

"Akela, you wouldn't have believed what I told about what happened in that cave." He told the wolf. "Let's get back to the others. I can almost guarantee that they'll be asleep."

Akela gave him a look that said "What do you mean, almost?"

(The next morning, Location: Aang's group)

"Is everyone on?" Aang once again asked from his position on top of Appa's head.

"Everyone but Sokka," Katara told him. "He's walking again."

"Well in that case, Appa, yip-yip!" He sent the sky bison up into the sky.

Meanwhile on the ground, the Earth Kingdom troops were waiting for marching orders. "Are we ready to move?" Colonel Qing asked his second-in-command.

"Yes sir." He answered.

"Then we move out. With any luck, we will reach Kouzan by early afternoon." He turned to the troops. "MOVE OUT!" As they began the march, Qing noticed that Sokka and Akela were right beside him. "Do you need something, Paragon Sokka?"

He shook his head. "Akela and I are going stand by you when you reach Kouzan. If you do anything, we will not interfere."

Qing just nodded his head understanding. When he brought his attention to where he was marching, he wore a small smile that he thought no one had seen. However, Sokka did notice the smile and was put off by it.

(Noon, Location: Azula's group)

"The bridge is complete, sir." Inari told the mayor.

"Excellent, you did fine work, young man." The mayor praised him.

"I just did my job sir, nothing more and nothing less."

"Nevertheless, you've done Kouzan a great service. We shall open the bridge tomorrow."

"Actually, mayor there is one thing I would ask of both you and Master Inari." Azula joined in on the conversation.

"What is it, your highness?" The mayor asked.

"As you've said, the only way to cross the gorge is by the bridge. As you also know, I've been tracking my brother for some time now and since the bridge is done, I wish to leave today."

"Hmmm…What do you think of this, Master Inari?"

Inari looked at Azula. "Are you taking that tank-train with you?" She nodded. "Then it's fine with me. It'll give us the chance to judge how the bridge handles that kind of weight."

"Then it's settled." Azula stated. "I will have the engineers move the tank-train to the bridge and we will meet you there." She walked out of the room with Ty Lee and Mai right behind her.

"Uh…Azula?" asked Ty Lee. "How are we going to get Naruto across the bridge if he's not with us?"

"I'm sure he'll figure out that we're leaving and he'll find a way across without anyone noticing him." She answered with the utmost confidence.

(Location: the bridge)

The tank-train was lined up at the end of the bridge when Azula and her two friends arrived. Inari was already there as well as Konohamaru, Udon and Moegi. "Where's your teacher?" Mai asked the three of them.

Konohamaru shrugged. "I think Ebisu-sensei eat something this morning that didn't agree with him. He's been in bed since."

"That's too bad." Ty Lee said.

"Alright, here's what going to happen." Inari spoke up. "We have Earthbenders on standby should any damage happen to the bridge. We're first going to send the tank-train over the bridge what happens."

"We've already set up a camp site for the night on the other side of the bridge." Azula told him.

He nodded and waved to the engineers in the tank-train to start moving. The tank-train started moving and was soon crossing the bridge. It cleared the bridge and kept going on its way to the camp site.

"It seems that the bridge can hold the tank-train's weight and since right now, that's the heaviest thing we have, I'd say the bridge will be able to hold its own." Inari stated as he walked towards the middle of the bridge.

"You're the expert here, Inari." Konohamaru told him as the rest followed him.

Meanwhile Mai was looking around. "Wasn't it a clear day a few minutes ago?" She asked aloud.

The entire group looked around and saw that Mai was correct. A few minutes ago, the day was nice. But now, a fog was rapidly coming in. Within a few minutes, the fog had covered the entire bridge.

"What's going on?" Moegi asked as she and Udon went for kunai and Konohamaru reached for his staff. As if to answer her question, two shapes appeared on the other end of the bridge. They were slowing coming towards them.

Inari realized something at that point. "This isn't a fog. This is the** Kirigakure no Jutsu **(Hiding in Mist Technique)!"

Laughter was heardcoming from the shapes in the mist. "Well what do you know? The little bridge builder knows what the mist is? You don't see that every day, do you Itachi?" One of the shapes said.

The shapes then stepped out of the mist and to where the group could see them. One was a black haired man and the other was a blue skinned man with a cloth-covered sword. They both wore headbands; the black haired man wore the same one as Konohamaru and his teammates while the blue skinned one wore a headband that had the same symbol the mask in Inari's room. The difference in their headbands was that the symbol was slashed through. But what truly made them distinguishable were the cloaks they wore had red clouds on them.

"They're from Akatsuki!" Udon exclaimed.

"Let's see what we have here." The blue skinned man (who looked more like a shark, truth be told) said. "We've got the Princess of the Fire Nation, her two friends, the little bridge builder…and three brats from Konoha."

"W-why are you h-here?" Konohamaru demanded, desperately trying to make sure his voice didn't squeak.

"Ah, look Itachi. The little brat is trying to act all grown up." The shark looking one said with a laugh. "Isn't that cute?"

"Kisame, enough," Itachi said. He walked forward. "Princess Azula, we do not wish to fight you. We came here for one thing."

"And what would that be?" She asked.

"Naruto Uzumaki."

Konohamaru as well as his teammates and Inari were shocked but Azula had slipped into a high Firebending stance while Mai fingered a handful of throwing knives and Ty Lee was ready to move. "Sorry, but I'm afraid you can't have him." Azula told him.

"If you do not give him up willingly, we will kill you to get to him." Itachi replied coolly.

"You'll find that we won't go done that easily."

"Are you sure?" He gave a small smirk before taking a step back. "Kisame, don't kill them. We still don't know where Naruto is"

The swordsman just gave a grin before charging at the group. He went after Azula first. He ducked underneath a fireball and buried his fist into her stomach. As she collapsed to the ground, Ty Lee had flipped into the air to take a head shot at him. He sidestepped her, grabbed one of her legs and slammed her down into the bridge. Mai threw knives at him but he just swatted them away with his sword and then smacked her down with it. Swinging his sword low, he literally swept the Konoha team and Inari off their feet. "And that was without a single use of Jutsu." He boasted. "Now then, what body part should Samehada cut off?" He pretended to give it some thought. "How about a leg? That why it'll be easier to catch you if you run away." He swung Samehada down at Azula's leg, as if to cut it off. But that idea didn't work.

_Clang!_

Stopping Samehada from moving downwards was another sword. But it wasn't just any other sword, it was a jian. "I would appreciate it if you didn't maim the princess, Fish-face." Naruto told Kisame before moving in for a lunge.

Kisame jumped back to avoid it but in doing so, he canceled the jutsu, making the mist fade away. "Look at the little Fishcake, all grown up." He taunted as he landed besides Itachi. Naruto ignored his remark and focused on the other member of the pair. "Itachi…hasn't he killed you yet?"

"Naruto, come with us." Itachi replied

"No."

"Then we will have to take you by force."

"No, you won't. Now you're just wasting your chance to escape."

"From whom should we be running from? You?" asked Kisame.

"From the Earth Kingdom military force that's currently approaching the bridge." They then heard the sound of a lot people marching in the same direction. "Too late now," Naruto said. They also heard what could the sound of a sky bison. "And of course, the Avatar is here with friends."

Appa landed near the bridge, his passengers on standby if anything should go wrong. Colonel Qing was in the lead with Sokka and Akela next as they lead the Earth Kingdom soldiers onto the bridge.

Qing stopped where the others could easily see him. "I am Colonel Qing of the Earth Kingdom and I demand the complete and unconditional surrender of Kouzan!" He outright stated.

Naruto decided to take care of this. "I am Naruto, the Paragon of the Fire Nation. Why should I have the colony surrender to you?"

Qing scoffed "Your troops are tired from building this bridge. I could easily overrun this colony."

"That is possible, yes." He conceded. "If you can get past me, that is."

"You are one man, defeating you will not be difficult."

"If I remember correctly, General Fong said the same thing to me once. Look at what happened to him." He looked at the Colonel. "Out of curiosity, what do you plan to do with the colony if you succeed in taking it?"

He smiled and turned to his second-in-command. "Bring forth the prisoners!" He ordered. The four prisoners, two grown men and their sons (one pair was Fire Nation and the other was Earth Kingdom) were brought forward and were forced to kneel before the colonel.

"What is he doing?" Aang asked as he watched the whole thing.

Qing walked behind the fathers. "Fire Nation citizens of Kouzan, you have profited from lands and resources that were never yours in the first place! Earth Kingdom citizens, I find you guilty of treason by allowing these charcoal-suckers to live here!" He drew out a knife and held it high. "This will be your punishment!" And without any more warning, he stabbed the first father through the back of the head, shocking everyone on who was currently sitting on the sky bison.

As the colonel pulled his knife out of the first father and walked over to the second father, Katara looked over to where her brother stood and yelled. "Sokka, stop him!"

He didn't do anything to stop the colonel, he just watched as he killed the second father. It was when the colonel started to walk towards the children did Aang act. He leapt off Appa and bent the air in order to push the colonel away from the children. The colonel fell to the ground and as he rose back up, Aang bent another stream of air to send the children over to the other side of the bridge. A side effect of that was Sokka and Akela was sent that way.

As soon as the children landed, Azula got them on their feet and passed them over to Konohamaru's squad. "Get them inside and find their mothers." She ordered. Konohamaru nodded in acknowledgement and began to get the kids back into the colony with his teammates.

"What is the meaning of this, colonel?" Aang asked. "You promised that no one would be killed! You said that you would only try to convince the colonists to leave."

"They are Fire Nation! They don't belong here in the Earth Kingdom!"

"But what about the Earth Kingdom people who live here?"

"They are TRATIORS! They deserve to die for letting the Fire Nation filth live instead of doing their patriotic duty and stop them!" His eyes burned with a passionate fire.

Aang turned to the soldiers. "Why haven't you arrested him?" He demanded.

"Because Colonel Qing is right, they are traitors!" One of the soldiers yelled out. Aang looked at them and realized that they all had the same kind of fire in their eyes as the colonel. It was then he remembered what Sokka had said. _"There is such a thing as being too loyal." _The words kept repeating in his head and now he understood what it meant. Colonel Qing was too loyal to the Earth Kingdom and his troops were too loyal to him.

"Please colonel," He half-begged. "You don't have to do this."

"Traitors and enemies to the Earth Kingdom are to be executed! If you're not going to help us, Avatar, then get out if our way!"

A slow, mocking clap was heard on the bridge. "Congratulations, Avatar Aang. You have successfully brought an enemy force to a Fire Nation colony with the intention to raze it to the ground. You ARE taking an active part in the war." Naruto said. "And now I've got to kill every one of these people." He turned to face Itachi and Kisame. "Would you two like to join me in a massacre?"

Kisame gave an evil grin. "I'm in, this will be fun." He told Naruto. Itachi didn't say anything, he simply nodded in agreement.

"Do you really think that the three of you will be able to stop us?" Qing asked with dismissal.

"First off, it's the four of us." Naruto pointed to Sokka who, at this point, had joined him and the two Akatsuki members with Akela, who growled when he heard what Naruto had said. "Sorry, five." He amended. "And second, it's just a matter of killing you in such a way that no one will try to attack this place again."

"Wait, why are you counting Sokka and Akela?" Aang asked with worry in his voice.

"He's counting us because this is now the only way to stop this attack." Sokka told his friend.

"Plus this is the perfect opportunity to demonstrate the second ability of the Paragons." Naruto told him. A clone appeared with the mask and the sword from Inari's room, surprising Kisame.

"That's Kubikiribōchō!" He exclaimed.

"Yes it is." Naruto replied. He took the sword out of the clone's hands. "Sokka, I want you to take the mask and wear it." He told his Opponent.

Sokka took the mask from the clone (which then was dismissed by Naruto) and wore it over his face. It was then their eyes turned to dark black and they enveloped by two cocoons of energy. The cocoons disappeared almost as fast as they had appeared but two different people were standing where Naruto and Sokka had been standing. One was a man and the other was a teenager. The only weird thing about them was the fact their eyes were the same color black both Naruto and Sokka had moments before

Kisame was surprised. "Well this is surprising." He said. "But still, it's nice to see you again, Zabuza Momochi."

The man turned to look at him. **"Kisame Hoshigaki." **He said through his clothed covered mouth as the black drained from his eyes to reveal brown ones. **"Why are you here?"**

"I have business with the person who you're currently using as a host."

Though they couldn't actually see it, the Akatsuki pair saw that Zabuza was smiling. **"Because you used to be part of the same group I was, I'll give you fair warning. The kid isn't a kid anymore. If he has the chance, he will kill you two."**

Kisame showed all his teeth with the smile he gave. "I look forward to it."

"**Zabuza-sama, we should return our attention to the fight that is about to occur." **The teenager spoke through the mask.

"**Fair enough of a point, Haku." **He looked around to get a good idea of what ground he was fighting on and saw Inari. **"Well if it isn't the bridge builder's grandson."**

"You two are dead!" Inari cried. "I took Kubikiribōchō and Haku's mask from your graves!"

"**We are indeed dead." **Haku told him, taking off his mask to reveal his face. **"Our souls are currently being used by Naruto and his Opponent so that they can make use of our skills and abilities."**

"So, Naruto is still technically in there?" Azula asked pointing to Zabuza.

He turned around and looked at her. "Don't worry Azula, I'm still here." Naruto's voice came out of Zabuza's mouth as his brown eyes turned blue.

She scoffed. "Who said I was worried?"

Haku's eyes also turned blue as he lift a hand to look at. "This has got to be one of the weirdest things I have ever been through." Sokka's voice came out of his mouth. "What exactly did we do?"

"This is the second ability of the Paragon." Naruto told him. "The kind of Bending that only we can use, not even the Avatar can use it. This is the ability to Soulbend."

"Hey, can we get on with this thing?" Kisame asked impatiently.

Naruto's blue eyes turned back to brown. **"I'm with him on this, kid."**

Haku put the mask back on as the blue eyes turned dark brown. It was then Ty Lee noticed Mai was staring intently at Haku. "Mai, what's the matter?" She whispered loud enough for only the two of them and Azula could hear.

Mai pointed at Haku. "He's the stranger I met in the swamp." She answered, surprising them both.

Zabuza hefted Kubikiribōchō onto his shoulder. His eyes changed again but not to blue. Instead, both eyes became completely black. So did Haku's (even though no one could see them). **"Let's get this party started." **He said.

"You will not stop us from destroying this stain on the Earth Kingdom!" Colonel Qing yelled. He turned to his troops. "ATTAC—" He was silenced when Haku had suddenly appeared in front of him and stab one needle into his brain and another into his heart.

"**The one controlling my body wishes to tell you something." **He whispered into the dying man's ear. **"He wants you to know that he listened to Aang not as the Avatar, but as his friend."**

The now dead Colonel Qing fell to the ground and by the time he did, Haku was already standing next to Zabuza.

"_So…So fast. It happened so fast!"_ Everyone except the four standing alone thought. They had never seen that kind of speed before.

Itachi, Kisame, Zabuza, Haku and Akela began to walk forward toward the Earth Kingdom soldiers when Aang landed in front of them. "Please don't do this." He begged them. "You don't have to kill them!"

"I can't speak for the others." Kisame said. "But not's a matter of 'have to' for me. It's a matter of 'want to'."

"It would be wise for you to step aside." Itachi told Aang. "Avatar or not, you are outmatched here." He activated his Sharingan to make his point.

"No! I won't let you hurt these people!" He moved into an Airbending stance.

"Aang," Sokka's voice came from Haku. "Just get out of our way and stay on Appa. This is going to happen."

"But I—"

"You are too naïve, Avatar Aang." Naruto's voice came from Zabuza. "You brought these soldiers thinking that they would actually let Fire Nation people leave here naivety will cost you and they will be the price. Now get on the sky bison unless you want to join them."

Aang flinched, and with a downcast expression, bent the air to lift him up and over to Appa. When he landed in the saddle, he looked away from what was about to happen.

That left four people (and one wolf) to face the Earth Kingdom soldiers. Without further ado, they launched themselves at the soldiers.

What they did was indeed nothing less than a massacre. The soldiers did try to fight back but it didn't help them. More often than not, they were pushed or thrown into the gorge (the Earthbenders farther then the Non-Benders so they couldn't take advantage of the gorge walls). Both Zabuza and Kisame cut through their opponents with their swords (to be more specific, Zabuza cut and Kisame shredded). Haku used his speed and his needles to fly through them and kill them. Itachi used his kunais, his illusions, his fire jutsus and his Sharingan to kill those who fought against him. Akela stayed near Haku and took down anyone who got in too close.

The massacre was not long but neither was it short. In the end, everyone in the Earth Kingdom force was killed, either by them or by the gorge.

Both Zabuza and Haku stood among those who had died by their hands. Haku brought a hand to his mask and took it off while Zabuza rested the tip of his sword on the ground. The black in their eyes had disappeared and they faded away like images on the wind, leaving Naruto and Sokka in their place.

Sokka looked around the battlefield. "Hey, where are the other two?" He asked Naruto.

He shrugged. "Guess they left during the fight."

Sokka then actually saw the bodies that lay dead on the ground and realized that he had a part in it. He dropped the mask to the ground and would have collapsed had Akela not been, using his body to hold him. He led Sokka back to Appa. Once there in the saddle, the sky bison took off in to the sky.

Creating a clone to take the mask and the sword away, He walked back to Azula and the other two (Inari was staring at the dead bodies in shock). "We should go." He told them. They walked across the bridge and had almost left it and Kouzan when a cry of "Wait!" stopped them.

The girls turned back around and saw Konohamaru and his team was back. "Boss, is that really you?" Konohamaru asked with hope in his voice.

Naruto stared to the end of the bridge in silence. **"Will you turn to face them?" **Kyuubi asked him.

"_This is one meeting I didn't want, Kyuubi." _He told the fox. He turned around to face the three who once looked up to him. "…You three have grown." He finally said.

The three of them had tears in their eyes. "It's really you, boss!" Moegi happily said.

"Where have you been!?" demanded Konohamaru.

"I've been here, Konohamaru." He answered.

"Why did you leave?" Udon asked.

He hesitated. "…For my own reasons." He finally told them.

"Will you…you come back?" Moegi asked.

He shook his head. "No. I won't."

"But you're a Konoha Shinobi!" Konohamaru told him.

"Not anymore."

Konohamaru grabbed his staff and launched himself at Naruto (which snapped Inari out of his shocked state). Naruto met him halfway and blocked his strike with a sheathed jian.

Konohamaru was trying to hold it in but the tears flow freely down his face. "Please come home, boss." He begged.

Naruto had a face of calm indifference. "It's not my home anymore."

"If you're not going to come willingly, then I'll make you come home!"

"Then try, if you can."

Konohamaru replied with a barrage of staff strikes which Naruto evaded or parried with his sheathed jian. _"He's skilled with the staff." _He noted. _"I wondered if he has signed a contract with the Monkeys yet."_

Deciding that using his staff wasn't enough, Konohamaru decided to use his grandfather's Taijutsu, the **Saruken **(Monkey Fist) with his staff. But still, Naruto evaded, dodged and parried the strikes. "Fight back!" Konohamaru yelled at him. "Fight back, Kami take it!"

Naruto caught the staff strike that was aimed for his head. "As you wish." He whispered before forcing the staff back and moving into Waterbending stance. Konohamaru swung the staff at his side, which he caught and turned towards it. He then moved into an Earthbending stance and punched Konohamaru hard in the chest. As the young Shinobi stumbled back, he moved into a Firebending stance and kicked him into the air. He then moved into an Airbending stance and butterfly kicked Konohamaru back to his teammates.

"Listen you three." Naruto told the three of them as they helped Konohamaru back onto his feet. "Things are different now. Konoha is not my home anymore. I have a duty to protect the Princess." He gestured to the Princess behind him. "This is your only warning, don't come after me. If you try to take me back, I will respond with lethal force and I will kill you." He walked back to where Azula, Mai and Ty Lee were standing. "We are leaving. Don't try to follow."

They left the bridge and Kouzan behind them. Naruto kept looking forward, not looking back to see Konohamaru, Moegi, Udon and Inari crying on the bridge.

(Location: Itachi and Kisame)

"I'm still annoyed that we had to leave during the fight." Kisame told his partner as they walked on a road.

"If we had stayed, he would have turned on us." Itachi told him.

"And that's a bad thing?"

Itachi said nothing, just kept walking. He then noticed that something was trying to obscure his vision. Grabbing the thing, he pulled a piece of paper out of his headband.

"What's that?" Kisame asked as he looked over Itachi's shoulder. The piece of paper read:

I knew you guys would leave early.

Listen up. Zabuza wasn't kidding when he said I wasn't the same kid as I was before. I'm giving you this one warning, don't try to track me. Leave me alone and go back the Elemental Countries. You try to take me; you leave here with only your heads.

Naruto

"_When did he…?" _Itachi began to wonder but then remembered one point in the massacre when both he and Naruto fought close to each other. _"Impressive Naruto, very impressive, you could have killed me but instead you gave us a warning."_

"Well, what do you want to do, Itachi?" Kisame asked his partner.

"Perhaps it is best to contact our leader and let him know what has happened." He suggested.

"Hey, he put the thing in your headband, it's your call."

"Then we shall make camp when it gets dark." They continued on in silence.

(Night, Location: Aang's group)

After flying the rest of the day away from Kouzan, they set up camp on the edge of a forest. As they set up camp, Team Guy placed the same seal that Team Kurenai used in the swamp on the ground. Soon enough, the place was covered in smoke and all anyone could hear was a _POOF!_

After the smoke cleared, Team Kurenai and Team Asuma joined in setting up the camp.

By the time night had fallen, the camp had been set and dinner had been eaten.

"So did you learn anything about Naruto?" Neji asked.

"Most of what we got was just repeated information." Kiba told them. "But we did hear a story about Naruto that was pretty funny."

'What is it?" Tenten asked.

Kurenai told the story. Apparently, during one of his tours in the Earth Kingdom, Naruto and the division he was with were ordered to take the city of Tóng. The city was a matriarchal city and was a place where warrior women were trained, the only place that was better for training women in the art of war then Tóng was Kyoshi Island.

When they arrived at the city, the commander of the division sent Naruto into the city to see if they were willing to negotiate surrender. He went into the city and didn't come back for the rest of the day. The next day, the commander and a few other soldiers were allowed to enter the city to discuss terms while also meeting up with Naruto again. When they talked terms with the young female leader of city, one of the terms was that they kept Naruto. The commander refused the term, which lead to insults which almost broke out into a fight. It was at that point when a drink of water was accidently thrown at Naruto, splashing him and making him almost soaking wet.

The sight of a wet Naruto stunned the room for a few seconds and then the Earth Kingdom women (who had been toeing the line ever since Naruto came into the city) became full blown Fangirls and tried to kidnap him at that point.

The commander, Naruto and the soldiers literally had to fight their way out of a city full of Fangirls. After they had managed to get out of there, the city surrendered on the spot.

"And ever since then, the Fire Nation has had an unspoken rule." Kurenai finished up. "Naruto is not to get wet in the presences of women."

Everyone had been pretty much giggling at that point, started to burst out laughing. "That's one of the funniest stories I've heard yet!" Toph declared.

Once the laughter had died down, Guy turned to Team Asuma. "Did you find anything about Naruto?" He asked.

The Team got quiet. "Well, we probably heard the same information that Team Kurenai had but we heard a different story." Chōji said.

"What kind of different story?" Aang asked.

Asuma told them. During the same tour, Naruto and a regiment were ordered to take the city of Shizhi. They arrived at the city and began to besiege it. Surprise occurred to both sides when the Fire Nation took a battering ram to the gate and it swung open on the first try. Taking advantage of the surprise, the Fire Nation stormed the city and easily took control. When they wanted to discover why it was so easy to take the city, the daughter of the city leader came to them and explained.

"She had left the gate opened, had knocked out the military leaders and had her own family imprisoned," Asuma told them.

"She did this all alone?" Neji asked.

He shook his head. "No, all but two of her maids had helped her. When the regiment leader asked why she did it, she looked at Naruto and said that she did it for him."

"Wait." Katara interrupted him. "You're telling us that a girl from the Earth Kingdom, the daughter of the city leader, had done that for him."

"Yeah, she said that she and her maids did it all to prove their love to him. She also said that they were willing to share him with others if he would take them."

"What did Naruto do?" Tenten asked.

"He had the family freed and had the girls dragged to the front of the manor. In front of her family and in front of everyone in Shizhi, He told them what she and the maids had done. And then, he executed them on the spot. He left the two remaining maids alive because they had nothing to do with it."

Everyone was shocked. "He really did something that unyouthful?" Lee asked.

"Yeah…yeah he did." Chōji answered. "The thing is that everyone who saw that approved of what he did."

"The troublesome guy has definitely changed." Shikamaru said.

The silence was almost deafening until Ino broke it. "So what happened to you?" She asked.

Team Guy quickly filled them on the details (they had agreed to tell the other Teams about Itachi and Kisame later when the others had fallen asleep, that way they could avoid unnecessary questions) "That massacre would have not happened had Sokka kept his mouth shut." Katara told them after the story was told.

"My mouth shut? My mouth SHUT!?" He repeated as he stood from where he sat. "Are you saying this entire thing was my fault!?"

"Yes it is." Katara answered. "It is your fault for letting those two boys fathers die and killing every Earth Kingdom soldier there. It never would have happened if you didn't rile the colonel up!"

"It would have happened anyway!" He shouted at her. "I will admit that letting the fathers die is my fault. I will admit that killing those soldiers is on me as well. But blaming me for this? If anything, the fault belongs with you and Aang!"

"Me?" Aang asked. "I didn't do anything."

"You share the fault because in your nativity, you brought the soldiers there. But Katara takes most of the blame!"

"And what exactly did I do that's made me get most of the blame?" She asked with a tone of self-righteousness.

"You ignored my feelings of Colonel Qing not being a good man." He told her. "I knew that something was off when the colonel said he was going 'convince' the colonists to leave."

"Sokka, I heard his heartbeat." Toph told him. "He wasn't lying when he said that he was going to convince them."

"You heard his heartbeat but you didn't hear what he thought. If he mentally replaced the word 'kill' with the word 'convince', he'd had been able to get by you detecting him lying."

"That actually makes sense." Kiba pointed out.

"I've tried to tell you guys but every time Katara, you blew me off like I was only playing around. You even told me to stop acting like a child!"

"I said that because you were acting like one!"

"I've stopped acting like a child the day Dad left. I may have acted goofy, silly or outright stupid when it came to some things but the protection of the group always came first! I was suspicious of the colonel and all you did was told me to stop being paranoid!"

"I have a question." Ino said. "What made you think that the colonel would have the colonists killed?"

"Every time he talked about the Fire Nation or the colonies, his voice became a little more guttural and every time he said the word 'convince' it was like he was saying something different."

Ino took all the information in, and then walked over to Neji. "Neji, may I look into your memories? I want to see what happened."

"Yes you may." He told her.

She flashed through the necessary handseals. "**Shintenshin no jutsu **(Mind Body Switch Technique)**!" **She said before putting her hand on Neji's head. A few minutes of silence followed until Ino broke the jutsu and took her hand off of Neji.

"Well?" Asuma asked.

"Sokka was right; I heard the same things he did. The colonel was really planning to kill the colonists." She told everyone. "In all odds, had Katara actually listened to what Sokka said, they probably could have stopped him."

"This isn't my fault!" Katara shouted. "Sokka has been paranoid before and every time he's been wrong!"

"I wasn't wrong about Jet, you just like to think you discovered that yourself." He told her. "Face the truth, Katara. If you listened to me, the colony wouldn't have been put in danger and all those soldiers that I had to kill wouldn't be dead!" He fell silent and in the silence he looked at his arms and hands.

"Sokka, are you okay?" Aang asked.

"The faces," He muttered. "I can still see their faces. Their blood…it's still on my hands. Have to get it off. Have to stop seeing those faces!" He fell to his knees.

"Sokka, what's the matter?" Katara asked, concern for her brother taking over her anger at him.

Ino was the first to reach him. "He's in shock!" She informed everyone.

Akela began barking at her. "He said 'Do something about it, you blonde furred female!'" Kiba translated.

"Well, I can heal him but it will involve me going into his memories." She said.

Akela then growled at her. "He said 'Do it or your tail becomes my chew toy.'" Kiba again translated.

"My tail, what tail?" She asked.

"Your ponytail Ino, your ponytail," Chōji pointed out to her hair.

The rest of the night was spent trying to make sure Sokka would be alright.

(Location: Tank-train)

The four of them sat around the fire. "Perhaps it's time we went to bed." Naruto finally suggested as they all sat in silence.

"We're not going anywhere until you answer some questions." Azula told her bodyguard. "You didn't act surprised when the bridge builder and the Konoha team saw you. How long did you know about them?"

"I found out they were here after you told me to stay away from the mayor's house and the bridge. I knew you wanted me to stay away from those places for a reason, so I went to the bridge to see what you wanted to keep secret from me. Is that all?"

"No, that is not all," She told him.

"Why did Konohamaru sound like he knew you?" Ty Lee asked.

"I knew him three years ago. He looked up to me once." He looked at them. "Why are you asking me these questions?"

"Because Naruto." Azula said. "We have been encountering people who know you and today we met two men who wanted to capture you. And all the while, we really don't a thing about your past."

"My past is exactly that, my pa—"

"DON"T GIVE US THAT!" She yelled at him. "For Agni's sake Naruto, We just want to know at least one thing about your past!"

He was silent for a minute before speaking. "You want to know about just one thing about my past?" He asked them, they all nodded. "Then I'll tell you one thing about my past. I'll tell you about one of the men you saw. I'll tell you about Itachi Uchiha."

He looked over at Azula. "I want you to imagine two things, Azula. First: I want you to imagine that the royal family is a clan sized family. Second: I want you to imagine Zuko as a prodigy."

"That's ridiculous." She objected. "Why would—"

"Just do it, Azula." He ordered her. "Imagine that Zuko is a prodigy in both Firebending and swordsmanship and that he has your father's favor. Imagine that you actually look up to him and that he cares about you. I want you to imagine that your dream to beat him someday."

He looked at her and then took a breath. "Now I want you to imagine that you are coming home late one night from Firebending practice. You come into the Royal Palace and see members of your family dead on the ground. You are scared and frightened. You rush to your parents bedroom, because you know your mother and father are there and you'll feel safe. You burst into the bedroom but you find that your mother and father are already dead and that their killer is standing behind them. You are shocked to see that the killer is the person you thought cared about you and his family. The killer is no one other than your brother, Zuko. Now here's the question: What would you do if he had left you alive?"

"I would swear to track him down and kill him." Azula automatically answered.

The silence that following was almost deafening. Then Naruto spoke. "…Itachi Uchiha is infamous where I come from because in one night, he killed every single person of his own clan. He had left only one survivor."

"You mean his younger sister?" Ty Lee asked with horror.

Azula remembered what Naruto had said to Itachi on the bridge.

"_Itachi…hasn't he killed you yet?"_

"No, not his younger sister," She said. "His younger brother was the sole survivor, right?"

He simply nodded and then looked away. "This is just one of the reasons I don't tell you about my past."

"…You're right, Naruto." Azula finally said. "We should go to bed." She got up and walked back to the tank-train. "Good night."

Ty Lee and Mai soon followed her into the tank-train, leaving Naruto alone with the dying fire. "I shouldn't have told them." He muttered. "I should have left it alone."

"**You've made your choice, kit." **Kyuubi told him. **"Now you will have to live with it."**

He stared at the embers in the fire. "Tell me something that I don't know."

**End**

**Author's note: **Thank you for all the reviews you sent me.

Now to start off, don't get upset about Gaara being killed. That will be taken care of later. All I have to say is this: remember how he actually died.

Also, the thing between Katara and Sokka about his paranoia is not over yet.

This will not be the last time we see Azula working with daggers. Also, the dress that was bought for her will be back.

They never actually showed Hahn dying in the show, all we heard was a splash. I wanted to give him a more definite ending and I'm sure there is not one person out there that actually liked the asshole.

I have now given the backstory for the Zanpakutō idea. If you don't know whose tomb Sokka found, I highly recommend you read Bleach.

Next chapter, we're back to the episodes but we also see something beforehand.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	10. Restoration and Information

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 10: Restoration and Information

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Konoha)

In the Hokage's office, Tsunade was looking over the latest report from the Bending countries. She had just reached the point where the Earth Kingdom forces led by Colonel Qing had reached the bridge when shouts were coming from the hallway, shouts that were accompanied with the sounds of a small struggle.

"Wait, you can't go in there!" Someone shouted before the office doors burst open.

Tsunade put the report down and stared at the intruder with a calm expression. "Is there something I can help you with, Jōnin Uchiha?" She asked the man standing before her.

Sasuke stood in the doorway with an angry look on his face. "Why didn't you tell us?" He demanded, his voice all but snarling.

"What didn't I tell you?"

Pulling out a kunai, he launched himself at the Hokage. He might have actually struck her had a pair of arms not grabbed him and pulled him back. "Sasuke, for Kami's sake, calm down!" Sakura told her teammate as she held him back.

"Don't try to be the calm one here, Sakura!" He told her as he struggled to get out of her grip. "You're just as mad as I am about this!"

"Well, it doesn't exactly help us if you try to murder the Hokage, Sasuke." A silver-haired, face masked shinobi said as he walked into the office.

"What is the meaning of this, Kakashi?" Tsunade asked the silver-haired man.

Sakura managed to calm Sasuke down and as the fourth member of the team, a very pale (which is putting it lightly), black haired and black eyed teenager boy, came in, Kakashi cleared his throat as they stood before her. "Lady Hokage." He began. "Why were we not informed about the mission regarding Naruto?"

"The mission does not have Naruto as priority one." She answered. "It's protection detail. Anything that has to do with Naruto is a secondary objective."

"That still doesn't explain why you didn't tell us about the mission, Lady Tsunade." Sakura told her master, trying to stay respectful.

"I'm sure the Hokage will tell us if you let her talk, Ugly." The pale member told her with a fake smile.

She turned on him with a fist raised and an angry look on her face. "Don't start with me, Sai!" She yelled at him.

"Sakura, stand down!" Tsunade barked out.

She put her fist down but still gave Sai the angry look. "As I said," Tsunade continued. "The priority is the protection detail and given your history with Naruto, you are not suited for this mission."

Sasuke slammed his fist onto the table. "Naruto is our teammate! We have the right to go after him more than any other team!"

Tsunade just looked at him. While the rest of Konoha Eleven put their efforts into looking for Naruto, it was Team 7 who put the most effort into it. When they were able, they did everything they could in looking for him. They went after the vaguest of rumors looking for their former teammate. But sometimes their drive got them into trouble. Tsunade had gotten multiple reports of them breaking into places they didn't have business in or assaulting people that spoke ill of Naruto.

"It is for that reason you are not on the mission." She told him. "We both know that you would abandon the person you would protect in heartbeat if it gave you the chance to go after Naruto."

"Lady Hokage with all due respect, Naruto is our teammate." Kakashi spoke. He would've continued, but she cut him off.

"Don't give me that excuse Kakashi!" She snapped at him. "You don't think I haven't read the reports about your team's hunts for Naruto? About how your team has illegally broken into places just because you heard a vague rumor that Naruto might be there? Or about how your team sent a person to a hospital's ICU because they insulted Naruto? You have used that excuse one too many times!" She gave them all a hard look. "Until I am certain that you won't go chasing after rumors, you and your team are confined to the village. Now leave."

"Lady Tsunade—" Sakura began to protest but her teacher cut her off. "I said leave!" The four members bowed and turned to leave before Tsunade stopped them again. "Wait." She said. "Who was it that told you? Only Teams Kurenai, Guy and Asuma knew about this mission."

"…Konohamaru." Sakura finally said. They left the office after that. The sounds of their footsteps and walked past other people came in from the open door.

"Shizune!" yelled out Tsunade after a few minutes of silence. "Get Team Ebisu in here now!"

(Location: Team Kakashi)

"Kami take that woman!" Sasuke swore as he and the rest of his team walked down one of Konoha's streets. The other people in the street could feel the tension and anger he was giving off and so, gave the team a wide berth.

"Watch it, Sasuke." Sakura warned her teammate. "That 'woman' is my teacher and your Hokage."

"You know Sakura; you're making it sound like she was your only teacher." Kakashi told her with an eye smile. "I'm hurt."

She gave an apologetic smile. "Sorry about that Kakashi-sensei."

"And Sasuke, as much as I dislike it myself it, the Hokage confined us for good reason." He said to his other student, his tone serious.

Sasuke stopped and tried to reign in his anger. "I know." He said after a minute. "I just hate the fact that we're stuck here when we know where Naruto is but we can't go after him."

Sakura put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Trust me Sasuke, we all feel that way." She told him.

"Well I for one do not." Sai spoke up. "Why exactly should we care about someone who decided to up and abandon the village as well as this team? For all we know, he could have left to gain more power and turn on the village. It's not exactly correct for this team to worry about a traitor and possible danger—" Whatever he was going to say next was interrupted when Sakura punched him hard, sending him flying down the street.

As the people on the street scattered, a slightly dazed Sai was grabbed by the shirt and brought to look at Sakura's and Sasuke's angry faces. "Let's get one thing straight here, Sai. You are not a part of Team Kakashi; you are here only to ensure we can operate at full capacity. The fourth member of Team Kakashi is Naruto Uzumaki." Sakura told him. "The next time I hear you disrespecting Naruto like that, I'll hit you so hard your head will fly off."

"Not if I kill him first." Sasuke said, his hand reaching for the chokutō at his waist.

Sai gave another fake smile. "I'll keep those words in mind, considering you're Konoha no Sakura Hō-ō (Konoha's Cherry Blossom Phoenix)." He told Sakura. "And you're the Kurojishi no Sharingan (Black Lion of the Sharingan)." He told Sasuke.

"That's enough!" Kakashi barked out. "Sasuke, Sakura, let him go." They both did as they were told, letting him fall back down to the ground with the sound of him hitting the dirt echoing through an empty street. "Since we're confined to the village, I recommend we all calm down." He looked at Sai. "Go report back to Danzō, I'd advise you only rejoin us once everyone has calm down."

Sai simply got up, nodded and walked away. "I'm going to go train." Sasuke said. He started to walk in the direction of the training grounds.

"Need a sparring partner?" Sakura asked as she caught up with him. He gave a slight smile and nodded his head. They walked off together to blow off some steam. People started to fill up the street once they had realized that the danger was now over, the relief on their faces were obvious to all.

Kakashi watched as his two students disappeared around a corner. They had changed from being an avenger and a Fangirl. _"It's still amazing to see them be like that nowadays."_ He thought to himself. _"But they aren't children anymore."_ He mentally sighed to himself. _"I guess we can thank Naruto for that."_

After learning what had happen to Naruto during his life and the pain it caused him, Sasuke realized that he had lost a good friend because of what happened. The Curse Mark had influenced him too much, so he went to Jiraiya and asked him to remove it. Knowing that Orochimaru's handiwork with seals was a little crude at best (and sloppy at worst); the Toad Sannin was able to remove the Curse Mark without any trouble. But Sasuke knew that wasn't the only problem, he had figured out that it only amplified both his superiority and his inferiority complexes. Surprising the Civilian council, the Shinobi council and Tsunade, he volunteered to take a leave of absence from the shinobi ranks to take therapy sessions.

After sessions with Ino's father, Inoichi Yamanaka, the two complexes had diminished almost to the point where they were non-existent. Once the sessions were over, Sasuke rejoined the shinobi ranks and proceeded to put his nose to the grindstone. He tried to refrain himself from using the Sharingan as he trained under Kakashi, only using it when it was called for. But even then, he was greatly improving. He learned everything Kakashi had to teach him and also asked Guy if he could help him with his Taijutsu (which sent Guy off into a speech of how youthful Sasuke was). He even learned Kenjutsu in order to diversify his skills.

All of this helped him immensely in his missions. People in Konoha started to call him "the second coming of Itachi." Surprisingly enough, he didn't hate the title but neither was he proud of it. When it came time for the next Chūnin Exams, both he and Sakura went to Kumo to take it. They both made it to the third stage. When Kumo does the Chūnin Exams, by the third stage you are given a choice. You can fight the opponent that supposed to fight against you or you can make a request to fight someone else. As Sasuke made it to the final round, he then asked if he could fight someone else. Intrigued, the Raikage asked who it was he wanted to fight. He stunned the entire stadium by saying "Your brother, Killer Bee."

Before the Raikage could even say no, Bee was already in the stadium fields. Sasuke asked that it would only be a Taijutsu and Kenjutsu match. "I don't how good I am with a sword or with Taijutsu." He told Bee. "I think I can understand where I'm weak if I fight you."

Once the match had begun, Sasuke soon had to use his Sharingan just to keep up the Bee's movements and speed, but it still wasn't enough. After ten minutes, the match ended in Killer Bee's favor, with the Uchiha thoroughly beat. When both the Raikage and Tsunade asked for his opinion about the fight, Bee simply said this. "He lasted that long against the best. If it were me, I'd give him the vest." Sasuke was indeed given the rank of Chūnin.

His rise to Jōnin rank came about a year later. Jiraiya had passed information about Orochimaru's location. Tsunade had created a group to take out her ex-teammate and upon hearing about it, Sasuke volunteered for it. The plan was simple; they were to wait for night to fall, sneak into the base and kill Orochimaru while also collecting information. Sasuke and Anko Mitarashi were delegated to information hunting while the others were to kill the Snake Sannin. Despite both having a bone to pick with Orochimaru, neither Anko nor Sasuke complained about what they were assigned to do, they just accepted it.

They broke into the base and then separated; both teams were to stay in contact with each other via wireless radio. Both Anko and Sasuke soon discovered that the base was a gold mine of information; they had even found the Snake Summoning Scroll and information on current members of the Akatsuki. It was at that point they heard the sound of battle coming from the wireless. Grabbing the Summoning Scroll, the Akatsuki info and anything else they could grab and safely seal away, they made their way to the sounds of battle.

They soon found where the fight was being fought and discovered that the team that were sent to kill Orochimaru were now in the process of fighting and getting killed by him. Later, they found out that one member of the group got cocky and announced their presence to the Snake Sannin. Seeing the damage that was being done, Sasuke told Anko to help the others that were still alive fend off Orochimaru while he got the wounded out. Once that was accomplished, he had the others pull out as he set off the explosive notes that both he and Anko had put up both outside the base and inside as a precaution. He knew that it would take more than that to kill Orochimaru; he only used it as a distraction so that they could get away safely.

Once they had arrived back at the village and reported in, the Shinobi council decided to give Sasuke the rank of Jōnin, while the new Civilian council encouraged him to become the Second Snake Sannin. Surprised, he asked why he was given it when he had only been a Chūnin for a year.

"Because they said so and so do I. Get over it." Tsunade told him with abrupt gruffness.

He thanked her and the Shinobi council for giving him the rank of Jōnin but decline becoming the Second Snake Sage, stating that he was never Orochimaru's student.

Sakura had also changed over the years. After becoming Tsunade's apprentice, her nose was put to the grindstone as well (one might even say it was shoved into the grindstone). Whatever traces of being Sasuke's Fangirl were left, Tsunade pretty much killed them. Sakura was put through a rigorous form of training but in the end it benefitted her greatly. She now saw Sasuke as a friend and had even apologized for how she acted towards him when they were younger. Nowadays, she helped him run away and hide from his Fangirls (except when he's in the hot springs or bathhouse, he was on his own there). Sakura also became a Chūnin at the same Chūnin Exams Sasuke did.

Under Tsunade's tutelage, Sakura became proficient in Medical Ninjutsu. Some people claimed that she was so good; she was resurrecting patients from the dead, giving them new life. That, combined with the Taijutsu lessons Tsunade gave her, her fiery temper (of which many a poor fool has been on the receiving end of) and her looks, gave her the title of Konoha no Sakura Hō-ō (Konoha's Cherry Blossom Phoenix).

Sasuke received his nickname from a surprising place: his brother. One of the pieces of information that Orochimaru had was a supposed location of Naruto. Team Kakashi quickly made their way to said location. They split up to cover more ground and see if they could find anything. As Sasuke made his way through a building, he discovered that they weren't the only ones looking for Naruto.

(Flashback)

"Hello Sasuke." Itachi said as the two brothers faced each other in an abandoned warehouse.

"Get out of my way, Itachi." Sasuke told him. "I don't have time to deal with you." He walked past him to get to the door on the other side, surprising his brother a little.

"Are you here for Naruto?" The single question Itachi asked made the younger Uchiha stop in his tracks. "So you are here for him. It seems we are looking for the same thing. Perhaps we should combine our efforts?" The last question was laced with both irony and sarcasm.

"YOU STAY AWAY FROM HIM!" Sasuke roared at his brother, whipping back around to face him, Sharingan blazing. "You touch him and I'll gut you!"

Itachi actually flinched and took a step back at the intensive glare his brother was giving him. But he recovered. "So you would rather fight me not for what I did, but for what I might do?" He asked with quiet surprise in his voice.

"Killing you won't bring back our clan. But it will definitely stop you from finding Naruto!" He growl as he slowly reached for a kunai. The silence between the two brothers filled the warehouse. Had it been any other situation, anybody who was in there as well would've felt awkward.

"Fighting to protect your friends rather than to avenge your family?" Itachi was silent for a couple of seconds and then smiled. "It seems that you have grown, Sasuke. You may still be foolish but you are not the same foolish little brother I remember."

"How am I still foolish?" He demanded. He felt like he had matured since that night and even more so since the last time he has seen his brother. But to hear him say that he was still foolish made him feel like nothing had changed at all.

"Have you considered the possibility that Naruto doesn't want you to find him?"

"He came after me and so I will do the same for him." He replied with confidence, remembering how Naruto chased after him when he had tried to leave. _"I was such an idiot."_ He mentally berated himself.

"And what if he doesn't want to come back?" He asked, curious to see how his brother would answer. This was a new and different Sasuke he saw, he was wondering how much he changed.

"He'll come back." He said with determination. "I know he will."

Itachi scoffed. "Still foolish," He muttered. "It seems you haven't changed as much as I had though." He began to walk away before stopping again in front of the rear door. "I hear that the villagers call you my second coming."

"The villagers will say what they want. It does not matter to me."

"But one should always try to have a name they can call theirs. So I, Itachi Uchiha, hereby name you the Kurojishi no Sharingan (Black Lion of the Sharingan). Let the countries know you as such." He declared with both formality and authority before he continued walking out of the building.

Sasuke just watched as his brother left. "Thank you…aniki." He whispered before leaving through the other door. Itachi may have his enemy nowadays, but he was still his brother. And he had always wanted Itachi to praise him. Giving him his own nickname was his own way of praising him.

Itachi stood outside the building, his ears having caught what Sasuke had whispered. "You're welcome, otouto." He continued to walk away, trying to find Kisame so they could continue their own search for Naruto.

(End Flashback)

Naruto wasn't there of course, so all they could do was to go back to the village. But once what had happened between Sasuke and Itachi became public knowledge, people started to call him the Kurojishi no Sharingan.

Kakashi sighed as he started to walk away. _"I just hope that Guy, Asuma or Kurenai can bring him back. The little gaki is missed around here." _He thought to himself as he disappeared into the crowds.

(Location: Tank-train)

"Alright, I'm off." Naruto told them as they stood outside the tank-train, which it itself stood on the edges of a forest.

"Are you sure you can't hold this off?" Ty Lee asked. She looked at her friend with concern shining in her eyes.

He gave her a look. "Ty Lee, if you ever meet this guy, you would do well to be punctual. Otherwise, you're likely to end up dead. Besides, you three need to get back to Yu Dao soon. War Minister Qin's time limit on loaning the tank-train is almost up."

"Well, we'll see you around." Mai told him, acting like she was bored out of the world. But in her own way, she too was concerned for him.

"Goodbye to you too Mai," He replied in a deadpan voice, although he knew she was concerned for him. He looked at Azula, who looked a little sad. He never did like leaving her; she may have had her two closest (if only) friends with her and he knew that she could hold her own in a fight, but it still made him a little worried. But he knew that if he didn't try to keep this appointment, there was a very good chance of ending up as food. "Don't worry your royal head, Princess. I'll be back before you know it." He said with a cheerful voice that they both knew was a fake one.

She lost the sad look, scoffing at her bodyguard. "Who said I was worried?" She asked, trying to sound like she had been offended.

He grinned. **"You need to stop worrying, kit."** Kyuubi told him. **"She's got Ty Lee and Mai. She'll be fine."**

"_You're right."_ He silently replied. "Now don't go doing anything stupid." He told her, faint concern showing in the sentence.

She heard it, but fought to keep her face calm and not to show any other emotions. "Did you forget who you're talking to?"

"Right, sorry." He looked at Ty Lee and Mai. "Make sure she doesn't do anything stupid, okay?" He asked, this time with obvious humor instead of concern.

They both nodded, making Ty Lee giggle and Mai chuckle, making Azula lose the fight to stay calm and became angry. "Naruto, you—" She began but he was already gone. They could hear his laughter on the wind. "I swear there are days when I hate him so much."

"Of course you do." Mai said, like she was stating the obvious. But both she and Ty Lee knew she was lying when she said things like that.

(Location: Aang's group)

Aang sat on the ground with a flute in hand. In front of him were several holes in the ground. "What's out here?" Sokka asked.

Toph knelt down and placed her hand on the ground, feeling the earth through her hand. "A lot actually, there's hundreds of little—" She started to say.

"Shh!" Aang interrupted her. "I know you can see underground but don't ruin the surprise. Just watch." He blew a note on the flute and a groundhog appeared out of a nearby hole and repeated the same note. "Yeah!" He said while laughing. He blew a different note and a different groundhog popped up and repeated the same note. "I'm putting an orchestra together."

"Orchestra huh?" asked Sokka. "Well la dee dah." Three groundhogs popped out of their holes and repeated the same notes. Momo tried going after one of them but missed, his head popping up from another hole.

Aang kept playing the flute and with the groundhogs until Sokka plugged the other end of the flute with his finger. "This is great and all but don't we have more important things to worry about?" He asked. "We should be making plans."

"We did make plans." Toph reminded him. "We're all picking mini-vacations."

"There's no time for vacations." He told her with complete seriousness.

"I'm learning the elements as fast as I can." Aang protested. "I practice hard every day with Toph and Katara. I've been training my arrow off!"

"Yeah, what's wrong with having a little fun in our downtime?" Katara asked her brother.

"This side of the world has been in a war for the past century." Asuma told her. "If you're a part of it, you don't have any downtime." Team Asuma had taken over protection duty after the massacre at Kouzan. Everyone had agreed that it was time for a change in the guard.

"He's right." Sokka said. "But even if you do master all of the elements, then what? It's not like we have a map of the Fire Nation. Should we just head west until we reach the Fire Lord's house? 'Knock-knock, hello Fire Lord, anybody home?' I don't think so! We need some intelligence if we're going to win this war." He explained urgently.

Aang blew a note and a groundhog appeared under Sokka's legs. It would have repeated the note had it not seen Akela and the beginnings of the Doomsday smile. It just went back down the hole. "Alright, we'll finish our vacations and then we'll look for Sokka's 'intelligence'." Katara said with a slight mocking tone on the word intelligence, making Aang chuckle. Both Shikamaru and Asuma looked at the two with slight disapproval. They both knew that trying to find intelligence could be the key to turning the fight into their favor.

After he was done, Aang grabbed the map and opened it up. "Your turn, Katara," He said. "Where would you like to go on your mini-vacation?"

She looked at the map. "How about the Misty Palms Oasis, that sounds refreshing." She suggested, pointing to its location.

"Oh yeah, I've been there. It's a pristine natural ice spring. And I don't usually use the word 'pristine'. It's one of the nature's wonders." He explained to her.

"Well, let's go already." Sokka told them impatiently. "The sooner we're done with these 'mini-vacations', the sooner we can get back to the more important things." He walked back towards Appa.

"What's wrong with him?" Aang asked Katara.

"I don't know, he been like that ever since Kouzan." She answered honestly. After the massacre, Sokka had been acting a little more serious. He still made sarcastic comments and made jokes, but they knew that something inside of him had changed.

"It's his way of coping with the massacre." Asuma walked towards them and answered.

"Coping?" Aang asked.

"Yeah, you guys are coping in different ways. You, Katara and Toph are coping by delaying getting back to what you're supposed to do. He's coping by wanting to get the war over with, so he's hurrying you all along." He explained, having seen people go through this kind of thing before.

"Will he be alright?" Katara asked. Despite what had happened between them, Sokka was still her brother.

"Just give him some time. That's you can do at this point." He told them before walked away towards his team and leaving them to think over his words.

Everyone got on Appa and flew in the direction of the Misty Palms Oasis. However, once they got there, it definitely was not what they were expecting.

"Must've changed ownership since I was here," Aang told the group sheepishly before chuckling nervously before they walked in. The ice spring shown on the map was big but here in real life, it looked like a small steaming clump of ice. The fact they saw a dog licking it didn't help either.

They walked into a cantina when a clothed covered man hocked one at Sokka's feet. But before he could do anything, Katara grabbed him and pulled him into the cantina.

They entered the cantina and saw it was just a watering hole, with people both drinking and sleeping. Their attention was drawn to the bar, where the bartender was creating a drink with fruits and handing out said drink using nothing but his swords.

"I'm getting one." Chōji stated, looking intently at the bar.

"You had lunch an hour ago." Ino told her teammate.

"It's hot out there, Ino. I'm thirsty."

"I don't see a problem having one of those fruity beverages while we plan our strategy." Sokka agreed. The two of them went over to the bartender to order drinks. As that happened, Aang accidently ran into a person who had a drink, thus spilling it all over his clothes.

"No worries." Aang assured the man. "I clean up easy." He bent the air around him to dry his clothes.

The man gasped in surprise. "You're a living relic!" He said with excitement.

"Thanks." Aang replied. "I try."

"An Air Nomad, right in front of me." The man mused. "Professor Zei, head of anthropology at Ba Sing Se University." He introduced himself before grabbing Aang's arm. "Tell me, which of the Air Temples do you hail from?"

"The Southern Temple," He answered.

"Oh splendid!" exclaimed the professor. "Tell me, what was the primary agricultural product of your people?"

"Uh…are fruit pies an agricultural product?" He asked back, feeling like he was in a test.

"Oh truly fascinating, that is one for the journal!" He said to himself before pulling out said journal and writing an entry.

"So professor," Sokka began as he and the others joined the two with drinks in hand. "You're obviously a well-traveled guy. Do you have a more current map? Ours seem to be a little dated."

"Certainly," Zei agreed. He rolled out his map on a table for Sokka to look at.

"What, no Fire Nation?" He asked after looking at it. "Doesn't anyone have a good map of that place?"

Ignoring her brother, Katara looked at the map herself. "You've made a lot of trips into the desert." She noted.

"All in vain, I'm afraid." Zei told her. "I've found lost civilizations all over the Earth Kingdom but I haven't found the crown jewel: Wan Shi Tong's Library."

"You've spent years walking through the desert to find some guy's library?" Toph asked in disbelief from the chair she sat in.

"This library is more valuable than gold, little lady. It is said to contain a vast collection of knowledge. And knowledge…is priceless."

"Hm…sounds like good times." She replied, sarcasm evident in her voice.

"Oh it is." He said, ignoring the sarcasm. "According to legend, it was built by the great knowledge spirit, Wan Shi Tong, with the help of his foxy knowledge seekers."

"Just for clarification" Shikamaru asked. "When you say foxy knowledge seekers, do you actually mean that they're foxes or they're attractive women?"

"Personally, I hope its attractive women." Sokka said.

"Or they could just look like foxes." Katara told her brother.

"You're both right, handsome little creatures." He pulled out a scroll with a building design of the library on it and placed it on the table, over the map. "Wan Shi Tong and his knowledge seekers collected books from all over the world and put them on display for mankind to read, so that we might better ourselves."

"If this place has books from all over the world, do you think they've got info on the Fire Nation? A map, maybe?" Sokka asked, hope evident in his voice.

"I wouldn't know. But if such a thing exists, it's in Wan Shi Tong's Library."

"Okay then." He looked at everyone else. "Then my vacation time will be spent at the library. If you have any complaints, I don't wanna hear them." He told them, keeping short and to the point.

"It's troublesome but it's also the first useful vacation we've had since you guys decided to go on a brake." Shikamaru said, throwing a look at Aang and Katara.

"Uh hey, what about me?" asked Toph. "When do I get to pick?"

"You gotta work here a little longer before you can qualify for vacation time." Sokka told her. She just slammed the drink in her hands onto the table.

"Of course there's the matter of finding it." Zei admitted. "I've made several trips into the Si Wong Desert and almost died each time. I'm afraid that desert impossible to cross." He noted with a disappointed tone in his voice.

Sokka and Aang shared a look and had the same idea. "Professor, would you like to see our sky bison?" Sokka asked him.

"A sky bison, you actually have one!?" Zei asked them. Before anyone could answer, they all heard loud barking coming from outside the cantina.

"That's Akela!" Sokka exclaimed before running out of the cantina. Everyone else followed quick on his tail. They ran out of the cantina and outside the Oasis's walls, where they had left the animals. Akela stood in front of Appa, growling and barking at a group of cloth covered people. Appa was growling as well.

"Sandbenders, shoo! Away from the bison and the wolf!" ordered Zei as the group reached them. They did as they were told, boarding their sand-sailor and sailing away into the desert.

(Location: Naruto)

He entered the place via the usual way. "Honestly," He muttered to himself. "The least he can do is let me know where the back door is. That way I don't have to do this every time. Is he still a little miffed about the fact I found the Airbending scrolls and read them without his permission?" He knew he shouldn't have read them, but it was too good a chance to pass up at the time. He was lucky enough not to end as food.

He landed on solid ground and looked around. "Where is he?" He asked and then shrugged. "Whatever, I'm just here to do what I promise to do." He walked away, already knowing where to go.

"**So, how much do you want to bet that we're going to find one of his traps this trip?"** Kyuubi asked from within.

"Are you kidding?" He asked back. "That's not a bet, that's a guarantee."

(Location: Aboard Appa)

Appa flew on into the desert with the heat of the desert sun above them. The professor sat on his head along with Aang. "Tell me, sky bison; are you the last of your breed?" Zei asked him. He only grunted in response. 'Oh delightful, I only wish I spoke his tongue. Oh, the stories this beast could tell." He said. Momo hopped over to where he sat and began chattering. "Shush, chatty monkey!"

Aang looked at the scroll with the building design. "Wow, shouldn't be too hard to find a place like this out here." He said confidently.

But they flew on, seeing nothing. "Does this place even exist?" Toph groaned after feeling the heat of the sun for a good amount of time.

"Some say it doesn't." Zei told her cheerfully.

"…Shouldn't you have mentioned that before?" She asked him grumpily.

They kept flying on. All was silent until Toph shouted out. "There it is!" She pointed out to the desert. Everyone looked at where she was pointing and saw nothing. They all looked at her. "That's what it will sound like when one of you spots it." She told them before waving her hand in front of her face with a mocking smile on her face.

"So Professor," Chōji said. "What is it exactly that you want to look for in the Library?"

"I just want to find it and read what it has to offer! But if I wanted to actually find something…?" Zei drifted off into thought. "I guess I would try to find what Professor Uzumaki was looking for."

That got Team Asuma's attention right away. "What did you say the professor's name was?" Asuma asked.

"Professor Uzumaki, he was the previous head of anthropology. Why do you ask?"

"The Uzumaki clan was destroyed during the last Shinobi World War. The survivors were scattered. We had never thought that one ended up here." Asuma looked at the professor, curiosity showing on his face. "Is he still alive?"

"Unfortunately, I don't know." Zei told them. "He retired and then disappeared into the Si Wong desert, looking for the very library we are." He thought something over. "When was this last Shinobi World War?" He asked Asuma.

"About sixteen years ago."

"I don't think Professor Uzumaki came here because of his clan's destruction."

"What makes you say that?"

"Because he was the head of the anthropology department for over _fifty_ years," Zei told them. "He retired ten years ago."

"Did you know him well?" Chōji asked.

"I was his student and helper." He answered with pride. "In fact, he often told me about his home country"

"Why did he want to find the library?" Ino asked him, curious to know. The only Uzumaki she had known was Naruto, and she never remembered him as the scholarly type. The idea of an Uzumaki professor sounded almost alien to her.

"Professor Uzumaki was convinced that somehow the history of the Bending Countries and the history of the Elemental Countries were connected. He believed that the beginning of the Avatar also had something to do with the history of the Shinobi, to be specific, the person who started the Shinobi Era. If I remember correctly, he called this particular person the Sage of the Six Paths."

"That's the guy who started the Shinobi Era alright." Shikamaru said, lifting his head up from where he lay in the saddle. "At least, that's according to the troublesome legends." He let his fall back down so he could look at the sky, hoping to see if there were any clouds.

"Professor Uzumaki hunted everywhere for evidence to support his hypothesis but he could only find scraps of information, which led him to believe that the answers he was looking for were in Wan Shi Tong's Library. However, the university would not allow him to go look for it, so he retired."

'Why would he think the answers would be in the library?" Sokka asked.

"According to the information he gathered, the Library holds the actual journals written by the First Paragons as well as the history dealing with the beginning of the Avatar."

Sokka looked down at the Paragon Medallion hanging from his neck. "Are you sure?" He asked the professor. He knew very little of the Paragons' past, so he was curious to know what had happened.

"I don't know. That's why I want to find the Library."

They flew on for a few more minutes. The heat kept beating down on them, making them start to sweat. "It shouldn't be this hard to spot a giant, ornate building from the air." Katara said as she and Sokka looked over the side of the saddle.

Sokka looked through his telescope to look through the desert and saw something. "Down there." He called out. "What's that?" He pointed down at the object.

Aang landed Appa in front of what appeared to be a tower buried in the sand. "Forget it." Katara said as she held the scroll of the library designs. "It's obviously not what we're looking for. The building in this drawing is enormous."

They all then saw something shine on nearby dune. On the top of said dune was a canine-like animal with a scroll in its mouth.

"What kind of animal is that?" Sokka asked as they watched it head towards the tower and then run _up _the tower wall before disappearing through a window.

"I think that was one of the knowledge seekers!" Zei said.

"I don't know about that but I know I saw a fox." Chōji said.

"We must be close to the Library!" Zei announced with enthusiasm.

Sokka looked at the drawing. "No, this _is_ the Library. Look!" He pointed to the tower buried in the sand and then to the tower on the top of the building in the drawing. They were one and the same. "It's completely buried."

Realization dawned on Zei's face. "The Library is buried!? My life's ambition is full of sand!" He fell to the ground and then his attitude did a complete 180. "Well, time to start excavating!" He said cheerfully before grabbing a small trowel and digging up the sand. The others looked at him in disbelief. He was going to need more than a trowel to get through that much sand.

Toph walked up to the tower wall and placed a hand on it, feeling the entire structure. "Actually that won't be necessary. The inside seems to be completely intact. And it's huge."

"The fox went through a window up there." Asuma said, pointing upwards at the window.

"I say we climb up there and give it a look." Sokka suggested

Toph folded her arms. "I say you guys go ahead without me."

"You got something against libraries?" Katara asked her.

"I've held books before and I've gotta tell you, they don't exactly do it for me."

"Oh right, sorry." Katara awkwardly replied, once again remembering that Toph was blind.

"Let me know if they have something you can listen to."

"Have you ever tried stepping on a book?" Shikamaru asked her. "You might be able to get something out of a book that way."

"I did try that once." She admitted before wincing. "It didn't end well."

Asuma had borrowed Sokka's boomerang and tied rope to it. He threw it at the window and made sure it wouldn't shake loose. He began to climb up with Zei and Katara behind him while his Team brought up the rear.

Aang and Sokka however, were with Appa and Akela. "Don't worry buddy." Aang told his sky bison. "I'm not making you go underground ever again. You can stay out here with Toph."

"That's goes for you too, Akela." Sokka told the wolf. "And remember, if Toph tries to do anything stupid, aim for the hair."

Akela nodded in answer, ignoring Toph's protest. The two of them left, leaving a blind Earthbending master with a sky bison and a white wolf.

"What's up?" That was the first question she asked the two of them.

Everyone else was climbing down the rope into the library, the sound of feet scraping against the stone tower echoed out into the desert. When they cleared the insides of the tower, and felt the cool air wash over them, they saw the entire Library. "Oh, it's so breathtaking!" Zei stated as they all hung onto the rope. "The spirits spared no expense in designing this place. Look at those beautiful buttresses." The last sentence sent Sokka, Katara and Aang into fits of giggles. "What's funny?" The professor asked them.

"Nothing," Aang told him. "We just like architecture."

"As do I," The professor said, missing the point.

"Whatever, will you people hurry it up?" Ino said higher up on the rope.

Soon enough, they all got off the rope and onto a bridge in the middle of the hallway. "My word!" began Zei. "The exquisite mosaic handiwork of this tile-rendered avian symbol…" He trailed off when he realized that everyone was given him a weird look. "…Nice…owl," He finished off lamely.

Suddenly hearing movement coming from behind them, everyone ran towards the end of the bridge and behind columns. The noise of movement got louder, Aang snuck a peek at who was making the noise and saw that it was a very big owl standing in the middle of the bridge looking at the rope. Its head then turned to look around the Library and did an almost 360 turn to look at where they were hiding. **"I know you're back there." **It said aloud, its voice alone sent shivers down their spines, even the shinobi.

Aang ducked his head back behind the column. Zei decided to be the brave one and walked back onto the bridge. "Hello! I'm Professor Zei, head of anthropology at Ba Sing Se University." He introduced himself before bowing to the owl, trying to sound friendly.

"**You should leave the way you came, unless you want to become a stuffed head of anthropology." **The owl bluntly stated as he looked over at a column. Zei followed his gaze and stuffed animal headson the column. He rubbed his neck unconsciously. The notion of having his head stuffed was not an appealing one.

Everyone else emerged from where they were hiding. "Are you the spirit who brought this Library to the Physical World?" Sokka asked cautiously. He got the feeling that this was a spirit much like Koh, you had to be very careful and endure you tread lightly.

"**Indeed." **The owl answered. **"I am Wan Shi Tong, he who knows ten thousands things, and you are obviously humans, which, by the way, are no longer permitted in my study."** His head kept swerving between Sokka and Zei, who stood in the front of the group.

"What do you have against humans?" Aang asked.

"**Humans only bother learning things to get the edge on other humans. Like that Firebender who came to this place a few years ago, looking to destroy his enemy." **He then leaned in closer to Sokka. **"So, who are you trying to destroy?" **He asked, a subtle dangerous tone entering his voice.

Sokka thought quickly, trying to think up a convincing lie. "Not to destroy, but to understand." He finally said. _"Please let him buy it, please."_ He silently prayed.

The owl just stared at him. **"…If you're going to lie to all knowing spirit being, you should at least put some effort into it." **He told the Water Tribe Paragon, the last bit with slight exasperation.

"I'm not lying." Sokka protested. "I'm here with the Avatar; he's the bridge between our worlds. He'll vouch for me." He grabbed Aang and put him in front of the owl.

"Uh…yeah, I'll vouch." Aang told him, a little uncertain. "We will not abuse the knowledge in your library good spirit. You have my word." He promised the owl, bowing his head with everyone else following his example.

"**Hm…Very well," **Wan Shi Tong answered. **"I'll let you peruse my vast collection, on one condition. To prove your worth as scholars, you have to contribute some worthwhile knowledge."**

Zei stepped up to the bat first. He knelt and held out a book. "Please accept this tome as a donation to your library." He said.

"**First edition, very nice," **The spirit said as he took the book with his wing.

Zei back away and let Katara step up. "I have an authentic Waterbending scroll." She offered, showing said scroll.

"**Ohh, these illustrations are quite stylish." **He took the scroll.

Aang thought about what he was to give. "Oh, I know!" He reached into his shirt and pulled out the wanted poster of him.

"**I suppose that counts."**

Asuma stepped forward. "Wasn't really expecting this, but my father did teach me to be prepared." He reached into his vest and pulled out a book. "Here you are." He offered the book to the owl.

"**The History of the Land of Fire, that is acceptable."** He took the book without any argument.

Ino was next. "I have a book on flower gardening." She offered.

"**A bit unnecessary here in the desert, but interesting all the same. Perhaps some of the methods in your book will useful when I tend to my garden." **He took the book, leaving the others to wonder where he could hide a garden in a library that was underground.

Chōji moved forward. "I have a book about the recipes my clan has created." He said, holding the book in his hands.

"**A cookbook is knowledgeable." **

Shikamaru walked forward. "I think I've got the right thing here." He said.

"**Useful ways to use your frying pan in your house and on your husband by Yoshino Nara," **Wan Shi Tong read the title of the book with a small amount of confusion in his voice.

"My mom wrote it for the wives of the Nara clan, troublesome woman." He muttered. "It sold well, so there's no danger of me losing this thing."

"**Sounds intriguing all the same," **The owl told him before taking the book.

Sokka was the only one left. "I have only one thing to give you, Great Spirit. But can I offer you a deal about it?"

"**What is it you have to offer?" **He asked, sounding a little interested.

Sokka took the book out. "My journal, but it's not complete. I wish to make you this deal: you let me put my journal on hold for you and let me finish it. When it is done, I will come back and give it to you."

The spirit stared at him with unblinking eyes. **"Very few have ever tried to make me an offer before, and I have rarely accepted." **He stated. **"But I find the terms acceptable. I will expect the journal to be given to me when it's done. Enjoy the library." **He told the entire group.

"Great Wan Shi Tong, may I ask you something?" Zei asked the owl, stepping two steps forward.

"**What is it?"** He asked, vaguely annoyed.

"Ten years ago, my predecessor disappeared looking for your Library."

"**Ah yes, there was a fellow who found my Library around that time. He was close to death when he found it."**

"Did he manage to find what he was looking for?"

"**Yes, although he took ill afterwards and died soon after. I had him buried in the basement and had what he was looking for moved to a different part of the library. Is that all?"**

"Yes, thank you."

Suddenly the Library shook and they all heard a faint boom. Then they heard someone yelling. "DAMN IT WAN SHI TONG! HOW MANY PLACES DO YOU HAVE HERE THAT ARE FLOODED!? HOW DID THEY GET FLOODED IN THE FIRST PLACE?! YOU LIVE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DESERT! ALSO, WHY IS IT THAT YOU HAVE SO MANY AREAS THAT BOOBY-TRAPPED?! HERE I'M TRYING TO DO WHAT I PROMISED AND I KEEP GETTING ALMOST KILLED IN THE PROCESS! I NEED TO BE PAID FOR THIS, YOU HEAR ME!? I SHOULD GET PAID!"

The voice was somewhat faint but they could still what the person was saying. **"If you'll excuse me," **The owl said. **"I need to take care of this." **He flew off the bridge and into the depths of the Library, the sound of his wings flapping in the air echoing beneath them.

Ino looked over the edge of the bridge. "Do you think we should ask what that was all about?" She asked the group.

Shikamaru shook his head. "It's too troublesome to do so." He told her. But something was bugging him. That loud voice sounded a little familiar.

(Location: Naruto)

"You know, there are days where I think your boss is an idiot." He told a nearby fox as he stared at the problem in front of them. It was a door that, if opened, would flood the room with water. Naruto had managed to close the door before the entire room went underwater, but there were still puddles on the floor and his pants were still soaked.

"**And you also know that I would kill you for making such an insult." **Wan Shi Tong answered as he replied.

"Well you can't kill me. I'm the one who's restoring your library, in case you forgot." He looked back at the problem. "Just how many traps do you have rigged in this library? This is the fifth one I've encountered on this trip alone."

The owl thought it over. **"I believe that so far, you have only encountered 2.5% of the traps in my library." **He answered with a shrug.

Naruto just stared at the giant bird. "You are one paranoid owl, you know that, right?"

"**I can and will defend my library by any means."**

He sighed. "Whatever. Just get rid of this trap so I can get on with my job."

The spirit walked up to the door and just waved a wing over it. **"It is safe now." **He announced before walking away.

"Why do I have a hard time believing him?" He asked the fox, who just cocked its head and blinked. "Why did I even bother asking you?" He asked before he opened the door again. Thankfully, no water came flying out to hit him in the face. "Well, on with the work."

(Location: outside the Library)

Toph sat in the sand with Appa and Akela. "So, you like…flying?" was the question she asked the sky bison after a period of silence. He just scratched his ear. "Of course, I'm more comfortable on the ground, where I can see." She said. "Well…I don't see the way you do. I feel the vibrations in the ground with my feet." She grabbed a handful of sand and let fall from her hand. "But the sand is loose and shifty, it makes everything look fuzzy." Appa gave a big yawn and Akela gave her a look. "Not that there anything with wrong with fuzzy!" She quickly told them.

(Location: Aang's group)

Everyone was looking through the bookshelves while a nearby fox put a book back into the shelf where it came from. "Hey, look at these weird lion turtles things." Aang said, holding a picture of the creatures for everyone to look at.

Sokka took a look at the picute "I've seen weirder." He stated before walking away, browsing through the many different books.

"Aang," Katara called out. "Did you know in a past life you were left handed?" She asked as she walked over to him with a book in her hands.

"I always knew I was special." He replied with a big grin.

"Well, you are the Avatar after all." Shikamaru drawled.

"Be nice, Shikamaru." Ino told her teammate.

Sokka kept walking around, looking at books and scrolls. If what they had interested him, he took it and put it in his bag. He then came upon a glass container that held a burnt piece of paper with writing on it. "The darkest day in Fire Nation history," He read. "It's got a date at the top but it doesn't say anything else." Looking around to see if anyone was watching him, he pulled out his machete to pry open the glass and took the piece of paper. Sheathing the machete and rolling up the piece of the paper, he began to walk away when the others showed up.

"Sokka, where are you going?" Aang asked him as he began to run off.

"I wanna know what to the Fire Nation on their darkest day." He told them, holding up the scroll. "This could be promising." He ran through the Library with the others right behind him, racing past aisle after aisle of ancient books. "The information on the Fire Nation should be right up in here." He said as he came to a door with the symbol for fire above it. The door was close and when he tried to open it, it wouldn't open. "It's barred from the other side!" He said.

"There's a note right here." Katara said, pointing to a piece of paper on the wall next to the door. Asuma took it and read aloud to the group. It said:

To whom it may concern.

Due to an idiot's notion that no one should know about his nation's weaknesses, he burned all the information on the Fire Nation. Therefore this section of the Library is closed for restoration.

Thank you for understanding.

Naruto, Paragon of the Fire Nation.

P.S. If you're wondering how long it's going to take for it to be completely restored, I honestly don't know.

"Naruto's been here!?" Chōji asked in surprise.

"That's not important right now." Sokka told him as he stared at the barred door. "I need to know what happened on the darkest day." He muttered to himself. Hearing an animal whimper, they all turned around and saw one of the Knowledge Seekers standing on its hind legs. "Hello, little weird fox guy." Sokka greeted him uncertainly.

The fox got back on all fours, turned around and pointed. "Seems it's trying to assist you," Zei noted.

"Um…sure," He told the fox. "I guess I'll follow you."

The fox took off and led them through the Library, their footsteps echoing in the air. It finally stopped at a large golden design on the wall. The fox went through a small hole next to the design and disappeared. The inner part of the design began to roll to the side, revealing that it was a door. On the other side of the door was the fox.

They walked into the room, which looked like someone had painted a surrounding landscape on the walls as well as the sky. In the middle of the room stood a pedestal with four different sets of dials and a lever. The fox walked up to the lever and pushed on it.

The sky turned into the night sky, showing all the stars as well as the path of the moon. "This room is a true marvel. A mechanical wonder!" stated Zei. "It's a planetarium that shows the heavens moving!"

"Cool!" Chōji exclaimed as he watched the thing work.

"Uh, this is beautiful but how is it helpful?" Sokka asked as the night disappeared and the sky reappeared.

"Maybe these dials represents dates and times." Katara suggested as she looked at the pedestal. "Sokka, try entering that date from that parchment you took."

"Shh, Katara," He shushed her. "Not in front of the fox, he's with the owl." The fox dropped its tail and ears, looking like he did something wrong.

Looking at the date on the parchment, Sokka approached the dials and set the date. When he was done, he went over to the lever and pushed on it. The room started up again, turning day into night. "Wow, I gotta hand it to you Sokka. You pick the best mini-vacation for sure." Aang told him.

Night turned back into day but then day immediately darkened. "Hey wait, what happened to the sun?" Katara asked.

Aang scowled. "Great, you must have broken it." He said.

"Have a little more trust, Aang." Asuma told him.

Sokka looked at the planetarium. "It's not broken." He said. "The sun is behind the moon, it's a solar eclipse! It's literally the darkest day in Fire Nation history." He grabbed Aang by the shoulders. "Now I get it! Something awful happened on that day. I don't know what but I do know why. Firebenders lose their bending during a solar eclipse!" He let go of Aang, who grunted in pain. "Sorry."

"That makes sense." Katara agreed. "I mean, think of what the lunar eclipse at the North Pole did to the Waterbenders. This is huge."

The fox walked up to Sokka and stood on its hinds legs in a begging position. "Fine, you earned it." Sokka acknowledged, taking a treat out of his bag and tossing to the fox. "We've gotta get this information to the Earth King in Ba Sing Se." He told everyone. "We'll wait for the next eclipse, then we'll invade the Fire Nation when they're totally helpless. The Fire Lord is going down!" Before his mood could reach the others, a large shadow loomed over him.

"**Mortals are so predictable…and such terrible liars." **Wan Shi Tong said as he stood before them.** "You betrayed my trust! From the beginning, you intended to misuse this knowledge for evil purposes!"**

"You don't understand!" Sokka protested. "If anyone's evil, it'sthe Fire Nation. We need this information!"

"**You think you're the first person to think their war was justified!?" **The owl demanded in an angry voice. **"Countless others before you have come here, seeking weapons or weaknesses or battle strategies!" **

"We had no choice." Aang told him. "Please, we're just desperate to protect the ones we love."

"**And now, I'm going to protect what I love." **The spirit stated. He started to flaphis wings, creating larges gusts of wind and the Library began to rumble.

"What are you doing!?" He asked, worry and panic seeping into his voice.

"**I'm taking my knowledge back. No one will ever abuse it again!" **He declared assand began to fall from the ceiling.

"He's sinking the building!" Katara realized. "We gotta get out of here!"

"**I'm afraid I can't allow that." **The owl changed into an almost dragon-like figure. **"You already know too much." **But before he could do anything to them, he was hit by what could be described as a brown, spiky boulder.

"**Nikudan Hari Sensha **(SpikedHuman Bullet Tank)**!**" Chōji called out as he sent Wan Shi Tong to the ground.

"Let's move, people!" Asuma ordered the group. Everyone ran out of the planetarium with Wan Shi Tong on their heels. They kept focus on what was in front of them because, quite frankly, no one wanted to look back.

(Location: Naruto)

Naruto felt the Library start to rumble. "Now what's going on?" He grumbled. He looked up from where he was working and saw that all the foxes had disappeared. He then noticed that sand was falling from the ceiling and onto the floor. _"What's with the sand?" _He thought. _"The owl said that this place was airtight. So how is…" _His train of thought stopped as he realized what that meant. "He isn't." He said in disbelief.

"**He is." **Kyuubi said as he watched the sand come down.

"I'm going to kill that owl!" Naruto yelled as he ran out of the room to look for Wan Shi Tong.

(Location: outside the Library)

The three of them sat together so that they could get some shade. Appa had put his tail against the tower and when he felt it began to move down, he tried to warn Toph by growling at her. Akela also realized the danger and started barking.

"I already told you two, I don't wanna snuggle." She told him as she sat on Appa's leg. When Appa rose up to walk away, she lost her support and fell to the ground. Getting back up, she faced the Library's tower and felt the vibrations. "Library sinking. Library sinking!" She realized. She ran towards the tower and shoved her hands into it, trying to use her Earthbending to stop it. However, she was impeded as the sand beneath her didn't give a good grip. Letting go of the tower, she bent the sand beneath her feet into rough form of earth. She took hold of the tower again to stop from sinking.

(Location: Aang's group)

They ran through the Library, trying to escape the angry knowledge spirit that was chasing them. In the process of chasing, the owl broke many of the shelves, destroying many of the books. As they tried to get across the bridge, Zei turned to face their pursuer. "Great knowledge spirit, I beg you, do not destroy your vast collection of priceless tomes!" He said to Wan Shi Tong, who was having none of it. Seeing that he was about to attacked, Aang bent the air to pull Zei back towards them, making him drop the books he had in his hands. He bent the air towards Wan Shi Tong, sending him off the bridge and into the depth of the Library.

"We gotta get back to the surface!" He told everyone as he led them away from the bridge.

Sokka stayed where he was and looked back across the bridge. "Sokka, let's go!" Katara called out.

"But we still don't know when the next eclipse is going to happen!" He protested.

"Don't be stupid! We'll find out later!"

"There's not going to be a later, Katara!" Ino told her.

"She's right. If we leave this place, we'll never get the information. Aang, Shikamaru come with me to the planetarium, I need cover." The two quickly walked over to him. "Katara, get everyone out of here!" He ordered.

"But—" She was interrupted when Wan Shi Tong made his appearance again, smashing through the bookcases.

"GO!" He yelled.

"Hurry, Sokka!" She told him as she ran off with the owl behind her. Sokka, Aang and Shikamaru ran back across the bridge. As he was being chased, Zei leapt into an aisle to avoid the owl and then noticed a book that piqued his interest.

(Location: outside the Library)

As Toph tried to hold the tower up, there was a noise coming in from behind them. Both Appa and Akela turned to face the noise. Akela took a sniff in the wind and began to growl. "What is it now?" Toph asked them.

It turned out to be the Sandbenders coming back for Appa. One of them bent a gust of sand at Appa, obscuring him. "Who's there!?" demanded Toph.

The sand-sailors began to encircle Appa. Akela joined his larger friend in the fray.

(Location: Sokka's group)

The three of them ran back into the planetarium. "Why are we doing this?" Aang asked as they entered the room.

"Because if this calendar can tell us about eclipses in the past, then maybe it'll project when the next one will be," Sokka explained as he approached the pedestal.

"You can't possibly check every single date." He objected

"I don't have to. We just need to check every date before Sozin's Comet arrives. Because after that…well, try not to think about that."

"You better start working then." Shikamaru said. "We don't know when that owl is going to show up."

Sokka and Aang began to work while Shikamaru covered the door. It took some time, as each date they tried wasn't the right one. Both the sun and the moon kept missing each other or not even coming close to one another. "C'mon, eclipse." Aang said as he pushed the lever on the latest date they tried.

The planetarium started up and then soon darkened. "That's it, the solar eclipse!" Sokka stated with glee as he looked at the moon covering the sun. "It's just a few months away." He quickly wrote down the date. "Got it, now let's get to Ba Sing Se!" They ran out of the planetarium, trying to get back to the others before they became owl food.

(Location: outside the Library)

The Sandbenders surrounded Appa and threw ropes with weights tied at the ends over him. They proceeded to try and pull him down but he resisted. Akela tried to help by attacking the Sandbenders and making them lose their grip on the rope but he could only attack one at a time and they kept getting back up. Appa sent them flying by jerking around and flapping his tail. It sent a few Sandbenders flying but not all of them.

Toph heard the sounds of the struggle. "Don't make me put this down!" She threatened. She let go of the tower and bent a stream of sand at them but because she couldn't really see through the sand, her attack flew harmlessly by.

"Put a muzzle on him!" Someone ordered. A rope was thrown over Appa's mouth but he snapped it off. Ropes were then thrown at his horns. He tried to fly away but the Sandbenders threw ropes at his legs and pulled him down to the ground. A sand-sailor pulled up next to them and they tied Appa to it.

Akela was still attacking the Sandbenders and going after the ropes that held Appa. "Somebody take care of that damn dog!" Toph heard another voice called out. She heard the sound of flesh hitting flesh and Akela yelping. "Stupid cur, just lay there and die!" The first voice said as she heard the sound of a blade being drawn and cutting through flesh. The sand-sailors flew off with Appa in tow.

"No!" Toph cried. "Stop sinking!" She let go of the tower and bent streams of sand in random directions but the Sandbenders were already gone and she still had to hold the Library in place. "I'm sorry, Appa." She said to herself but then realized something. "Akela, Akela are you there?" She called out.

She heard the pained whimpering's of him getting closer but she couldn't make sure where he was. She had to focus on holding the Library up so the others could escape.

(Location: Katara's group)

They kept on running from Wan Shi Tong. "Split up!" She ordered the others. They scattered, but the owl stayed on her. Making a quick turn, she disappeared from his sight and hid at the end of a bookshelf, holding Momo. She tried to stay quiet, but her panting sounded like it filled the entire library, at least to her.

The knowledge spirit searched for her among the bookshelves. **"At least I'll have one specimen to add to my collection." **He announced as he noticed Momo's tail hanging out from behind a bookshelf. He made a lunge for them, but they were already moving. He went after them, now taking more care to avoid the shelves.

They made their way back to the bridge, joining up again with Asuma, Ino and Chōji. They ran out to the bridge but Wan Shi Tong was right behind them. Katara stopped and turned to face him, assuming a Waterbending stance.

"**Your Waterbending won't do you much good here." **The owl told her. **"I've studied Northern Water style, Southern Water style, even Foggy Swamp style." **

Suddenly, from above them, Aang flew over with Sokka hanging on. Sokka let go, fell towards Wan Shi Tong and hit him hard with a book, knocking him unconscious. "That's called Sokka style." He told the unconscious owl. "Learn it!"

Aang and Shikamaru rejoined them. Everyone started to climb up the rope but then Sokka realized that not everyone was on the rope. He spotted the missing person over by a bookshelf. "Wait! Professor, let's go!" He called out, getting his attention.

"I'm not leaving!" Zei answered as he sat on the ground, surrounded by books. "I can't. I spent too long trying to find this place. There's not another collection of knowledge like this on earth. I could spend an eternity in here."

It was at this point that Wan Shi Tong woke back up. But before he could do anything, a loud voice called out. "HEY!" The voice yelled out, stopping everyone from moving. They all turned to see an angry Naruto standing on the other end of the bridge. "WHAT IN THE NAME OF THE BIJU ARE YOU DOING YOU STUPID OWL!?"

"_I thought I knew that voice sounded familiar!"_ Shikamaru realized. _"It was Naruto!" _

"**I'm sinking my library." **The spirit replied simply.

"Stop being an idiot!" He yelled. "We had a deal! I bring you books from the Fire Nation to restore your library and you don't try to kill me, or turn me into a meal. And the last time I checked, sinking the Library while I'm still in it qualifies as killing me! I thought spirits stuck to the deals they made."

"**Yes, that's true." **He said, sounded offended at the mere idea.

Sokka saw an opportunity at the owl's words. "If you try to kill us or sink the Library that means you tried to back out of our deal first as well." He shouted down at him.

Wan Shi Tong huffed. **"A spirit always sticks to the deals they make." **

"Then stop sinking the Library!" Naruto told him.

"And let us go as well!" Sokka called out.

The spirit almost seemed conflicted until he took a sigh of defeat and turned back into an owl. **"Very well, I will hold to the deals I've made."** He flapped his wings again and the Library stop rumbling and the sand stop pouring down from the ceiling. He looked at the people on the rope. **"It would be wise for you to leave now." **They scurried up the rope when they heard the command. They soon hopped out the window and disappeared from.

Wan Shi Tong walked back into the Library's depth. "Um…what about me?" asked Zei as he stood up from where he sat, looking unsure.

Naruto walked over to him and stuck out a hand. "Congratulations." He said. "You've just became a resident of Wan Shi Tong's Library and his helper. That means whenever I'm in, you help me restore the Library."

Zei took the hand and shook it. "I'm glad to be of assistance." He said with one of the biggest grins Naruto had ever seen.

"So long as you make yourself useful, I guess." He said as he walked away. Zei followed him, almost like a lost puppy.

(Location: outside the Library)

When the Library stopped shaking, Toph finally let go of it. She stumbled to the ground. She heard the others land on the ground behind her. She just sat down and bowed her head.

"We got it!" Sokka told his sister. "There's a solar eclipse coming!" They gave each other a hug. "The Fire Nation is in trouble now!"

"That is good news."" Asuma agreed. "We should notify the other teams and Lady Hokage as well."

"All's well with the world right now." Shikamaru said drily.

Aang looked around but couldn't see his sky bison. He walked over to Toph. "Where's Appa?" He asked. Toph simply shook her head. The action made tears well up in his eyes. One dropped down his cheek.

That was when Sokka noticed something. "Hey, where's Akela?" He asked. He heard a whimper of pain coming from his left. "Akela?" He called as he turned and saw the wolf lying on his side in the sand, blood coming out of his stomach and he wasn't breathing. "AKELA!" He ran over to the wolf and picked him up, trying to stop the bleeding. "SOMEBODY DO SOMETHING!" He yelled at them.

Ino ran over. "Don't worry Sokka." She reassured. "I'm trained as a healer and I've helped Kiba's clan heal their animals. Just hold him steady." Her hands glowed green and she placed them over the wound. "It's not deep, he just lost some blood." She frowned. "It looks someone punched and kicked him in the side though. I think a few ribs might be cracked but I can fix them."

Sokka stared at Akela with worry and anger in his eyes. "Whoever did this better hope they don't meet me." He growled.

Everyone just stood there, as oncoming sandstorm approached them.

**End**

**Author's note: **Thank you for all the reviews you sent me.

Yes, I know I stopped the Library from sinking and I didn't kill off Zei. How else was Naruto supposed to get out of there? Even he dies from that amount of sand crushing down on him.

Odds are that there are a few of you out there who wanted Akela to be taken captive with Appa but I figured that this was more appropriate. It will give him something to do in the next chapter.

Another Uzumaki will be mentioned but not for a while.

For those of you who want Team Kakashi to go to the Bending Countries, sorry, that's not going to happen. They are staying in Konoha and we won't see them for quite some time.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	11. Emotions and Secrets

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 11: Emotions and Secrets

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Aang's group)

The sandstorm had blown in, mixing wind with sand. The group stood on the dune next to the tower leading to Wan Shi Tong's Library. Ino had managed to heal Akela an hour ago. She told Sokka to make sure the wolf got a lot of rest and to take it easy. Sokka was just glad Akela was okay.

Aang, however, was another story. "How could you let them take Appa!?" He demanded of Toph. "Why didn't you stop them?"

"I couldn't!" She protested. "The Library was sinking! You guys were still inside and—"

"You've could've to come to get us! I could've saved him!"

"She was too busy stopping the Library from being buried Aang and you know it." Shikamaru told him. "If she had to come to get us, we would be dead and Appa would still have been taken."

"He's right! I can hardly feel any vibrations out here. The Sandbenders snuck up on me and there wasn't time for—"

"You just didn't care!" Aang cut her off. "You never liked Appa. You wanted him gone!"

"Aang, stop it." Katara told him. "You know Toph did all she could. She saved our lives."

"Our lives won't mean much if we stay here in this storm." Asuma noted.

"That's all any of you guys care about: yourselves! You don't care whether Appa is okay or not!"

"Knock it off, Aang!" Sokka barked out. "You're not the only one who's angry here. Or did you forget that Akela tried to fight the Sandbenders off and got hurt in the process?"

"Shut up Sokka!" He yelled back. "Akela's not the one who got captured, Appa was!"

"Guys calm down." Katara told the two of them. "We can't afford to be fighting now."

Aang stomped away from the group. "I'm going after Appa!" He declared. He opened up his gilder and flew off.

"Aang wait!" Katara called out but he was already gone.

"That kind of attitude would have gotten him severely punished if he was a shinobi." Shikamaru stated.

"He's not a shinobi, Shikamaru." Chōji told his friend.

"Still doesn't mean he can go and do something like that. He left us here."

"In any case, we better start walking." Katara told everyone. "We're the only people who know about the solar eclipse. We have to get that information to Ba Sing Se." They walked off in silence.

(Location: Zuko and Iroh)

The two men rode on the ostrich horse. It had been quite some time since Akawan. Ever since he figured out how to breathe lightning, Zuko had practiced trying to use it. He discovered that using it wasn't the problem; it was generating the lightning that was the problem. The normal way to generate lightning was to move your arms in a circular motion, creating the lightning on your fingertips and discharging it from there. Considering that he was breathing the lightning, both he and his uncle agreed that the movements of the hands were not necessary. Eventually, they figured out that in order for Zuko to generate the lightning, he had to imagine himself and then break it down into his yin and his yang, then bring them back together. Once that was figured out, Zuko had to practice the imaging. He had made better timing after some practice but it still took him a little while to do the entire process, which made the breath of lightning a risky move in combat (he also did the imaging practice while moving but it was slower as his mind also had to deal with how the flow of combat went).

And so they rode on. Feeling that they should stop, Iroh began to make fake sounds of pain while clutching his left shoulder.

"Maybe we should make camp." Zuko finally said.

"No please." Iroh told him. "Don't stop just for me." He continued to make the fake sounds of pain until Zuko finally stop the ostrich horse. Iroh hopped down from the saddle and sat down on a nearby rock while Zuko attended to the ostrich horse.

The ostrich horse turned its head and gave a low cry of warning, making Zuko move into a Firebending stance. "What now?" Iroh asked with tried exasperation.

His question was soon answered when they surrounded by five komodo rhinos. The thing was the riders weren't all wearing the same uniform. "Colonel Mongke." Iroh said as he stood up from the rock. "What a pleasant surprise."

"If you're surprised we're here, then the Dragon of the West has lost a few steps." The aforementioned colonel said. "Though I'm not surprised the Scarred Dragon didn't hear us approaching until it was too late. The brat is still wet behind the ears." The five riders prepared themselves for a fight.

"You know these guys?" Zuko asked his uncle, ignoring the insult thrown at him.

"Sure." Iroh told him. "Colonel Mongke and the Rough Rhinos are legendary. Each one is a different kind of weapon specialist. They are also a very capable singing group."

"We're not here to give a concert! We're here to apprehend fugitives!" The colonel told them.

"Would you like some tea first? I'd love some." Iroh asked him. He looked to another of the riders. "How about you, Kahchi? I make you as a jasmine man. Am I right?"

"Enough stalling, round them up!" ordered the colonel.

The rider who was twirling the chains threw them at the two. Iroh kicked them away, sending them wrapping around another rhino's legs. Moving forward in a roll to dodge a fire arrow and ball of fire, he smacked the rhino with chains wrapped around its leg on its back, sending it off. That took care of two of the riders, the one on the rhino and the one who threw the chains.

The Yuyan Archer fired off one arrow at Zuko, which he chopped in half and return fire with a small fireball. It went the wood of the bow and snapped the string, rendering the archer useless. The colonel stepped in and threw fire at Iroh, who deflected the fire and sent some of his own back at him. Meanwhile, Zuko moved around to the rear of the rhino and jumped onto it's back, behind the colonel, who he sent flying from the saddle with a stream of fire.

Iroh went for the ostrich horse and got back on. He rode forward passed Zuko, allowing him to jump on the back. They fled with the fifth rider in pursuit. He threw a bomb in front of them and pulled back as it exploded. Unbeknownst to him, they made it through the explosion intact and kept on riding.

"It's nice to see old friends." Iroh commented.

"Too bad you don't have any old friends that want to attack you." Zuko said.

He contemplated that thought. "Hmm…Old friends that don't want to attack me."

(Location: Katara's group)

They walked through the desert, hot and thirsty. Team Asuma was little better off but they weren't usually the kind who lived in the desert, that was shinobi who hailed from Suna.

Sokka tried to use Momo as a shade but Toph ran into him, knocking Momo off his head. "Can't you watch where you're…?" He began to say, only to remember that she couldn't see well in the desert.

"No." She told him.

"Right, sorry."

"If I wasn't roasting here, I would find this funny." Chōji stated. He had removed the metal plating from his clothes so that it wouldn't roast him more then he already was. But he was still sweating like a stuck pig.

"C'mon guys, we've gotta stick together." Katara told them.

Sokka tried to pull himself off of Toph. "If I sweat anymore, I don't think sticking together will be a problem."

Toph finally got them separated by pushing Sokka off, making him fall to the ground. "Katara, can I have some water?" She asked.

"Okay, but we've gotta try to conserve it." She looked over at Team Asuma. "Do you guys want some?"

Ino fished out a canteen. "We brought our own water, so we'll be fine."

Katara nodded. She bent the water out of her pouch and then separated it into to four small orbs, one each for Sokka, Toph, Momo and Akela. They let the water go into their mouths and drank it. "Didn't you use this on the swamp guy?" Sokka asked as the water went down his throat.

"It does taste swampy." Toph admitted.

"I'm sorry, it's all we have." Katara told them.

"Uh…Ino," Chōji said. "Could I borrow your canteen?"

"What happened to yours?" She asked. "Wasn't it full?"

"Yeah…about that…"

"You drank it all already!?"

"C'mon Ino, an Akimichi doesn't do well in the desert. I was thirsty!"

"Well you're none getting any of mine!"

"Hey look over there." Sokka said, across from them was a cactus.

"Oh thank Kami." Chōji said. He rushed over to the cactus and slice off a portion using his kunai.

"Chōji, I wouldn't drink that." Asuma warned him.

"What's the harm, Asuma-sensei?" He asked as he drank the water inside the cactus. "Want one Sokka?" he offered.

Sokka took the offered portion and drank it while Chōji and Momo had more than one serving of the cactus water.

"You guys should have some." Chōji offered another portion of the cactus to the group.

"It's not that bad, actually." Sokka agreed, having finished one portion.

"I don't know." Katara said.

Chōji's eyes suddenly dilated. "You know you want the cactus juice." He told them. "It's free. Free cactus juice for everyone!"

"Okay, that's it. You're done." Ino told him as she took the piece of cactus away from and spilled it contents onto the desert floor.

"Sokka, are you okay?" Katara asked him.

"I think so. I only had one portion." He answered. He looked around, blinking his eyes a lot. His gaze finally settled on Toph. "One question though: why is Toph on fire?"

"I'm not." Toph told him. Above their heads, Momo was flying around in circles, going faster and faster until he suddenly did a dive bomb into the sand.

"Can I get some of that cactus?" Toph asked.

Katara picked up Momo. "I don't think that's a good idea. C'mon, we need to find again." They all started off before realizing Chōji hadn't moved from where he stood. Asuma quickly grabbed him and started pulling him along.

Sokka kept looking. "Why are we underwater?" he asked, his pupils dilated.

"We're not underwater, Sokka." Katara told him.

"Yes we are. I can see fishes." Chōji said, pointing off to the distance. He tried to get loose from Asuma's grip. "Come back fishes, I'm hungry and you are dinner!"

"Chōji, you need to calm down." Asuma told him.

"But I want the fishes!"

(Location: Aang)

He flew over the dunes of the desert. He took out the bison whistle and blew. He saw nothing reacting. "Appa!" He called out. He landed on a dune and tried again. "Appa!" Again, nothing reacted. "No." He whispered to himself as a wave of sadness took over him. The sadness quickly turned into rage. "NO!" He yelled. He slammed his staff into the dune beneath him. He bent the air around as well, causing a huge cloud of sand to fly up.

(Location: Katara's group)

They crested a sand dune when they saw the giant cloud of sand (which was beginning to look like a mushroom)

"What is that?" Katara asked.

"What? What is what?" Toph asked, looking in the other direction.

Sokka was also facing the other way. "I don't know but I'm not going to look at it."

"It's a giant mushroom!" Chōji said with excitement.

"Let's keep moving." Katara told everyone. "I hope Aang's okay."

"C'mon Chōji, we have to go." Asuma dragged his student away.

"No! Come back, mushroom! I love you! You are my one and only!"

"You declared your love to a non-existent shark five minutes ago!" Ino told him.

"What a drag." Shikamaru said.

(Location: Misty Palms Oasis)

Master Yu and Xin Fu had been hunting Toph for some time now. Her father had promise them a _very_ good reward if they brought her back, so they reluctantly worked together to find her.

Their hunt had led them to the Misty Palms Oasis. They started asking the residents if they had seen her.

"Yeah, a little barefoot blind girl and her friends passed through here a few days ago." A man told them.

"Did they give you any indication of where they were headed?" Master Yu asked.

"Maybe you could give me a little incentive?" The man rubbed his fingers together.

"You suggesting I break your fingers?" threatened Xin Fu. The man whipped his hand around his back.

"They went into the desert. Too bad there's almost no chance they survived."

"That's okay, 'cause she's wanted dead or alive."

"No she's not!" Master Yu argued as the man who gave them the information backed away. "I'm certain her father wants her alive."

"Hey look." Xin Fu noticed something. "Fire Nation wanted posters."

"So?"

One of the posters was of Zuko and Iroh. Xin Fu turned and saw the same two men walking into the cantina. "So look who's here."

(Location: Katara's group)

They continued on without further incident. By now, the sun was setting and the temperature was getting cooler. A shadow flew over them. It was Aang. He landed behind them and stayed there.

"I'm sorry, Aang." Katara told him as she ran up to meet him. "I know it's hard for you right now, but we need focus on getting out of here." She put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

He shrugged it off. "What's the difference? We won't survive without Appa. We all know it."

"I could say that I knew this would eventually happen and that I told you so," Sokka said to Aang and Katara. "But considering the fact that I may not be able to follow the ensuring argument, I won't."

"C'mon Aang," Katara told him. "We can do this if we work together. Right, Toph?" She asked the blind Earthbender.

"As far as I can feel, we're trapped in a giant bowl of sand pudding." She answered. "I got nothing."

"Sokka, any ideas on how to find Ba Sing Se?" asked Katara.

"I'll let you know when I can think straight again." He told her as he sat next to Akela.

"How about you guys?" She asked Team Asuma.

"Do you think if we ask nicely, the circle birds will let me eat them?" Chōji asked, pointing to the sky.

Shikamaru looked upwards. "Those aren't birds, Chōji." He told his friend. "Those are…it's too troublesome to figure out what those are."

Katara looked upwards. Circling above them were buzzard wasps, four of them. It was like they were just waiting for the group to throw in the towel, so they could feast. She then looked at the group. Aang was sulking, Toph was almost falling asleep, Momo was on his back moving his paw in a circle, Sokka sat next to Akela trying to clear his head and Team Asuma was trying to convince Chōji that there wasn't a giant boar with a banner that said "Please Chōji, I beg of you. EAT ME!" tied between its tusks on the next dune over.

She gave an exasperated sigh; they weren't going to throw the towel in yet. "We're getting out of this desert and we're going do it together." She told them. "Aang, get up, everyone, hold hands!" They did as they were told. "We can do this. We have to." She told them.

They continued walking, this time by holding hands (Akela walked alongside Sokka). Ino looked back at Shikamaru, who was at the end of the line. "Uh…Shikamaru, what are you doing to Momo?" She asked.

In his free hand, Shikamaru held Momo by the tail, allowing him to flap his wings without flying away from the group. "Keeping him entertained." He answered with a straight face.

They kept walking until the sun had almost set; they had also stopped holding hands. "I think we should stop for the night." Katara finally said. When she said that, everyone pretty much collapsed.

"Is there any more water?" Toph asked.

"This is the last of it." The Waterbender told her. "Everyone can have a little drink." She bent the water out of her pouch and held it in the air. Momo leapt for the precious liquid, splattering all over the sand.

"Way to go, Momo." Sokka said. "You've killed us all."

"No he hasn't." Katara told her brother. She reached for the soggy sand and bent the remaining water out of it, saving some of it.

"Right, Bending, forgot about that."

Katara handed the pouch to Toph so she could take a sip. "Sokka let me see the things you got from the Library." She said, only to find he was staring off at a nearby sand dune. "Sokka, you okay?"

"Katara, I need you to hit me." He told her.

She was caught off guard. "What?"

"This time I know I'm hallucinating. I need you to hit me upside the head, so I can stop seeing the Kyoshi Warriors doing a group striptease."

This time, she didn't even hesitate. She whacked him hard across the back of his head, sending him face first into the sand. "Thank you." He said as he brought his head out of the sand.

"You're welcome." She replied as she took the bag from his slumped shoulder. She sat down and took out one of the scrolls.

"It doesn't matter." Aang told her dejectedly. "None of those will tell us where Appa is." He felt a swat on his own head. Looking to see who did it, he saw Sokka, who was having a moment of clarity, standing above him.

"Listen up Aang." He said. "I know that you and Appa have been through a lot and I know you hate the fact that you can't find him. But face the facts, Appa is not our primary concern anymore, getting out of here alive is. Stop moping and help us out."

Aang gripped his staff and was to rise up from where he was sitting. "That's enough!" Asuma barked out, standing between them. "Aang, Sokka is right, we need to worry about leaving this desert alive first. Sokka, remember that Aang lost his closest friend. You don't need to remind him of it every time you can."

Aang walked away. "Whatever." He grumbled as he sat down a little further away from Sokka.

"Look guys, this way we can find which way Ba Sing Se." Katara told them as she held a constellation map. "We can use the stars to guide us. That way we can travel at night when it's cool and rest during the day." She looked back and saw everyone was almost asleep. "Just try to get some sleep. We'll start again in a few hours."

(Location: Misty Palms Cantina)

Zuko looked around the cantina. "No one here is going to help us." He told Iroh. "These people just look like filthy wanderers."

"So do we." Iroh pointed out before noticing something. "Ahh, this is interesting." Zuko followed his uncle's line of sight until he was looking an old man at a Pai Sho table. "I think I found our friend."

"You brought us here to gamble on Pai Shi!?" Zuko demanded in a hushed voice.

Iroh stood up from the table. "I don't think this is a gamble." He walked over to the Pai Sho table and Zuko followed.

On the other side of the cantina, Xin Fu and Master Yu were watching their every move. "Let's take them now!" Xin Fu said, rising from his chair.

Master Yu put a restraining hand on him. "This place is full of desperate characters." He said. "If they find out we're collecting a bounty, we may have to fight them just to keep our prize. Patience," He told Xin Fu.

"May I have this game?" Iroh asked the old man.

"The guest has the first move." He answered.

Iroh sat down and placed a tile in the middle of the board. "I see you favor the white lotus gambit." His opponent commented. "Not many still cling to the ancient ways." He made a gesture with his hands.

"Those who do can always find a friend." Iroh replied, making the same gesture.

"Then let us play." The two of them began the game. The only thing Zuko could do at this point was grab a chair and wait. The two players went back and forth, slowly at first but also gradually picking up the pace. As they played the game, Zuko realized that they were placing the tiles so that they made a larger design.

The two players placed their last pieces down at the same time, completing the design. "Welcome brother." The old man said. "The white lotus opens wide to those who know our secrets."

"What are you old gasbags talking about?" Zuko finally asked them.

"I've always tried to tell you that Pai Sho is more than just a game." Iroh told his nephew cryptically as he fiddled with a tile.

Xin Fu got impatient. "I'm not waiting all night for these geezers to finish yapping!" He declared as he stood up from his seat. Master Yu simply followed. "It's over!" Xin Fu shouted at Zuko and Iroh as he made his towards them. "You two fugitives are coming with me!"

The old man got in his path. "I knew it!" He said loudly. "You two are wanted criminals with a big bounty on your heads!"

Thanks to his time in Akawan, Zuko realized what the old man was doing so he held his silence. "You think you're going to capture them and collect all that gold?" The old man asked.

"Gold?" asked someone. The attention of everyone in the cantina was now on Xin Fu and Master Yu.

"Uh…maybe we shouldn't." Master Yu suggested to Xin Fu, who only smirked in answer. Sure enough, a brawl started up. While Xin Fu and Master Yu dominated the others, they didn't notice that the old man, Zuko and Iroh had left the cantina.

(Location: Aang's group)

They had slept for some hours before Katara woke them up again. "Come on, get up." She shook Sokka awake. "We need to go."

"I'm up." He told her as he sat up. Akela opened his eyes as he rose from where he slept next to Sokka.

Toph also sat up and smacked her lips. "Yesterday my mouth tasted like mud." She said. "Now it just tastes like sand. I never thought I'd miss the taste of mud so much."

"Speaking of mud," Chōji said as Team Asuma woke up. "Have you guys ever wondered what Tonton would taste like?"

"Chōji, if I were you," Asuma began. "I'd never utter that phrase again."

Katara walked over to Aang. "I'm awake." He told her as she was about to wake him. "I couldn't sleep."

"Well," She said. "We need to get moving if we want to get out of this sand pit."

Aang saw something flying past the full moon that looked almost like his sky bison. "Appa!" He cried.

Sokka looked up. "I don't see Appa." He said. He squinted. "But why is Princess Yue trying to fish for stars?"

"The moon…is made of cheese." Chōji declared. "Can I have some?"

"No." Ino told him.

Everyone (minus Chōji) looked more closely at it. "It's just a cloud." Katara said before dropping her head. She immediately brought back up. "Wait. A cloud," She took the pouch off her back and held out to Aang. "Here, fly up and bend the water from the cloud into my pouch." She told him.

He yanked the pouch out of her hands, opened up his gilder and took off. It took him two passes through the cloud to get all the water. He threw the pouch at Katara as he landed back on the dune.

She looked into the pouch. "Wow, there's hardly any in here."

At that point, Aang lost his control on his temper. "I'm sorry, okay!?" He yelled. "It's a desert could, I did all I could! What's anyone else doing? What are you doing!?" He pointed his gilder staff at Katara.

"Trying to keep everyone together," She answered quietly. She opened up the constellation map again. "Let's just get moving. We need to head this direction."

They started walking again, until Toph tripped and fell down. "Crud! I am so sick of not feeling where I'm going!" She said as she rubbed foot. "And what idiot buried a boat in the middle of the desert?"

"There's a boat here because someone wanted to fish." Chōji said with excitement. "You see? I knew there were fishes out here! Let's find them!" He told his teammates.

"Calm down Chōji." Asuma told him.

"A boat?" asked Katara as she went to check what Toph had hit.

"Believe me; I kick it hard enough to feel plenty of vibrations." Toph grumbled.

Katara backed away so that Aang could step forward. He bent the air to blow away the sand covering the hidden object. When the sand cleared, it revealed a sand-sailor. "It's one of the gilders the Sandbenders used." Katara said as she climbed aboard the helm. "And look, it's got some kind of compass on it! I bet it can point us out of here." She tapped the compass to make sure it was working. "Aang, you can bend a breeze so we can sail it. We're going make it!"

Sokka stared off into the distance. "I could be hallucinating again but I think Naruto is about two dunes behind us."

Asuma looked in Sokka's direction. "I don't see anything. I think you're hallucinating."

"Okay, just making sure."

They climbed aboard and started off.

(Location: Zuko and Iroh)

After getting away from the cantina, Zuko and Iroh followed the old man in a building that was apparently a flower store. "It is an honor to welcome such a high ranking member of the Order of the White Lotus." The old man said, bowing his head before Iroh. "Being a Grand Master, you must know so many secrets."

The old man and Iroh walked to the back of the store with Zuko following them. "Now that you've played Pai Sho, are you gonna do some flower arranging? Or is someone in this club going to offer some _real _help?" He asked the two men.

"You must forgive my nephew." Iroh told the old man. "He is not an initiate and has little love for the cryptic arts."

The old man knocked on the door leading into the back. The peephole opened halfway, revealing a man's face. "Who knocks at the garden gate?" He asked.

"One who has eaten the fruit and tasted its mysteries." Iroh answered. The door opened, Iroh and the old man walk through. Zuko followed but the door was closed in his face. The peephole opened up and Iroh looked at his nephew. "I'm afraid it's members only. Wait out here." He told Zuko.

The peephole closed. Zuko took a step back and waited, taking a sniff at a nearby flower.

(Location: Aang's group)

The sand sailor flew on through the desert. Aang was driving it via a continuous air stream at the sail. Katara looked at the compass. "The needle on this compass doesn't seem to be pointing north according to my charts." She said as she double checked the constellation map.

"Don't worry about it." Sokka as he sat behind her, holding Momo against the wind. Akela was sleeping next to him. "Don't fight the journey's path, just go with it."

"…What?" She asked.

He shook his head. "Sorry, even I'm not sure what that meant. At least I'm better off than Chōji." He pointed to Team Asuma, who were holding Chōji down and telling him that there was not a barbeque restaurant out in the desert that was having an all-you-can-eat buffet.

Katara looked back at where the sand sailor was going and saw a big rock formation. "That's what the compass is pointing to. That giant rock, it must be the magnetic center of the desert."

"A rock?" asked Toph. "Yes! Let's go."

"Maybe we can find some water there." Katara suggested.

"Maybe we can find some Sandbenders." Aang said.

They rode towards the big rock. By the time they reached it, the sun rising. They climb to the top in order to get a better view. "Ah, finally, solid ground," Toph said as she fell to the ground and made a rock-angel out of the ground.

The top of the rock had tunnels leading inward. The group decided to head into one of the tunnels. The tunnel was covered in some form of yellow goo.

Sokka took a deep breath. "I think my head is starting to clear out the cactus juice." He said.

"I think so too." Chōji agreed. "And look." He pick up some of the yellow goo, eat it and then immediately spat it back out. "Tastes like beef gone bad." He said before groaning. "Oh, I feel woozy."

"You've hallucinating on cactus juice all day and then you just lick something you find stuck to the wall of a cave!?" Ino demanded angrily.

"I was hungry." He protested.

"You're an Akimichi, you're always hungry!"

"Speaking of which, do you have food I can eat?"

"NO!"

Toph walked down the cave with her hand on the wall. "I don't think this is a normal cave. This was carved by something." She told them.

"Yeah, look at the shape." Aang agreed.

"There's something buzzing in here, something that's coming for us!" Toph announced.

They all ran back out of the tunnel in order to avoid the buzzard wasps that were coming out of the tunnels in force. They were soon surrounded by the creatures. One came near Aang and he blew back with a blast of air. One landed on a rock near Toph, who sent it flying by bending the rock upwards.

Another one flew between Toph and Sokka, so Toph bent a rock up and threw it at where she thought the buzzard wasp was. It landed in front of Sokka, a little too close for comfort. "What are you doing? That rock almost crushed me!" He told her.

"Sorry. I can't tell where they are in the air!" She replied.

Another buzzard wasp flew past them. "I got this one." He told her. He ran forward and swung his machete around wildly. "Sokka, there's nothing there." Katara told him.

He stopped swinging and looked around. He hadn't hit any buzzard wasps, just air. "I guess my head's not as clear as I thought."

"You said it." Chōji agreed as he rubbed his head.

"Ran into the wall?" Sokka asked him. He just nodded.

"We need to get out of here. I'm completely out of water to bend." Katara said. Everyone heard Momo give a surprised screech. They turned to see Momo in the clutch of a buzzard wasp.

"Momo!" cried Aang as the buzzard wasp flew away. "I'm not losing anyone else out here!" He ran to the ledge, opened up his gilder staff and took off.

"C'mon, we're going down." Katara told everyone.

They began to climb down the rock but the buzzard wasps were following them. "Toph, shoot a rock right there." Katara told her, pointing in the direction she wanted. Toph bent a chuck of rock up in front of her. "Fire!" ordered Katara. She shot the rocks at the incoming buzzard wasp, sending it down to the ground.

"Yeah, you got it!" Sokka cheered. "She got it, right?" He asked Katara, not sure if he was hallucinating or not.

"Yes." She answered. "Now let's move." They kept moving down the rock.

Meanwhile, Aang flew after the buzzard wasp that held Momo. He flew downwards in order to get under the buzzard wasp. Once that was done, he flipped over bent a stream of air at the creature, making it lose its grip on Momo.

The flying lemur fell through the air but managed to recover. Aang wasn't satisfied by that alone. He landed on the sand and sent an air stream at the fleeing buzzard wasp. It hit the creature, sending crashing down into the sand. Aang glared at the fallen buzzard wasp and then walked away.

Back at the rock, the group had almost made it to the bottom but the buzzard wasps had been hounding them all the way down. "On your left," Katara told Toph. She responded by bending a chunk at a buzzard wasp.

A buzzard wasp got close but Asuma fought it off with his chakra blades. "I don't we'll be able to last much longer here!" He warned. It was then, almost like someone heard him, the surrounding sand was upheaved into the air. It sent the buzzard wasps back into their caves.

When the sand cleared, everyone saw that the ones who saved them were the Sandbenders, several of them. Aang landed in front of the group. He had found who he was looking for.

(Location: Flower store)

Zuko had drifted off into sleep. When the door to the back opened, he immediately moved into a Firebending stance. "What's going on? Is the club meeting over?" He asked as he moved out of the stance.

"Everything is taken care of." Iroh told him as he bowed to the old man, who bowed in return. "We're heading to Ba Sing Se."

"Ba Sing Se!?" repeated Zuko. "Why would we go to the Earth Kingdom capital?"

'The city is filled with refugees." The old man explained. "No will notice two more."

"We can hide in plain sight there." Iroh clarified. "And it's the safest place in the world from the Fire Nation. Even I couldn't break through to the city."

The door to the shop opened. "I have the passports for our guests." A young man said. "But there are two men out on the street, looking for them."

Zuko and Iroh looked through the front door's peephole. They saw Xin Fu and Master Yu showing their wanted poster and asking people if they had seen them.

(Location: Aang's group)

"What are you doing in our land with a Sandbender sailor?" The leader of the Sandbenders demanded of the group. "From the looks of it, you stole it from the Hami tribe."

Sokka felt Akela tense up by his side. "What's the matter, Akela?" He asked in a whisper.

The wolf looked at him, looked back at the Sandbenders and then pawed his nose while his tail drooped. Sokka got the message immediately. "You mean it was one of them?" He asked quietly. Akela nodded in acknowledgement.

"We found the sailor abandoned in the desert. We're traveling with the Avatar" Katara explained as she gestured towards Aang. The leader's eyes widened slightly, he knew who that was. "Our bison was stolen and we have to get to Ba Sing Se."

"You dare accused our people of theft while you ride in on a stolen sand sailor?" A younger Sandbender demanded. Toph paid closer attention; she had heard that voice before somewhere.

"Quiet Ghashiun!" barked the Sandbender leader. "No one accused our people of anything. If what they say is true, we must give them hospitality."

"Sorry father." Ghashiun apologized.

Toph's eyes widened at the voice. "I recognize the son's voice." She whispered to Katara. "He's the one that stole Appa."

"Are you sure?" Katara asked.

"I never forget a voice." However, the two of them had forgotten that Aang was right behind them and could hear every bit of the hushed conversation.

He marched forward with angry steps. "You stole Appa!" He accused the son, pointing his staff at him. "Where is he? What did you do to him?"

"They're lying! They're the thieves!" Ghashiun tried to deflect the blame.

Aang responded by swinging his staff at one of the sand sailors, bending an air stream at it and destroying it. "Where is my bison!?" He demanded.

(Location: Flower store)

The door to the flower store opened and the young man walked out, pulling a cart with two big pots of flowers. As he walked away, Xin Fu and Master Yu walked towards the store. Xin Fu opened the door loudly, slamming it against the wall and making a pot of flowers hanging from the ceiling crashed to the floor. "Hey you, where are these men?" He demanded of a man who was tending to the flowers. "I got a tip that they're in your shop."

"As you can see, no one is here but us." The man replied, spreading his arms to emphasize the point.

"We know all about your secret back room." Master Yu told him. "Kick it down." He ordered Xin Fu.

"Hey! That room is for flowers only." The man protested as Xin Fu ran past him and kicked down the door, revealing an empty room.

The only thing that was in the room was a Pai Sho tile, specifically the white lotus tile. "Some unlucky soul has an incomplete Pai Sho set." Master Yu stated as he picked up the tile, missing the actual point of the tile.

Xin Fu angrily knocked the tile out of his hands. "Let's go back to finding the girl." He told Master Yu.

Outside the village, the young man was still pulling the cart with the two large flower pots. The flowers were lifted up to reveal both Iroh and Zuko hiding in the pots. They shared a look and then went back down, placing the flowers back over their heads.

(Location: Aang's group)

"You tell me where he is now!" Aang told Ghashiun and destroyed another sand sailor via Airbending to emphasize his point.

"What did you do?" The Sandbender leader asked his son.

"It-it wasn't me!" He protested.

"You said to put a muzzle on him." Toph announced, killing any defense he had.

"YOU MUZZLED APPA!?" Aang roared. At this point, his anger grew too much and he went into the Avatar State. He destroyed another sand sailor.

"I'm sorry!" Ghashiun apologized. "I didn't know it belong to the Avatar."

"How many sky bison are left you baka!?" shouted Ino.

"**TELL ME WHERE APPA IS!" **Aang demanded, his voice mixing with those of the previous Avatars, making it sound almost demonic.

"I traded him, to some merchants. He's probably in Ba Sing Se by now. They were going to sell him there." Aang said nothing. He just stared at them, making them really nervous. "Please, we'll escort you out of the desert. We'll help however we can!" Ghashiun promised.

But this only seemed to make Aang even angrier, as the sand around him began to get swept up by the wind forming around him. "You need to move, now!" Asuma ordered. They all started running away from Aang, who was enveloped in a dome of air and lifted off his feet. He was also causing a sandstorm.

Katara tried to reach for Aang but was pulled away from him by Sokka. "Get out of here, Katara." He told her in a calm voice.

"What do you think you're doing!?" She demanded.

"I'm doing the job I was given. Now run!" He ordered. As she moved away, he reached for Aang's arm. "Aang, stop it!" He told his friend.

Aang simply moved a hand and Sokka was pushed back. He was about to lash out against the Sandbenders when Sokka grabbed his arm and yanked him down. "I said **STOP IT!" **He yelled, his eyes turning pitch black as he cut the link between Aang and the Avatar State.

Aang returned to normal. As he did, tears welled up in his eyes. Seeing the tears, Katara hugged him. "I'm sorry, Aang. I'm so sorry." She whispered.

He opened his eyes. "It's not your fault, Katara." He told her.

They broke the hug. Aang turned to face the Sandbender leader. "Sorry about breaking the sand sailors." He apologized.

"You have nothing to apologize for, Avatar. There are additional sand sailors nearby. We will be fine. We shall head towards them and then escort you out of the desert."

"Hold on." Sokka said. "There's one more issue we have with your tribe."

"And what is that?"

He looked to the wolf standing next to him. "Who was it, Akela?" He asked.

Akela paced slowly towards the Sandbenders. He began to sniff each one of them, checking their scent. "What is the meaning of this?" The leader asked.

"Sokka, what are you doing?" Aang asked as well.

"You'll see." He answered.

Akela kept sniffing, going to each and every one of the Sandbenders. Finally, he found the scent of the one who wounded him. He looked up, bared his teeth and growled at the Sandbender leader's son, Ghashiun.

He looked down at the growling wolf. "What are you growling at me for, you stupid cur?" He asked. Hearing movement on the sand, he looked up just in time for Sokka to slug him in the face, breaking his nose in the process.

"Sokka!" cried Katara. "What are you doing!?"

"You're hurting him!" Aang shouted.

"That was the intention!" He answered before punching and kicking Ghashiun in the chest and face.

Aang and Katara were about to stop him, only to realize that they couldn't move. "**Kagemane no Jutsu **(Shadow Possession Jutsu) successful," Shikamaru said, his shadow connected to theirs.

"What are you doing, Shikamaru?" Katara asked.

"Katara, Aang. Remembered what he swore." Ino told them.

What Sokka had said flashed through their minds.

"_Whoever did this better hope they don't meet me.'_

"He's fulfilling that promise." She finished.

Back at the beating, Ghashiun was trying to curl into a ball to avoid more of the pain Sokka was giving him via blows to the face and chest. "P-please…st-stop," He croaked out.

"You want me to stop, is that?" Sokka asked him. He stopped the punches and the kicks and grabbed Ghashiun by the collar. "If you ever harm Akela again, your father won't have enough pieces of you to bury." He growled into his ear. To prove his point, he drew his machete and cut Ghashiun's chest in such a way that it bled badly. He let go of the Sandbender and looked at his father. "You might as well take care of him." He said before and Akela walked back to the group.

"Sokka, that was unnecessary. You didn't have to go that far!" Aang told him as Shikamaru canceled the jutsu.

He looked straight at the Airbender. "Says the person who was about to kill the entire Sandbender tribe over a stolen sky bison." He said.

Aang opened his mouth again but this time, Chōji covered his mouth. "He's got you there Aang. Just leave it alone." He told him.

Sokka walked to the base of the rock and along with Akela, sat down to wait for the rest of the sand sailors to come.

(Location: Wan Shi Tong's Library)

"Alright, I'm done here." Naruto said as he put the last book in place.

"But we're not done." Professor Zei said as he looked at the rest of the empty shelves. "There are still so many books that need to be replaced."

"You don't think I know that?" He asked the professor. "Trust me, I've been doing this whenever I can for the past three years and I know for a fact it will be a long time until this section will be completely restored."

"How did you find the Library in the first place?" Zei asked him as they walked back to the center of the Library.

"By accident," He admitted. "I got caught in a sandstorm three years ago. I found the tower and climbed inside. That's when I met the owl. He was generous to allow me to wait out the storm in the Library. I walked around the place, looking at all the books and eventually saw the destroyed Fire Nation section. When the sandstorm eventually died and I could leave, I made the owl a deal: I could come back as many times as I can in order to restore the Fire Nation section of the Library. He took the deal on the spot."

"That's incredible."

He shrugged. "Not really, the bird was moping around before I made him the offer. That is something I never really want to see again, it's too weird."

"Why is that?"

"When he gets depressed or mopes around, he goes to the baby section of the Library and reads nursery rhymes. If he's really depressed, he starts singing them out loud."

"…you're right, that is weird." Zei agreed.

They reached the bridge directly below the tower. "Time for me to go," Naruto said. He looked over at Zei. "Now do you remember what I told you about living here?"

He nodded. "Make sure that Wan Shi Tong doesn't mistake me for food. Always keep treats on hand for the Knowledge Seekers. And make sure that Wan Shi Tong eats once in a while. Did I miss anything?"

"That's pretty much it." He looked upwards. "I need to get going."

"But how will you get out?" Zei asked him. "You didn't bring any rope."

He smirked. "I don't need any rope. See ya next time, Zei!" He said. He then _jumped _all the way to the inside of the tower and then _ran _up the side of the tower, leaving behind a stunned Zei.

He soon leapt out of the window and landed in the Si Wong desert. He then had information flash through his head. "It seems that the Avatar's group has received help from the Sandbenders." He mused.

"**Indeed." **Kyuubi agreed as he looked through the information as well. **"It also** **seems that Sokka had managed to see your clone. It's a good thing he was hallucinating beforehand; otherwise they might have seen the clone."**

"That's true." Headmitted. "Right now, the second **Kage Bunshin **is tracking them. They appear to be heading for Ba Sing Se."

The fox grinned. **"Kit, do you remember Lesson number 5?"**

"Of course I do. When you hear opportunity knocking, open the door." He recited.

"**They just gave you a very good opportunity."**

He caught the fox's drift. "Yes, they did. It also gives me a chance to refine an old jutsu of mine."

Kyuubi look through his Jinchūriki's mind and saw what he was planning. **"You are evil kit. I approve. They will not see this coming until it's too late!"**

"Then it's best to get started, isn't it?" He ran at top speed through the desert, inadvertently causing a sandstorm in his tracks.

**End **

**Author's note: **Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Now, I know I changed Sokka up but I needed him to be serious when I needed him to be. Plus, I thought it would funnier if he was lightly intoxicated. A heavily intoxicated Chōji was much more fun to me.

What Naruto has planned for Team Avatar will eventually be revealed.

Also, Zei will come back later in the story, although we won't actually see him.

I'll see you all next chapter! 


	12. Passage and Knowledge

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 12: Passage and Knowledge

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Aang's group)

They had managed to get out of the Si Wong desert with the help of the Sandbender tribe (even though most of the Sandbenders stayed away from Sokka after what happened to Ghashiun). Once they were out of the desert, they started to make their way towards Ba Sing Se.

They were taking a break near a waterfall. Sokka was looking over a map he taken from Wan Shi Tong's Library while Akela took a nap next to him (the white wolf had recovered from his injuries from the desert). Toph sat near the water's edge splashed her feet. Aang was floating in the water; he dived under the water and bent it to freeze himself in a block of ice to float better, leaving his head free.

Shikamaru was lying on his back, watching clouds. Asuma and Ino were double-checking the supplies and Chōji was trying to fish.

As for Katara, she was high on a ledge over the pool of water. She yelled out "Waterbending bomb!" before jumping off the ledge and landing in the water. The reason she said Waterbending was because of the large amount of water that splashed down on the others. Team Asuma got clear of the splash zone, Aang landed back on the bank breaking the ice covering him, Toph stayed where she was and Sokka covered the map he was looking at from the water while Akela woke up with a surprised yelp.

While the others laughed, Sokka was annoyed. "Sure." He grumbled. "Five thousand year old map from the spirit Library, just splash some water on them."

Katara got out of the water. "Sorry." She apologized before bending the water out of the map, drying it. Akela got up from where he was sleeping, padded over to where Katara was standing and shook his fur dry in front of her. "Stop that Akela!" She said.

"If you don't want that to happen, don't get the wolf wet." Chōji said.

"Or hit him with cold water." Shikamaru continued. "It's a troublesome to wake up."

"Speaking from experience, Shikamaru?" Ino asked innocently.

"Yes."

"So did you figure out what route we're going to take?" Aang asked as they huddled up around Sokka.

"Okay." He started. "We just got out of the desert, so we must be around here." He pointed to a spot on the map. "And we need to go to Ba Sing Se, which is here." He pointed to the city, which was visible on the map. "It looks like the only passage connecting the south to the north is this sliver of land called the Serpent's Pass."

"You're sure that the best way to go?" Toph asked him.

"It's the only way." He replied. "I mean it's not like we have Appa to fly us there."

"Shush up about Appa." Katara whispered to him. "Can't you at least try to be sensitive?" The two of them looked at Aang.

"Katara, it's okay." He told her. "I know I was upset about losing Appa before, but I just want to focus on getting to Ba Sing Se and telling the Earth King about the solar eclipse."

"Oh…well okay," She answered. "I'm glad you're doing better."

"Just leave him alone, Katara." Ino told her. "He'll take care of it when he wants to."

"Then to Ba Sing Se we go." Sokka declared. "No more distractions."

"Hello there, fellow refugees!" A voice called out. Behind the group stood a man and two women, one of which was pregnant. Sokka just scowled.

"How troublesome, a distraction." Shikamaru said.

"Knock it off Shikamaru!" Ino berated her teammate.

Introductions were soon made. The man's name was Tahn and he was traveling with his sister and pregnant wife.

"So are you guys heading to Ba Sing Se too?" Aang asked them.

"Sure are." Tahn answered. "We're trying to get there before my wife, Ying, has her baby." He rubbed Ying's swollen belly.

"Great, we can travel through the Serpent's Pass together." Katara said.

Tahn, his sister and his wife flinched. "The Serpent's Pass?" asked Ying. "Only the truly desperate take that deadly route."

"Deadly route," Toph repeated before hitting Sokka in the arm. "Great pick, Sokka."

"Well, we are desperate." Sokka told her.

"You should to come with us to Full Moon Bay." Tahn suggested. "Ferries take refugees across the lake. It's the fastest way to Ba Sing Se."

"And it's hidden, so the Fire Nation can't find it." Ying supplied.

"Hm, peaceful ferry ride or deadly pass?" Katara asked with obvious sarcasm.

"Shut up, Katara." Sokka told her. "How was I supposed to know that there was a harbor there?"

Aside from that, they all agreed to go to Full Moon Bay. They managed to make there without any harm and soon found the tunnel that led into the harbor.

Katara was shocked at what she saw. "I can't believe how many people's lives have been uprooted by the Fire Nation." She said as she watched a mother feed food to her baby, who didn't like it.

"We're all looking for a bit of life, safe, behind the walls of Ba Sing Se." Tahn told her.

One of the ferries behind the harbor wall sailed out onto the lake, traveling towards the city. On that same ferry, was a dragon who hailed from the west and a dragon that had been scarred by his own father.

"Who would have thought after all these years, I'd return to the scene of my greatest military disgrace…as a tourist!" Iroh said solemnly before putting on a hat with a flower in it, trying to lighten the mood.

It didn't work. "Look around." Zuko told him "We're not tourists, we're refugees." He picked up a bowl of food (which consisted of gruel and chunks of…something), drank a little bit and spat it back out. "Ugh! I'm sick of eating rotten food, sleeping in the dirt. I'm tired of living like this!"

"Aren't we all?" A nearby voice asks. Turning their heads, the two of them saw that the voice belonged to a dark haired teenager chewing a piece of wheat. "My name's Jet." He introduced himself. "And these are my Freedom Fighters, Smellerbee and Longshot."

"Hey." Smellerbee greeted. Longshot just nodded.

Zuko looked back out at the water. "Hello." He greeted.

Jet walked closer. "Here's the deal." He began. "I hear the captain's eating like a king while us refugees have to feed of his scraps. Doesn't seem fair, does it?"

"What sort of king is he eating like?" Iroh asked.

"The fat, happy kind," Jet answered, making Iroh start to drool. "You wanna help us 'liberate' some food?" He asked Zuko.

Zuko stared into the bowl of food in front of him. Making his choice, he threw the bowl into the water. "I'm in." He told Jet.

(Location: Full Moon Bay)

"I told you already!" The passport attendant told a merchant in front of her. "No vegetables on the ferry! One cabbage slug could destroy the entire ecosystem of Ba Sing Se! SECURITY!" she called out. A nearby security platypus bear destroyed the cart holding the vegetables.

"MY CABBAGES!" screamed out the merchant, who then had to be carried away by security guards.

"Next!" The attendant called out.

Aang stepped forward. "Um, eight tickets for the ferry for Ba Sing Se please." He told her.

"Passports?" She asked.

"Uh…no one told us we had to have passports."

"Don't you know who this is?" Sokka asked her. "He's the Avatar."

The attendant scoffed. "I see fifty Avatars a day and by the way, not the very impressive costume." She pointed to a group of people who were dressed as Aang being watched by security. "Besides, no animals allowed." She said when she saw Momo and Akela. "Do I need to call security?" They looked at the platypus bear, which chomped down on a cabbage to emphasize the point.

"That won't be necessary." Aang told her.

"Next!"

Toph walked to the attendant's stand. "I'll take care of this." She told Aang. "My name is Toph Beifong and I'll need eight tickets." She told the attendant, showing her passport.

"Ah, the golden seal of the flying boar." The attendant gushed. "It is my pleasure to help anyone of the Beifong family."

"It is your pleasure." Toph told her pointedly. "As you can see, I am blind and these seven imbeciles are my valets." She gestured to the rest of the group.

"But…the monkey…"

"Is my seeing eye lemur," She finished.

"And the wolf…?"

"Has been trained to alert us at night should anyone try to kidnap Lady Toph." Sokka told her. "He's completely docile, provided you don't try to take Lady Toph." He looked at her. "You weren't planning on taking Lady Toph, were you?" On cue, Akela began to growl at the attendant.

"That's enough, Akela. She's not going to kidnap me." Toph told the wolf. He stopped growling.

"Well, normally it's only one ticket per passport." The attendant began. "But this document is so official; I guess it's worth eight tickets." She stamped eight tickets.

"Thank you very much." Toph said, taking the tickets and walking away.

The rest of the group followed. Akela barked once loudly. "Yes indeed, Akela. The attendant is a suck-up." Sokka said loudly, letting the whole line hear him. It loosened the tension a little bit by making the line laugh.

Sokka was then grabbed by the back of his shirt and pulled around to face a guard woman. "Tickets and passports please," She demanded.

"Is there a problem?" He asked cautiously.

"Yeah, I got a problem with you." She told him. "I've see your type before. Probably sarcastic, think you're hilarious and let me guess, you're traveling with the Avatar."

He looked at her closely. "Do I know you?" He asked.

His shirt was grabbed again. "You don't remember?" The guard asked. "Maybe you remember this." She kissed him on the cheek.

"…Didn't see that coming." Shikamaru commented.

"Me neither." Ino agreed.

Sokka, on the other hand, brightened up and said "Suki!" before hugging her with a big grin.

She broke the hug. "Sokka, it's good to see you." She told him.

"Hold up, I think some of us need an introduction here." Toph said.

"Right, sorry about that." Sokka replied. "Guys this is Suki. She's the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors. Suki, this is Toph Beifong, Aang's Earthbending teacher."

"Nice to meet you," Suki greeted.

"This is Asuma Sarutobi, Chōji Akimichi, Ino Yamanaka and Shikamaru Nara." He introduced Team Asuma. "They were hired to protect us."

"Nice to meet you," Asuma said.

"Hey." Shikamaru said lazily.

"It's nice to meet you, Suki." Ino said.

"Kyoshi Warriors, isn't that the group you said you saw in the desert doing a —" Chōji didn't finish what he was saying due to the fact Asuma covered his mouth to stop him from talking.

"Of all the things you could have said, you went with that!?" Sokka demanded.

"What were we doing, Sokka?" Suki asked in an innocent (dangerous) voice.

"Something that I'll only tell you when I'm not sober." He answered. He heard a woof and saw that Akela was giving him a pointed look. "Sorry. Suki, this is Akela."

The wolf padded forward and started to sniff Suki thoroughly. Once he was done, he went back to Sokka's side and nodded. "What just happened?" Suki asked.

"He approves of you." Sokka simply stated.

Suki led them a place where they could talk in peace. "You look so different without your makeup." Katara said. "And the new outfit."

"That crabby lady makes all the security guards wear them." She explained. "And look at you, sleeveless guy. Been working out?"

"Ah, I'll grab a tree branch and do a few chin touches now and then, nothing major" He told her while stretching, showing off without shame.

"Are the other Kyoshi Warriors around?" Aang asked.

"Yeah," Suki answered. "After you left Kyoshi, we wanted to find a way to help people. We ended up escorting some refugees and we've been here ever since." Momo jumped onto the edge of the wall, making Suki giggle. "Hi Momo, good to see you too," She scratched his ear. "So why are you guys getting tickets for the ferry? Wouldn't you just fly across on Appa?"

Everyone got a little downcast when they thought of the sky bison. "Appa's missing." Katara told her. "We hope to find him in Ba Sing Se."

"I'm so sorry to hear that. Are you doing okay?" She asked Aang.

He looked at her and then at the rest of the group. They all had a look of concern on their faces. "I'm doing fine." He told them. "Would everybody stop worrying about me?"

"Avatar Aang!" called out Ying. "You have to help us! Someone took all of our belongings. Our passports, our tickets, everything's gone!"

"I'll talk to the lady for you." He told them.

However, it did not go according to plan. "No passports, no tickets!" The passport attendant told him, stamping his forehead.

"But's she pregnant and all of their stuff was stolen. You have to make an exception." Aang protested.

"No exceptions!" She yelled out. "If I just gave away tickets willy-nilly to anyone, there would be no more order! And you know what that means. No more civilization!"

"Shut up, you cranky bitch!" A voice cried out. The line cleared away to reveal a teenaged girl around Shikamaru, Ino and Chōji's age. She had violet eyes and short grey hair that actually worked on her. She wore a dark green shirt and black shorts. The funny thing was that what she wore didn't hide her ample assets; it highlighted them as well as her legs. "If you actually did what you preached, I would've been in Ba Sing Se already! You damn well knew that was my passport that guy gave you. It had my name on it! All the guy had to do was give you a little 'incentive' to convince you that was his passport and have security detain me. SO DON'T YOU DARE PREACH ABOUT ORDER, YOU SPIRITS-DAMNED HYPOCRITE!" She yelled out for the entire harbor to hear.

"SERCURITY!" bellowed the attendant. "Detain that girl!"

The security men moved to grab her. "You'll have to catch me first!" She said before running away.

Aang turned his attention back to the attendant. "Look, what if we gave them our tickets?" He suggested.

"No."

"But —"

"NEXT!" She yelled out, spittle hitting Aang in the face.

He walked away back to Tahn and his family, wiping the spit and ink off of his face. "Don't worry; you'll get to the city safely." He told them. "I'll lead you through the Serpent's Pass."

"Of course we're going to go through there." Shikamaru drawled.

"Knew it, I just knew it." Sokka groaned.

They had to get rid of their tickets first and Sokka knew just the way to do it. They walked up to the front of the attendant's stand, held out the tickets and yelled out "Tickets! Free Tickets here!" It caused a stampede and the attendant was left with the chaos (which was the plan).

"Alright, that lady got what she deserved!" Sokka cheered as they walked away.

"Time to head for the Serpent's Pass then," Asuma said.

"I'm coming too!" Suki called out. She ran towards them in full Kyoshi Warrior gear and makeup.

Sokka looked back at her. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Sokka, I thought you'd want me to come."

"I do, it's just…"

"Just what?"

"Nothing, I'm glad you're coming." She joined the group while Sokka just watched her with a worried looked. He felt a weight press against his side. Looking down, he saw Akela giving him a look. "I'm worried, that's all." He told the wolf before walking to catch up with the group.

They were outside the tunnel that led into the harbor when they heard a voice yell out. "HEYYY! WAIT UP!" Coming out of the tunnel was the same girl who had yelled at the passport attendant. "Glad I caught up with you guys!" She said.

"What do you want?" Asuma asked.

"You guys are going through the Serpent's Pass, right?" She asked them.

"Yeah, that's right." Ino answered.

She grinned. "Great, then I'm coming with you."

"What makes you say that?" Chōji asked.

"I've been trying to get into Ba Sing Se for over two months now." She told them. "If there's a chance of getting to that city, I'll take it."

"How convenient," Sokka muttered. "A stranger wants to join us."

The girl looked at him. "You don't trust me, do you?"

"Sokka, we don't need your paranoia now." Katara hissed. "Sorry, my brother gets like that." She apologized.

"It's not his fault, you guys don't know me." The girl told her. "But still, I'm going with you guys."

"We don't need excess baggage." Aang said, surprising everyone there (he's usually the first one to help people). "So you're not coming with—" Whatever he was going to say next disappeared when a gust of wind blew past him and the girl was suddenly behind him with Sokka's machete at his neck and Sokka's boomerang at his neither regions.

"If you're implying that I can't hold my own in a fight." She whispered in his ear. "I think I'll be fine. Is that okay, you self-important little brat."

"Alright, that's enough." Asuma said, taking control of the situation. "You can come along."

"That was the plan." She told him. She let go of Aang and gave Sokka his weapons back. "Sorry about that, I wanted to make my point."

He simply took his weapons back, saying nothing. "Is there something we can call you? Or should we just stick to 'troublesome woman'." Shikamaru asked her.

"Oh right, knew I forgot something." She said with a small blush on her face. "My name is Shù Yè. Is there anything else?"

"Yes, I have a question." Ino said. "What exactly do you eat!?"

"Huh? What do you mean?" She asked with confusion.

"They're huge!" Ino pointed to her breasts.

Her face now had a huge blush on it. "Don't stare at them!" She cried, covering them as best she could. "It's bothering me!"

"_Wow, a girl who's insecure about her breasts being that big." _The guys in the group thought (except Aang).

"Ino, stop it." Katara told her. "It's making her uncomfortable."

"Sorry." Ino apologized.

"It's okay." Shù Yè told her. "Just don't stare at them like that. Back in my village, the other girls started to make fun of me when they got bigger."

"Anyway, we'd better get going." Asuma announced.

They made their way to the Serpent's Pass, which took them surprisingly little time.

"This is the Serpent's Pass?" Sokka asked as he looked at the beginning of the trail. "I thought it would be more windy. You know, like a serpent. I guess they misnamed it. "

"Trying thinking vertically instead of horizontally." Shikamaru suggested.

Sokka tried doing that. "Sorry, still not seeing it."

Ying noticed something on a nearby post. "Look at this writing, how awful." She said.

"What does it say?" Toph asked.

Katara looked at the writing. "It says 'abandon hope'."

"How can we abandon hope? It's all we have." Ying asked.

"I don't know." Aang said. "The monks use to say that hope is just a distraction. So maybe we do need to abandon it."

Katara was about to say something but Shù Yè cut her off. "If that's the case, then your monk friends were probably among the stupidest people in this world." She said.

Aang gripped his staff tightly. "What did you just say?" He asked her.

"You heard me." She replied. "But right now, we just have to keep moving." She started to walk on the trail of the Serpent's Pass.

The group was silent for a few minutes. "We might as well follow her." Chōji said. Everyone else agreed with what he said and followed after the girl. They had to be careful when traveling across the Serpent's Pass. The part they were on now was just a thin path against a wall of rock.

"The Fire Nation controls the western lake." Suki explained when they saw a Fire Nation ship on the water. "Rumor has it they're working on something big on the other side and they don't want anyone to find out what it is."

Aang gave the nearby ship a glance but kept on walking. Everyone else followed him until the edge of the path beneath Tahn gave away, making him begin to fall towards the water. Toph bent a slab of rock to jut out so that he could land safely. She then bent the rock to send him back onto the path.

"I'm okay." He said, reassuring his family. But the falling rock alerted the Fire Nation.

"They spotted us!" Sokka called as the ship began to sling fireballs at them. "Let's go! Let's go!"

Aang leapt off the path to meet the fireball head on. With a swing of his staff and some Airbending, he sent it flying back into the ship's smokestacks, destroying them completely. But they could still sendoff fireballs. Another one was fired and hit the side of the cliff above them, causing rocks to start to fall. They were heading straight for Suki until Sokka pushed her out of the way. They were about to hit him when Toph bent the cliff side to jut out at an angle, allowing the rocks to roll off into the water.

"Suki, are you okay!?" Sokka demanded. "You have to be more careful. Come on!" He led her down the path, leaving Toph standing alone with Momo.

"Thanks for saving my life Toph. Hey no problem Sokka," She muttered to herself before joining the run. Aang joined them as the Fire Nation just sat in the water.

They ran on for a little more time before finally stopping to catch their breath. "I think we're out of the danger zone." Asuma said looking back.

"Let's do it again!" Shù Yè said.

"No, it's too troublesome." Shikamaru told her.

"I'm kidding." She replied. "Don't you know sarcasm?"

"Yes. It's a drag to understand though, so I don't try to."

She groaned. "Is he always like that?" She asked his teammates.

"Pretty much, you get used to it." Chōji told her.

"If not, all you have to do is find a frying pan." Ino said.

"That's not funny, Ino." Shikamaru said.

Shù Yè was confused. "Why would I need a frying pan?" She asked. "I'm not going to cook him anything."

"That's enough." Aang called out. "We need to keep moving."

"Yes Mr. Moody, we heard." Shù Yè answered. "You go on ahead, we will follow."

He just glared at her and started walking away. The group followed as Katara walk alongside Shù Yè. "Why do you keep insulting him like that?" She asked.

"Simple, it's because I can." Shù Yè answered.

"But he's the Avatar."

"So? It doesn't matter; he's just another kid who thinks he's hot stuff. Besides if he is the Avatar, he should've manned up a hundred years ago. But he ran, so I think I can insult him all I want and there's nothing you can do about it." She walked up the group, leaving Katara alone.

They kept on walking until the sun was setting. By then they had found a place where they could sleep for the night, so they decided to make camp.

Sokka saw that Suki was setting up near the edge. "Suki, you shouldn't sleep there." He told her. "Who knows how stable this ledge is? It could give way at any moment." He grabbed her gear and carried it away.

"Sokka, I'm fine! Stop worrying!" She told him.

"You're right, you're right." He told her as he laid out her gear. "You're perfectly capable of taking care of yourself." Suki began to sit down. "WAIT!" He barked out, leaping in front of her. "Oh never mind, I thought I saw a spider. But you're fine." He patted her shoulder, making her give him a flat stare.

Meanwhile, Akela had to restrain the urge to not bite Sokka in the ass.

(Location: Ferry)

Zuko, Jet and Smellerbee went the staircase to the third level of the ferry. Waiting for the guard to pass, they made their way to the storeroom. Smellerbee was on lookout while Zuko and Jet went for the door.

Ramming an end of one of his hook swords into the lock, Jet was able to open the door. After making sure there weren't any guards, the two quickly got to work. Jet cut the dead animals from their strings and bagged them while Zuko used his swords to stack and tie up bowls that were filled with food before bagging them as well.

"Guard's coming." Smellerbee called out in a hushed voice. They got out of the storeroom (closing the door behind them) and ran to the railing. Two levels below, Longshot was waiting. He fired off an arrow with a rope attached. It hit the railing, allowing Zuko, Jet and Smellerbee zip down the line with the goods intact.

Longshot pulled and the arrow broke away from the railing, letting it fall down just as a guard went by. The four of them walked away, making sure no one saw them with the food.

(Location: Serpent's Pass)

Aang stood alone, watching the water below him. Katara walked up behind him. "You know, it's okay to miss Appa." She told him. He said nothing, just kept looking out to the water. "What's going on with you? In the desert, all you cared about was finding Appa and now it's like you don't care about him at all."

"You saw what I did out there." He answered. "I was so angry at losing Appa, I couldn't control myself. I hated feeling like that, especially when Sokka called me out on it when I said he went too far with the Sandbender."

"But now you're not letting yourself feel anything." She protested. "I know sometimes it hurts more to hope and it hurts more to care but you have to promise me that you won't stop caring." She opened her arms wide. "C'mon, you need a hug."

He simply turned and bowed. "Thank you for your concern Katara." He said before walking away.

Katara looked downcast. "I thought I told you to leave him alone and let him figure it out." Ino said behind her. She turned around and saw both Ino and Shù Yè.

"I just wanted to help." She tried to explain.

"Katara, the best way you can help him is to let him deal with it." Ino told her. "You trying to help will only hinder him in the long run."

"Or you could just hit him upside the head and tell him to grow up." Shù Yè suggested.

Katara glared at the girl. "What would you know about how Aang feels?"

"I don't. It gives me an unbiased look at him. In my opinion, he needs to be kicked in the ass rather than have a nice hug."

"And you think you're the one to do it?"

"Nope, I'll just insult him until he's better." She grinned. "Face the facts Princess, not everything can be fixed with a hug and someone saying that everything will be alright or that they're sorry. If that was true, this war wouldn't have dragged on for this long. Everyone is hoping that the Avatar will stop the Fire Nation and bring balance back to the world." She scoffed. "If little Miss. Arrowhead keeps acting like that, we're screwed."

"You don't believe in him?" Katara asked. "You don't think he can stop the war?"

"It's been going for over a century now and so far, he hasn't done a damn thing to stop it."

"Well what about you? Do you have a plan to stop the Fire Lord? Did your parents train you in the ways of the warrior so you could help save the world? No, you're just here because your village got burned to the ground and you hope to find safety in Ba Sing Se!"

"You're going too far, Katara!" Ino warned.

Shù Yè's grin disappeared and she looked like she was desperately trying to make sure she wouldn't beat Katara into the ground right then and there. "For the record Princess, my village hasn't been burned to the ground, they just kicked me out because they didn't need and I quote 'someone that's not wanted here'." She grounded out. "And yes, my parents didn't teach how to fight in the war, probably because I was raised by a woman who was skilled in the world's oldest profession and who had kicked me out of her house when I was ten." She walked away, anger showing in her steps.

The two girls watch her leave. "You went too far there Katara." Ino told her.

"Maybe I did." She admitted. "But why would a huntress kick her out of the house?"

Ino looked at her. "What?"

"The oldest profession in the world is being a hunter, right?"

She shook her head. "She wasn't raised by a hunter; she was raised by a whore. Odds are she was kicked out so the whore could get more customers."

Katara was shocked. "No one would ever do that!" She protested.

"Yes they do and you just saw the result of one." Ino walked away, leaving Katara with her thoughts.

Meanwhile, Sokka sat alone, looking at the moon in the sky. It went behind a cloud for a moment and when it cleared, Suki was walking towards him. "It's a beautiful moon." She said, looking up at it.

"Yeah, it really is." He said, thinking of someone else.

She sat down next to him. "Look, I know you're just trying to help but I can take care of myself."

"I know you can."

"Then why're you acting so overprotective?"

"It's so hard to lose someone you care about." He told her before looking away. "Something happened at the North Pole and I couldn't protect someone. I don't want anything like that to happen again."

"I lost someone I cared about." She admitted. "He didn't die, he just went away. I only had a few days to get to know him. But he was smart and brave and funny."

Sokka (being the clueless male teenager he is) got mad and stood up. "Who is this guy?" He demanded. "Is he taller than me?"

"No, he's about your height." She answered without giving away anything.

"Is he better looking?"

"It is you, stupid." She finally told him.

"Oh." He said, feeling like an idiot. The two of them just stared at each other. They leaned in closer and closer, their eyes closed. They were about to kiss when Sokka pulled away. "I can't." He told her, the reminder of what happened to Yue still in the sky.

"I'm sorry." She said.

"No, you shouldn't be." He walked away, leaving Suki alone under the moon.

(Location: Ferry)

Jet walked along the passengers, handing out food. It was almost like a banquet. Zuko, Iroh and the other two Freedom Fighters sat together. "So, Smellerbee," Iroh began. "That's an unusual name for a young man."

"Maybe it's because I'm not a man." She told him. "I'm a girl!" She got up and walked away.

"Oh, now I see. It's a beautiful name for a lovely girl!" He called after her, apology evident in his voice.

Longshot got up from where he sat and went after her. He stopped her and gave a look. "I know." She said. "You're right. As long as I'm confident with who I am it doesn't matter what other people. Thanks Longshot."

He simply nodded.

Zuko and Iroh were eating their food when Jet joined them. "From what I heard, people eat like this every night in Ba Sing Se." He told them as he sat down. "I can't wait to set my eyes on that giant wall."

"It is a magnificent sight." Iroh agreed.

"So you've been there before?" Jet asked him.

"Once, when I was a…different man," He answered evasively.

"I've done some things in my past that I'm not proud of. But that's why I'm going to Ba Sing Se, for a new beginning, a second chance."

"That's very noble of you." Iroh told him. "I believe people can change their lives if they want to. I believe in second chances."

Zuko looked at his uncle. He knew he wasn't just talking about Jet having a second chance.

(Location: Sokka's dream)

He stood in a field that recently been the scene of a battle. "Where am I?" He asked as he looked around. All he could see were the dead bodies. "Hello!" He called out.

"Murderer," A voice whispered out.

"Who's there?" He demanded, his hand going for the boomerang on his back.

"Traitor," Another voice whispered.

"He massacred many."

"He betrayed his own friends."

"He betrayed the Avatar."

"One such as him should not exist."

"He should be put to death."

"He should be killed by the ones he's slain."

All of these voices talked as Sokka stood silent until the bodies surrounding him began to rise up. The nearest one lunged for him but he decapitated it with his boomerang. The bodies began to surround him, so he kept cutting them down, using his boomerang and his machete.

He took them down, one by one, until he saw someone he didn't expect. "Katara, what are you doing here?" He asked with shock.

"Don't you remember, brother?" The corpse of his sister asked. "You killed us all because we protected him from you."

"U-us, what do you mean?"

She gestured and he saw Toph, Gran-Gran, his father, and the Teams from Konoha in the crowd. "You killed us all, because we protected him." Again she gestured and he saw even Aang beside her. "And now you must die for your crimes." The dead all converged on him pulling him down, ripping him limb from limb.

"NOOOO!" He screamed as he woke up from the nightmare. He looked around; he was still on the Serpent's Pass. Everyone else was still sleeping deeply, except for Akela who looked at Sokka with concern.

"Everything's okay Akela." He told the wolf. "It was just a bad dream." He stood up from where he was sleeping. "I'm going to blow off some steam, you go back to sleep." He walked away.

Akela didn't believe him. He rose up from where he was sleeping. He knew who should go talk to Sokka.

Sokka walked back to where he and Suki had talked. _"Perhaps it's best to work on the one style I know the least." _He thought to himself. He took a Firebending stance and began to practice. He went over the moves and motions that he knew. He was sweating so much that he took off his shirt so that it wouldn't get sticky and gross.

He had just finished the practice when he heard someone moving behind him. "Having a good workout?" Suki asked.

He turned to face her. She wasn't wearing her armor, just the kimono. "Yeah, I was." He answered as he reached for the towel he had brought.

Suki stared at a bare-chested Sokka. _"I want." _She thought. That was when she saw something hanging from his neck. "Sokka are you…are you a Paragon?" She asked with amazement.

He stopped drying himself and looked down at the Paragon medallion he wore. "Why?" He asked cautiously.

Her hand dipped into her kimono and she pulled out a similar medallion, the difference was the top of her medallion held the ancient symbol for earth.

He just stared at her. "You're the…"

"The Paragon of the Earth Kingdom," She finished.

"But…how?"

"When I started my Kyoshi Warrior training, I also learned how to use the four Bending arts, even though I wasn't a Bender. The day the Kyoshi Warriors left, Oyaji pulled me aside. He said that I had been trained for this. He gave me this and said that even though he was not a high-ranking member of the order, he was high enough to be able to give me this. He said that I was now the Earth Kingdom Paragon and told me what I was supposed to do. The last thing he told me was that no matter what happens to the four nations and no matter what the Avatar does, the four Paragons stand as one." She told him.

"Have you met Sifu?" He asked her.

She nodded. "He visited me that night. The first word out of his mouth was 'finally'."

He chuckled. "That sounds like Sifu, alright." They both laughed. "So you've been trained in all four arts?" He asked.

"Yeah," She nodded.

"Then maybe you can help me. I don't know much of Firebending, you could probably help me." He dropped into a Firebending stance.

She smiled. "You're on." They began to spar, stopping every now and then so Suki could correct something that Sokka was doing wrong. He began to understand what she was showing him and the spars lasted longer. They had barely noticed that the sun was rising. Finally, they had both blocked strikes from each other and were holding them, seeing who would break away first. They were panting as they stared into each other's eyes.

Suki looked at the boy she liked; who was going to break away first was not the only thing on her mind. Finally she couldn't hold it in anymore. _"Oh Spirits take it!" _She swore silently before she did something that Sokka wasn't expecting. She broke away, grabbed his face and pulled him into a kiss.

Now this wasn't a kiss on the cheek you give to your family or the chaste kiss on the lips you give to someone you like. Oh no, this was the kind of kiss that included tongue and usually led to clothes flying.

Taken aback from the sudden kiss, Sokka was so shocked at Suki's actions that his brain went into shutdown. He returned the kiss with gusto. He pushed her back to a nearby wall, making her gasp a little, letting Sokka invade her mouth. While their tongues were dancing, their hands explored the other's body. He cupped one of her breasts while she felt up the developed abs he had.

Fortunately (or unfortunately, depends on your opinion), Sokka's brain had rebooted at this point. "S-stop." He groaned, breaking the kiss and pulling away. "We should stop."

She gave a low moan of objection. "Why?" She asked huskily. "You were enjoying it as much as I was."

"If we keep this up, the others will see us." He told her.

"Let them." She felt his muscles underneath her hand.

"Suki stop." He told her. "We have to go soon."

Her mind cleared from the hormone-induced haze. She immediately blushed. "You…you're right. Sorry." She quickly walked away, leaving Sokka alone.

He put his shirt back on silently and started to walk back when he noticed Akela standing nearby. "How long were you watching?" He asked the wolf.

Akela just smiled in his own wolfish way. To Sokka, that meant "You can thank me later." The wolf padded back to where the rest of the group was waking up. Sokka followed.

Katara looked over at her brother. "Where have you been, Sokka?" She asked.

"I was practicing my Firebending moves." He answered. "I still need to work on it."

"Okay, then." She looked at the entire group. "We need to get moving, so we'll have to eat as we walk."

"Let's get moving." Asuma said. The group started moving again through the Serpent's Pass. As they did, Katara walked alongside Shù Yè. "Hey, about last night," She began before smelling something in the air. "What is that?"

"Herb ointment," Shù Yè answered curtly. "Helps relieve some of the back pain I get in the morning. The rest disappears after I walk a bit."

"Oh, okay." She said before falling silent. "Like I said, about last night—"

"Save it Princess." She cut her off. "I don't want to hear about how you're sorry. Like I said, not everything can be fixed with a hug or saying you're sorry. Go away."

Katara sighed in defeat and walked to the front of the group. They continued walking on the Pass through the day, when they came upon a surprise. The path that connected the two mountain-like formations had been completely submerged.

"We could probably carry people over." Ino suggested. "We can walk on water."

"It'll take too long." Shikamaru countered. "Not to mention it'd be troublesome."

Katara took charge. "Everyone single file," She ordered. They did so and she walked forward, bending the water to part before them. She continued to do so as they walked deeper into the water. "Aang, I need help." She called out to the rear.

Aang handed his staff to Toph and helped bend the water around them to form a bubble. They walked under the water, safe due to the bubble enclosing them. The fish swam around the bubble, content with what they had.

"Hey Chōji!" called out Sokka. "Do you still want some fish?"

Chōji groaned. "Why did you have to bring that up?" He asked.

"Payback for what you said earlier."

Momo was watching the fish with interest. He leapt from Toph's shoulder into the water to chase after them. He would have gladly chased them for a little while longer had it not been for the large creature that swam right behind him.

He leapt back into the bubble just as the others noticed the creature's shadow. "What is that?" Katara asked as the shadow disappeared. But the thing quickly reappeared as it smashed through the bubble, quickly filling it with water.

Before they had a chance to drown, Toph bent the portion of rock they were on upwards. It broke through the water's surface, becoming like a small island in the water. She wordlessly handed Aang his staff back. Meanwhile, the creature that had literally burst their bubble began to circle around them. After a few moments, the creature's head finally showed itself, roaring at the people on the rock.

"I think I just figured out why they call it the Serpent's Pass." Sokka said.

"No, really?" asked Shù Yè. "What tipped you off?"

"Not the time for that!" Asuma told her.

The serpent screeched at the group, almost like it was angry about them for trying to pass.

"Suki, you know about giant sea monsters. Make it go away!" Sokka told her.

"Just because I live near the unagi doesn't mean I'm an expert!" She replied.

Meanwhile, Shù Yè had picked up Momo and held him out for the serpent to see. "Oh great and powerful sea-serpent, please accept this humble and tasty offering. Thank you." She told the serpent.

The serpent lunged for them but Aang swatted it back with an air-slice. "I'll distract it. Katara, get everyone across." He ordered before opening up his glider and flying towards the serpent.

"Chōji, get in there and help him!" Asuma ordered.

Chōji ran out onto the water. "**Chō Baika no Jutsu** (Super Multi-Size Technique)**!" **He cried out as he flashed through hand seals. He grew to a tremendous size and grabbed hold of the serpent.

Katara jumped off the rock bent the water to form into ice, making a bridge. She repeated the movements again and again until the ice bridge connected the island to the rest of the pass. Everyone except for Toph got onto the ice and made their way to the other end while Katara bent a board made from ice underneath her feet and made her way towards the fight. "Chōji, get back with the others!" She called out to the giant Akimichi. "We've got this!"

Chōji nodded, let go of the thrashing serpent and ran back to the group, shrinking back to his normal size as he went.

The serpent chased after Aang, only to have Katara weigh a part of it body down with ice. It managed to break through the ice and chased after Katara.

Meanwhile, Sokka had noticed that almost everyone had managed to make it across. "Toph, come on!" He called out. "It's just ice!"

She put one foot on it and withdrew it immediately. "Actually, I'm going to stay on my little island where I can see." She yelled out. The serpent hitting said island made it cleared to her that it wasn't a good idea. "Okay, I'm coming!" She announced as she made her way slowly over the ice.

"You're doing great!" Sokka yelled out. "Just follow the sound of my voice."

"It's hard to ignore!" She replied.

"You're almost there!" Sokka told her. But the serpent's tail smashed through the ice bridge, shattering it and sent Toph into the water.

"Help, I can't swim!" She cried out as she struggled to stay afloat.

"I'm coming Toph!" Both he and Suki leapt into the water at the same time and swam towards their friend. When Toph went under, they dived under as well. They managed to grab her and bring up to the surface.

"Oh Sokka, you saved me!" Toph said after they broke through the water's surface. She then kissed Suki on the cheek.

"Wrong side Toph," Sokka said from her left.

"Yeah, it's me." Suki said.

Needless-to-say, Toph was embarrassed. "You can go ahead and let me drown now." She said.

Sokka and Suki just swam back to the group with Toph in their grasp. Meanwhile, Aang and Katara were trying to confuse the serpent by running in circles around it while also bending a whirlpool. The serpent kept going around and around until it finally hit its head against a high part of the pass, driving it away.

Aang and Katara flew back to the group, which led out a cheer. "Nicely done, you two." Asuma congratulated them.

"Yes, the way you dealt with the serpent was amazing." Ying said.

"We did what we could." Katara said. "That's all."

Shù Yè looked at where the serpent had left. "I'd hate to be a downer but why don't we leave before that thing comes back for round two?"

Everyone agreed with what she said and continued walking. It wasn't long before they had gotten through the Serpent's Pass. "There's the wall!" Sokka announced pointing ahead. Indeed, far off in the distance was the Outer Wall of Ba Sing Se. "Now it's nothing but smooth sailing to Ba Sing Se."

At that point, Ying let out a gasp of pain. "Oh no!" She cried.

"What's wrong?" Sokka asked her.

"The baby's coming." She announced.

"What? Now!? Can't you hold it in or something?" He asked her as she sat down on the ground.

"Sokka calm down." Katara told her brother. "I helped Gran-Gran deliver lots of babies back home."

"This isn't the same as delivering an artic seal! This is a real. Human. THING!"

"It's called a baby and I helped her deliver plenty of those too." She told patiently (if not a little irritated). "Aang, Shikamaru, Asuma, get some rags. Sokka, Chōji, Ino, water." She ordered. The two groups ran off to do their tasks. "Toph, I need you to make an earth-tent, a big one." The blind Earthbender bent the earth into a tent-like shape over the family. "Suki, Shù Yè, come with me." She walked into the tent with the two girls' right behind her.

(Location: Ferry)

Zuko stared off into the distance, looking at the incoming land.

"You know." Jet's voice said behind him. "As soon as I saw your scar, I knew exactly who you were." Zuko tensed up, thinking he had been made. "You're an outcast, like me. And us outcast have to stick together. We have to watch each other's backs, 'cause no one else will."

"I realized lately that being on your own isn't always the best path." Zuko replied. The two of them looked on as the walls of Ba Sing Se came closer.

(Location: Aang's group)

Ying was panting inside the earth-tent, holding onto her husband's and sister-in-law's hands. It was a hard process, giving birth. "You're doing great Ying." Katara assured her. "Guys, where that water!?" She called out. "Get ready to push. One…two…three…PUSH!"

Sokka had walked in when Katara ordered Ying to push. The end result of that was him fainting. "Get him out of here!" Katara told Ino and Chōji.

Finally, after much hard work the baby was born. Its cries were loud and healthy. "It's a girl!" Katara proclaimed.

Toph stood next to Sokka outside the tent. "So, you wanna go see the baby or are you going to faint like an old lady again?" She asked.

"No, no, I'm good this time." He answered.

"Don't be so hard on him, Toph." Shikamaru said. "My dad fainted when my troublesome mother gave me birth. Of course she hit him over the head with a frying pan later for it."

"Nice family you got there."

"It kinda grows on you actually." Chōji told her.

They all walked into the tent, leaving Aang outside. "Aang," Katara from the tent's opening. "You have to come see this."

He got up and walked to the tent's entrance. Hearing the sounds of a baby, he turned his gaze on the happy family surrounding the newborn.

"She sounds healthy." Toph noted.

"She's beautiful." Katara stated.

"I've only seen this with deer and it's troublesome." Shikamaru said before giving a small smile. "But it's always worth it to see the look on the mother's face. It doesn't matter if she's human or not."

"Wow Shikamaru." Ino said. "We didn't know you cared."

"You're just full of surprises, aren't you buddy?" Chōji asked his friend.

"I shouldn't have opened my mouth." He grumbled.

"That's enough, you three." Asuma told them. _"So this is what it will be like for me soon." _He thought to himself.

"It's so…small." Sokka said after looking at the baby.

Akela moved his head closer to the baby and began to sniff. After he was done, he gave the baby a big lick on the face, making it giggle.

Aang smiled as he watched the scene in front of him. "Your monks said that hope is just distraction." Shù Yè told him as she stood next to him inside the tent. "But don't you see Aang? Hope doesn't distract people, it drives them. It drove this family to find a safe place, just as you should let it drive you to find your missing friend."

"What should we name her?" Tahn asked his wife.

"I want our daughter's name to be unique." She answered. "I want it to mean something."

Aang began to tear up at this point. He wiped the tears away and walked forward. "I've been going through a really hard time lately." He told the family. "But you've made me…hopeful again."

Ying looked at him and then her husband. "I know what I want to name our baby now. Hope." She said.

"That's a perfect name." Tahn agreed. "Hope."

Everyone filtered out of the tent so the family could have some time alone. Aang pulled Katara aside. "I thought I was trying to be strong." He told her. "But really I was just running away from my feelings. Seeing this family together, so full of happiness and love, it's reminded me of how I feel about Appa…and how I feel about you."

Katara cried a little but wiped the tears away. She and Aang gave each other a hug. They broke the hug and saw that Shù Yè was standing nearby. "It took you long enough to stop moping around." She told Aang.

"But I thought you were said he need a kick in the ass." Katara pointed out.

"I said that was my opinion, Princess." She replied. "I said that not everything could be fixed with a hug." She smiled. "I never said that this wasn't one of them."

Aang looked around and saw his friends gathering around him. "I promise I'll find Appa as fast as I can." He told them as he took his staff from Toph. "I just really need to do this."

"See ya in the big city." Sokka told him.

"Say hi to that big fuzz-ball for me." Toph said, punching him in the arm.

"I hope you'll find him soon." Ino said.

"Good luck." Chōji told him.

"Try not to get lost, it'd be too troublesome to go and look for you." Shikamaru said.

"Don't be afraid to ask us for help when we get there." Asuma told him.

"You'll find him Aang." Katara said.

"I know." He replied. "Thank you Katara."

He opened up his glider and was ready to take off. "You ready Momo?" He asked the lemur, who was also ready to take off. They flew up and away to Ba Sing Se with everyone waving them goodbye.

As Sokka double-checked the contents of his stuff, Suki walked up to him. "Sokka, it's been really great to see you again." She said.

"Whoa, hold on." He said as he stood up. "Why does it sound like you're saying goodbye?"

"I came along because I wanted to make sure you got through the Serpent's Pass safely. But now I need get back to the other Kyoshi Warriors."

"So you came along to protect me?" He asked, completely surprised.

"Listen," She said, her face blushing. "I'm really sorry about last night…and this morning. We were taking, saying things and sparring. I just got carried away and before I knew it I—" Whatever she was going to say next stopped when Sokka kissed her on the lips, catching her off guard.

"You talk too much." He told her before kissing her again, this time she returned it. Akela watched the two with satisfaction.

(Location: Aang and Momo)

The two of them flew towards the Outer Wall of Ba Sing Se. When they reached the wall, they flew upwards, passing clouds along the way. He landed on the top of the wall with Momo on his shoulder. He was about to take off again when he saw something that shocked him.

Slowly but surely, a gigantic drill with the emblem of the Fire Nation was making its way towards the wall. Aang knew if the drill wasn't stopped, it would penetrate the wall easily.

"Sorry Momo." He told the lemur. "Appa's going to have to wait."

**End**

**Author's note: **Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

I don't know about the rest of you but I hated that passport attendant. She kept going on and on about order, you would've thought she was a Communist Chief of Police. If you ask me, she deserves a little chaos. Might get the giant stick up her ass out.

Yes, Suki is the Paragon of the Earth Kingdom. Those of you who have been guessing that are correct. Regarding the matter of the Paragon of the Air Nomads, I have only three things to say. Number 1: Who it is will be revealed much, much later in the story. Number 2: Neither Jet or any of the Freedom Fighters will be the Air Nomad Paragon. And Number 3: Just because Aang is the last Airbender, doesn't mean he's the Air Nomad. If you want to call me evil for withholding the information, I thank you for the compliment.

If I have insulted any woman when it came to the breasts size or making the birth easy, I apologize. I have nothing but respect for the human female, even more so because of the fact they are willing to go through nine months and a lot of pain to deliver a baby.

If you liked the interaction between Sokka and Suki during the spar and want more like that, I'm just going to say this: I'm not planning on writing any lemon scenes. Number 1: I don't know how good I would be able to write that. Number 2: I don't want this story to be killed because of that rule the managers of Fanfiction put out. They killed a lot of good stories with that, like NILF by EroslackerMicha.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	13. Breaking and Entering

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 13: Breaking and Entering

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Outer Wall)

The drill made its way towards the wall, the sides protected by Fire Nation tanks. The sections collapsed and elongated, like a caterpillar or a snake moving. As it moved, it was stabilized by metal poles jutting out into the ground.

As the drill got closer to the wall, the command tower rose up, allowing those inside a better view. Inside the tower sat the princess of the Fire Nation as well as her two friends. After returning the tank-train to War Minister Qin in Yu Dao, he asked them to follow him to a Fire Nation base near Ba Sing Se. When they arrived, he revealed the drill to them.

And now they were here. "This drill is a feat of scientific ingenuity and raw destructive power." War Minister Qing stated. "Once it tunnels through the wall, our troops will storm their city. The Earth Kingdom will finally fall and you can claim Ba Sing Se in the name of your father."

"No, I won't." She said. "I will claim it in the name of the Fire Nation." It was one of the things Naruto had beaten into her (almost literally). Never honor someone who has never fought a battle.

"…As you wish, princess. But still, nothing can stop us."

"Hmm, what about those muscly guys down there?" asked Ty Lee as she looked through the scope. Earthbenders were hopping into trenches, getting ready for a fight.

"Please." The War Minister said. "The drill's metal shell is impervious to any Earthbending attack." He tapped the scope to emphasize his point, surprising Ty Lee.

"Oh I'm sure it is, War Minister Qin." Azula told him. "But just to be on the safe side, Mai and Ty Lee, take the Earthbenders out!"

Mai stopped twirling the knife she had out. "Finally something to do," She said as she got out of the chair.

Ty Lee hopped out of her chair as well. "Now remember Azula, don't go moping about Naruto not being here when you think we're not looking." She said before walking away with Mai.

"I wasn't moping!" Azula yelled at them. "I was just wishing he would show up instead of sending a message!"

"If that's what keeps you happy." Mai simply replied before leaving the tower with Ty Lee.

(Location: Katara's group)

They made their way towards to Ba Sing Se. They had gotten closer when Aang and Momo flew back to them.

"Aang, what are you doing here?" Katara asked him. "I thought you were looking for Appa."

"I was." He replied. "But something stopped me, something big."

They quickly made their way to the Outer Wall. Both Toph and Aang bent the rock underneath them to start sliding up the wall, almost like an elevator. "So, what's so big that Appa has to wait?" Sokka asked him.

They had almost reached the top of the wall when they saw the drill. "That." Aang simply stated.

Shikamaru just looked at it. "Well, it certainly is big." He said.

"I think that's an understatement, Shikamaru." Asuma said.

They reached the top of the wall and climbed over to the battlement. "We made it to Ba Sing Se and we're still not safe." Ying said as she held her baby. "No one is."

Aang had a brief look of thought before a voice spoke out. "What are you people doing here?" A nearby soldier asked. "Civilians aren't allowed on the wall."

Aang stepped forward. "I'm the Avatar." He announced. "Take me to whoever's in charge."

"Well, what do ya know?" Shù Yè said. "Our little monk is actually trying to grow a pair. You should be so proud." She told Katara.

"Shù Yè, you shouldn't say stuff like that." Katara told her while blushing.

"I can say what I want. Speaking of which…" She looked at the guards. "Hey! If you don't want civilians up here, then you might want to consider getting these people off of it and into the city." She pointed to Tahn and his family. "We've got a couple here who just recently became parents."

The guards got the point immediately. They escorted the family away from the wall while everyone else went to the person in charge, who was soon revealed to be a General named Sung. "It is an honor to welcome you to the Outer Wall, young Avatar." He said. "But your help is not needed."

"Not needed?" Aang asked.

"Not needed." The general replied, enunciating both words. "I have the situation under control. I assure you, the Fire Nation cannot penetrate this wall." He got up from his desk and led them out to look at the drill. "Many have tried to break through it but none have succeeded."

"I know one way to break through." Shikamaru whispered to Ino. "All we'd have to is to get Chōji angry."

"That's not funny Shikamaru." She replied.

"What about the Dragon of the West?" Toph asked the general. "He got in."

"We-well…technically yes," He admitted. "But he was quickly expunged." He hurriedly assured them. "Nevertheless, that's why the city's named Ba Sing Se, it's the impenetrable city. They don't call it Na Sing Se." He laughed at his own joke. "That means penetrable city."

"Probably should've called the penetrable city." Asuma stated.

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing's impenetrable." Shikamaru clarified.

"This city is." The general told them. "And so, you are not needed."

"Someone get me a needle." Shù Yè called out. "This guy's full of hot air and is just begging to be popped."

"That's enough, Shù Yè." Sokka told her.

"Thanks for the tour." Toph said. "But we still got the drill problem."

"Not for long." General Sung said. "To stop it, I've sent an elite platoon of Earthbenders called the Terra Team."

"That's a good group name, very catchy." Sokka commented.

They watched as the Terra Team moved in to attack. They bent the earth to send one of the tanks skywards so they could get through. "Ready? Attack!" ordered the team leader. They split off into groups and bent the earth to jut out columns in order to stop the drill from moving. It didn't work as the sections moved forward, destroying the columns.

It showered the team with rocks. After being momentarily distracted, the team bent up shields of stone to avoid a barrage of knives. The knives had been thrown by Mai, who was sliding the side of the drill with Ty Lee.

The acrobat leapt off the drill and then leapt into the air in a high front flip to avoid a rock line. She landed behind one of the soldiers. After dodging a few of his attacks, she hit points on his body, making him collapse.

She flipped over to land in the middle of the rest of the team and taking them effortlessly. Soon enough, she was surrounded by the fallen Terra Team.

"We're doomed!" General Sung wailed after watching the events through a telescope.

"Thanks for stating the obvious." Shikamaru drawled.

Sokka smacked the General on the cheek. "Get a hold of yourself man!" He ordered.

"You're right, I'm sorry." He apologized while rubbing his cheek.

"Maybe you'd like the Avatar's help now?" Toph asked pointedly.

He stood in front of the Airbender. "Yes please." He asked, sounding like a chastised child.

"Then I suggest you leave and let the actual professionals do their jobs." Asuma told him. Nearby soldiers knew what he was actually meant. They escorted General Sung away.

"Good riddance to a useless rock-head." Shù Yè said. "I don't want to even know who he slept with to get the position of general."

"Oh, thanks for that Shù Yè." Ino told her. "Now I've got an image of that general in bed!"

"You're welcome." She replied cheerfully.

They all looked at the oncoming drill. "So the question is: how are we going to stop that thing?" Aang asked. Then he and Katara looked at Sokka.

He noticed the looks. "Why are you two looking at me?" He asked.

"You're the idea guy." Aang told him.

He scowled. "So I'm the only one who can ever come up with a plan? That's a lot of pressure."

"And also the complaining guy." Katara finished.

"That part I don't mind." He admitted.

"Ladies, could we focus back on the problem here?" Shù Yè asked.

"Hey, I'm not a lady!" Aang protested.

"The problem, little Miss. arrowhead, we need to focus on the problem."

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

"So, Mr. Lee and Mr. …um…Mushy is it?" A ticket lady asked the two of them as she looked at their passports.

"It's pronounced Mushi." Iroh corrected her.

"You telling me how to do my job?" She asked.

"Ah, no, no," He assured. "But may I just say you're like a flower in bloom. You're beauty is intoxicating."

He was laying it on thick. The lady was by no means beautiful, but she ate up every word he said. "Hm, you're pretty easy on the eyes yourself handsome." She made a cat meowing sound. "Welcome to Ba Sing Se." She stamped the passports.

Iroh took the passports and turned back to Zuko, who had a hand over his face. "I'm going to forget I saw that." He told his uncle, swiping his passport from his hands.

They walked beyond the ticket lady and into the station. Unbeknownst to them, they were being watched. "I think Lee would make a good Freedom Fighter." Jet said as he watched from the line. "He's just trying to find his way in the world. Like us."

"You don't know anything about him, Jet." Smellerbee warned him.

"I know he didn't get that scar from a Waterbender."

"Besides, I thought we were going straight now."

"We are, and the new Freedom Fighters could use a guy like Lee. What do you think Longshot?" He asked the ever silent archer, who just looked at Jet and blinked once. "I can respect that." Jet said.

(Location: Outer Wall)

The Terra Team had been moved back onto the wall and into a nearby infirmary. Before they decided to go up against the drill, Katara decided to see if she could help heal them.

"What's wrong with him?" General Sung asked her, he had followed the group to the infirmary. "He doesn't look injured."

"His chi is blocked." Katara told him as she tried to heal the soldier. "Who did this to you?"

"Two girls ambushed us." He told her. "One of them hit with a couple of quick jabs and suddenly I couldn't Earthbend and I could barely move. And then she cartwheeled away."

It was that last part that got Katara's attention, which in turn made her realize who the attacker was. "Ty Lee." She said. "She doesn't look dangerous but she knows the human body and its weak points. It's like she takes you down from the inside."

"But where she is, the Fire Nation princess is." Shikamaru said.

"And where the Fire Nation princess is, Naruto is." Chōji finished up, realizing where his friend was going.

"So we have an opportunity here." Ino said.

"Indeed we do." Asuma agreed.

"Huh? What are you guys talking about? I'm really confused here." Shù Yè said with a puzzled expression on her face.

"Same here," Toph said, raising her hand.

"They're saying that neither Azula nor Naruto know we're here." Sokka explained. "And because of that, they have an opportunity. Should they be able to get aboard the drill, they'd have an opportunity to take Naruto. But I see a second opportunity."

"What's that?" Shù Yè asked.

"If they are able to get aboard, Team Asuma could track down Azula and capture her. If they could do that, Ino can get into Azula's mind and extract information on what the Fire Nation is planning. The only reason I can think of for them not to explain this one is because they want to focus on Naruto and hope to use us stopping the drill so they can find him."

Team Asuma just looked at him. "…He is good." Ino finally said.

"Yeah," Shikamaru agreed. "It's troublesome but I can see why Naruto thinks he is the most dangerous person in the group."

Sokka's ego puffed up a little bit while Aang's, Katara's, and Toph's egos deflated. Shù Yè saw the looks on their faces. "Really, you guys thought you were the most dangerous?"

"Well kinda." Aang told her. "I mean, I am the Avatar."

She scoffed. "You know, the first time I saw your group, I didn't see the Avatar, his Bending teachers and Sokka. I saw Bender," She pointed to Aang. "Bender," She pointed to Katara. "Bender," She pointed at Toph. "And Non-Bender," She pointed to Sokka. "In other words: predictable, predictable, predictable and unpredictable." She pointed again in the same order.

"How are we predictable?" asked Katara, a little offended.

"You guys rely on your Bending and weapons that can be used in tandem with Bending. He doesn't. The Fire Nation shouldn't fear the Avatar, the master of the four elements. They should fear Sokka, the master strategist, tactician and weapon expert."

"You know, when she says like that, she's got a point." Asuma said after a little bit of silence.

"So Mr. Man with the Plan," Toph said, acting like the past conversation didn't even happen. "What are we going to do?"

"We're going to do the same thing Ty Lee did." He said. "We'll take it out from the inside by hitting its pressure points."

"Alright, then let's get going." Shù Yè said.

"You're staying here." He told her. "I don't trust you."

"…Wow. You give a guy a compliment and he tells you that you're not trusted."

"I'm sorry Shù Yè, but the truth is we don't know you."

"But this would be a perfect chance to prove my abilities to the group!" She argued.

"Sokka, you're being paranoid again." Katara told him.

"Yeah, she practically already part of the group." Aang supported. "There's no need for you to be paranoid."

"The two of you seem to forget that the last time you told me to stop being paranoid, you almost let an Earth Kingdom colonel butcher an entire colony." He reminded them before turning back to Shù Yè. "But maybe I am being too paranoid, so I'll rein it in."

"Does that mean I'm joining you in the drill?"

"Yes."

"Finally, you gotta learn how to trust people, you ice-chewer."

"I'm going to ignore that insult." He turned to the rest of the group. "We need to get down to the ground."

"Leave that to me and Aang." Toph said. They were brought down the same way they had come up, the soldiers kept large slabs of rock for just that purpose. Once they made it to the ground, they got into a trench so that the drill couldn't see them.

"Toph, can you give us some cover?" Asuma asked.

"Yes I can. But once I whipped some up, you're not going to be able to see. So stay close to me." She leapt out of the trench and bent a huge dust screen towards the drill. "Run!" She ordered as they charged into the dust.

(Location: Drill command tower)

Ty Lee looked through the scope. "Hey, look at that dust cloud. It's so…poofy." She said. "Poof," She also said, trying to be cute.

"Don't worry princess." War Minister Qin assured her. "I'm sure it's nothing."

"Maybe, but you never took lessons from Naruto." She replied.

"So you think it's something else?" Mai asked.

"We'll have to wait and see."

(Location: Aang's group)

They made their way towards the drill. When they got close, Toph bent a hole in the ground. "Everyone into the hole," She ordered. They all jumped in and Toph bent the hole closed, leaving them in complete darkness.

"Wow it is really dark down here." Chōji commented.

"You can't see a thing." Ino agreed.

"Oh no, what a nightmare," Toph said with mocking horror.

"Sorry." The two shinobi apologized.

Toph bent the hole to form into a tunnel and moved forward. When they came out of the tunnel, they were directly under the drill. "There!" Sokka said, pointing to an opening in the drill. Aang up onto a bar and hung from his legs. That way his hands were free, for which he helped the others jumped into the drill, leaving Toph and Chōji outside. "Toph, Chōji, what are you doing?" Sokka asked.

"There is no way I am going into that metal monster." Toph told him. "I can't bend in there. I'll try to slow it down out here."

"I'm going to help her out." Chōji said.

"Okay, good luck." Sokka told them. "Akela, stay here and protect them. Make sure they don't get caught."

The wolf nodded. Sokka and Aang disappeared into the machine. Toph bent a large rock column to jut out and hit the drill. It didn't stop the drill as the column was being pushed forward with the drill, making Toph's job harder. Chōji helped her out by using **Bubun Baika no Jutsu** (Partial Multi-Size Technique) to enlarge his arms and hold the column as well.

(Location: Aang's group)

They walked into a room full of pipes and values. "I need a plan of this machine." Sokka said. "Some schematics of what the inside looks like, then we can find its weak points."

"Where are we going to get something like that?" Aang asked.

"It's troublesome but it's obvious." Shikamaru said. Sokka drew his machete and swung at a value. He knocked it off, causing steam to bellow out.

"What are you doing!?" Aang demanded. "Someone's going to hear us!"

"That's the point." Sokka told him, sheathing the machete. "I figure a machine this big needs engineers to run it. And when something breaks…?"

"They come to fix it." Katara finished.

They hid themselves and laid in wait. Sure enough, an engineer came to see what the problem was. When he noticed that someone was behind him, it was too late. Katara bent the surrounding steam to freeze the engineer. "Hi." She said.

"Was that really necessary?" Shù Yè asked.

Sokka ran up to the frozen engineer. "This will do. Thanks!" He said after grabbing the engineer's copy of the schematics. They made sure that there was a good amount of distance between them and the frozen engineer. After climbing up a staircase, Sokka opened the schematics on a nearby pipe. "It looks like the drill is made up of two main structures." He noted. "There's the inner mechanism where we are now and the outer shell. The inner part and the outer part are connected by these braces." He drew his hand around said braces to emphasize his point. "If we cut through them, the entire thing will collapse."

"Then we better get going then." Asuma said.

"Yeah, lead the way you crafty ice-chewier." Shù Yè said.

"Will you stop calling me that?" Sokka asked her.

"Nope, this is what you get for not trusting me." She replied.

"Let's just get moving." He said with a small sigh of defeat. He rolled up the schematics and led them away.

(Location: Monorail station)

Zuko and Iroh were waiting for the monorail to come in through the station. Jet came over and sat down next to Zuko. "So," He began. "You guys got plans once you're inside the city?"

"Get your hot tea here! Finest tea in Ba Sing Se," A tea merchant called as he pushed his cart through the station.

"Oh!" Iroh waved the merchant down. "Jasmine please," He asked for. The merchant poured him a cup and left to find another customer. Iroh took one sip of the tea and spat it out. "Coldest tea in Ba Sing Se is more like it! What a disgrace!"

"Hey," Jet said to Zuko. "Can I talk to you for a second?" He got up from his seat and walked away. Zuko just sighed and followed him. "You and I have a much chance of making it in the city if we stick together." He told Zuko. "You want to join the Freedom Fighters?"

"Thanks, but I don't think you want me in your gang." Zuko answered. He knew that if Jet found they were Firebenders, good things would not come of it.

"Come on, we made a great team looting that captain's food. Think of all the good we could do for these refugees."

"I said no." Zuko walked back to where his uncle was sitting.

"Have it your way." Jet said. He then noticed that Iroh was happily drinking steaming tea. His eyes went wide when he realized what that meant.

Zuko had reached his uncle when he turned back to look at Jet glaring at them before walking away. He then noticed the same thing Jet did. _"Oh Agni help us!" _He silently swore.

"Hey!" Iroh protested as Zuko slapped the tea out of his hands.

"What are you doing Firebending your tea!?" Zuko demanded in a hushed whisper. "For a wise old man, that was a pretty stupid move."

"I know you're not supposed to cry over spilt tea." Iroh said before sniffing. "But's that so sad!"

(Location: Aang's group)

They walked out to the outer shell, the first thing they saw was one of the braces. "Wow." Sokka said. "It looks a lot bigger in person then it does in the plans. We're going to have to work pretty hard to cut through that."

"What's this 'we' stuff?" Katara asked. "Aang and I are going to do all the work."

"Hey, you said that I'm the plan guy, which means you're the cut stuff up with Waterbending guys. It's the team we, we're Team Avatar."

"Catchy." Shù Yè noted.

"…Could be a little better." Shikamaru commented.

"Is it any worse than Team Youth?" Ino asked her teammate, reminding him of what Guy wanted to call his team originally.

"Fair enough of a point." He answered.

Katara uncorked her pouch and bent the water inside towards Aang, making a cut in the brace. Aang caught the water and bent back to Katara, deepening the cut. They repeated this action over and over again, making the cut deeper and deeper. But it was also tiring work, when they were half-way through the brace, they stopped to take a breath.

"This is taking too long." Ino noted.

"You got any way of making this faster?" Shù Yè asked.

"She doesn't but I do." Asuma said. "Katara, Aang, step back." He ordered as he walked towards the brace. He pulled out his Chakra Blades, trench knives with knuckle-duster handles, and began to channel his Wind-nature Chakra through them, forming a longer blade made of chakra.

"**Hien **(Flying Swallow),**" **He said before swinging his arm and slicing through the rest of the brace, the blade cutting through the metal almost like butter. The top part of the cut brace slid down a little bit, making a squealing sound as it did.

They waited, but nothing happened. "At this rate, we won't do enough damage before the drill reaches the wall." Katara said as she panted.

"I don't know how many more of those I have in me." Aang said from the other side of the brace, sitting on his rear.

"Funny, it didn't seem that hard." Shù Yè said.

"You're not the one who's bending the water to cut through the brace."

"You didn't even finish cutting said brace, you arrowhead. Asuma did that."

Before Aang could reply, they all heard a groaning sound echoing through the drill. The drill also vibrated as the sound continued. "Did you hear that?" Sokka asked them. "We took it down! We better get out of here fast."

They all ran to the doorway they came through and stopped when they heard a voice over the intercom. "Congratulation crew," War Minister Qin's voice spoke out. "The drill has made contact with the wall of Ba Sing Se. Start the countdown to victory!" They heard cheers coming from the intercom as they looked at each other.

"What a drag." Shikamaru said.

"Is that all you can say at this point Shikamaru?" Asuma asked his student.

"It's too troublesome to say anything else."

Sokka marched right back to the brace and began to push against it. "Come on brace! Budge!" He ordered the thing but it wouldn't move, despite all his efforts.

"Yeah, that's going to work." Shù Yè said sarcastically. "Keep it up, ice-chewier, keep it up."

"Hey! Help me push or shut up!" He told her.

"This is bad, really bad." Katara said.

Sokka finally stopped pushing the brace and stood against it. "We're putting everything we've got into busting these braces, but it's taking too long!"

"…Maybe we don't need to cut all the way through." Aang said after realizing something. "Toph has been teaching me that you shouldn't give 100% of your energy into any one strike. Shù Yè, take a fighting stance." He told her. She did so. "You've gotta be quick and accurate," He hooked a foot behind her own, off-balancing her. "Hit a series of points and break your opponent's stance." He did so, making Shù Yè swing her arms wildly, in order to maintain her balance. "And when he's reeling back, deliver the final blow." He hand-chopped her head, making her collapse and fall down. "His own weight becomes his downfall, literally."

"Was that for the arrowhead comments earlier?" Shù Yè asked from where she fell. "If it was, I'm not apologizing for it."

"So, we just need to weaken the braces instead of cutting all the way through." Katara realized.

"Then I'll go to the top of this thing and deliver the final blow."

"And then it all comes crashing down." Sokka said.

Aang was about to say something but Shù Yè cut him off. "I know you're probably going say that the entire world is relying on us to stop this thing or something like that, so just save it and get to work. Better yet, save it and help me get up."

"Need a hand?" Shikamaru asked her, holding out said hand. She took it and stood up.

"Anyway, I can help you with the braces." Asuma held up a Chakra Blade. "It should save us some time."

(Location: Beneath the drill)

Both Toph and Chōji were still trying to slow the drill down but it was tough work.

"Come on…Twinkle Toes…hurry up!" Toph grated out as she held.

"Don't worry, Toph. They'll come through." Chōji reassured her as he assisted.

Akela just made sure that they were alone beneath the drill.

(Location: Aang's group)

They went to work. Aang and Katara worked on one side of the drill while Asuma worked on the other side. Even though the two Benders were working together, they took the same amount of time Asuma took cutting through a brace. However, thanks to his efforts, it didn't take long for them to cut through all the braces.

(Location: Drill command tower)

"Seriously, boulders?" asked one of the soldiers in the command tower as he looked out the window at the Outer Wall. Earth Kingdom soldiers were hurling boulders via Bending down at the drill. "How stupid are these rock-heads!?"

"That's enough, soldier!" War Minister Qin ordered. "Focus on your job."

"Yes sir." The soldier replied.

"War Minister!" A voice over the intercom called out. "An engineer was ambushed. His schematics were stolen!"

"War Minister!" Another voice over the intercom said. "A brace on the starboard side has been cut clean through! It's sabotage sir!"

Although he didn't turn to see it, the War Minister knew that Azula was glaring at him. "And you thought it was nothing." She said in an irritated voice.

"My apologies Princess," He said.

"Let's go ladies!" She told Ty Lee and Mai.

(Location: Aang's group)

The last brace was being worked on by Aang and Katara. Asuma had already finished his portion of the braces, so he stood nearby.

"Good work Team Avatar. Now Aang just needs to…DUCCCKK!" shouted Sokka as he avoided a blue fireball flying over his head.

Azula stood on a higher brace opposite of them. She bent another fireball at Aang who ducked out of the way of it.

"Wow Azula, you were right." Ty Lee said. "It is the Avatar." She gave Sokka a look. "And friends."

"Thanks but no thanks. I'm good." He told her.

"Oh you're no fun." She replied. "On the other hand: What do you eat!? Those things are huge!" She demanded of Shù Yè, pointing at her breasts.

"Don't stare at them!" Shù Yè cried as she tried to cover her breasts with her hands. "You're going to make fun of them!"

"Leave her alone!" Ino said, standing in front of Shù Yè, blocking their view of her. "You're making her uncomfortable!"

"Can we just get on with this?" Mai asked in a bored voice.

Aang's group ran back to the entrance closest to them. Azula and Mai did so as well while Ty Lee jumped down to the bottom of the brace and swung herself at the group. Aang pushed her back with an Airbending slice but she was able to find solid footing where she landed.

Aang and his group ran down a corridor. They soon hit a crossroads where the corridor split into two directions, left and right.

"Guys, get out of here!" Aang told everyone else as they went left and he went right. "I know what I need to do!"

"I'm coming with you!" Shù Yè said as she joined him. "You're going to need help up there."

"Alright, let's get moving."

"Wait!" Katara called out. "You need this water more than I do." She unhooked her water pouch and tossed it to him as Momo settled on his shoulder. He caught it and the two groups went their separate ways.

Azula, Mai and Ty Lee soon hit the crossroad. "Follow them." Azula told her two friends. "The Avatar is mine."

Katara, Sokka, Asuma, Ino and Shikamaru ran down the corridor. They finally made it to the end of said corridor which held a valve leading into a pipe with writing above it.

"Slurry pipeline," Katara read. "What does that mean?"

"This is too troublesome but really?" Shikamaru asked her.

Sokka opened the valve and looked down into the pipe. "It's rock and water mixed to together. It means our way out."

"Then we might as well get to it." Ino said, jumping into the pipe.

"And not even a single comment about what the stuff could do to her hair." Asuma said with a hint of wonder in his voice.

"I guess even Ino knows when to shut up and move." Shikamaru said.

By the time Mai and Ty Lee had shown up, Shikamaru and Asuma were already in the slurry. Katara and Sokka hopped in just as Mai threw a couple of knives at them. They bounced off the valve harmlessly.

"Ergh, disgusting," Mai stated as she looked into the slurry pipe.

"Come on, you heard Azula." Ty Lee said. "We have to follow them."

"She can shoot all the lightning she wants at me. I am not going in that wall sludge juice." She shuddered at the thought.

Ty Lee simply shrugged and jumped in after them. Mai simply closed the valve.

(Location: Aang & Shù Yè)

Aang ran through the drill at top speed with Momo hanging on for dear life around his neck. He blew past the engineers who were working the drill. What surprised him was that Shù Yè could keep up with him.

"How are you able to do that?" He asked her as they ran up a case of stairs.

"I was the fastest girl in my village; I got faster after using weights." She replied.

(Location: Outside, the rear of the Drill)

As the drill made its way through the Outer Wall, the slurry poured out of a drain in the back. Sokka, Katara, Ino, Shikamaru and Asuma rode the slurry like it was a ride. When they finally made contact with the ground, they were almost completely covered by slurry.

"Oh man! My hair!" cried out Ino, her long hair covered completely in the muck. "Do you know how long it's going to take to get this stuff out!?"

"And there's the hair comment." Both Shikamaru and Asuma said in perfect unison.

"Shut it you two!" She snapped at them.

As they stood up from where they had landed, they saw that Ty Lee was coming out of the drain as well. Katara reacted quickly by bending the slurry back into the hole from where it was coming from, taking Ty Lee with it and trapping her in the current. "Why don't you try blocking my chi now, circus freak?" Katara told the acrobat.

"Katara, keep that up." Sokka told his sister. "The pressure will build up in the drill. Then when Aang delivers the final blow, it'll be ready to pop!"

She just gritted her teeth and continued to keep the slurry contained.

(Location: Top of the Drill)

Aang, Momo and Shù Yè had finally made it to the top of the drill. They across the length of it until they reached a spot close to the wall.

"This looks like a good spot, you two." Aang told them.

"Then you might want to get to work." Shù Yè told him pointedly. It was then a barrage of boulders fell down upon them. They all frantically dodged the boulders so that they wouldn't be crushed. "HEY! WATCH WHERE YOU'RE THROWING THOSE THINGS! YOU ALMOST KILLED ME WITH THAT LAST ONE!" Shù Yè yelled up to the wall.

"General Sung! Tell your men to stop shooting rocks down here!" Aang shouted.

(Location: Top of the Outer Wall)

"Soldiers, whatever you do." General Sung said. "Don't stop shooting rocks down there!"

The Earthbenders followed the general's ordered.

(Location: Top of the Drill)

"They are a bunch of rock-headed IDIOTS!" Shù Yè swore as she dodged another round of boulders.

Aang said nothing; he just went to work, cutting through the metal with the water.

(Location: Rear of the Drill)

"Look at this, will you just look at this?" Ino demanded of her teammates, showing her hair. "It's going to be a mess once it's all cleaned out. Do you know how it took me to get my hair like this?"

"Yes we do." Shikamaru replied. "You dragged us along on your hair care shopping sprees." He looked over at the Waterbender. "Hey, Katara, if I asked nicely enough, would you spray Ino with more slurry?"

"Don't make me hurt you, Shikamaru." Ino warned him.

"You guys need some help?" Toph asked as she, Chōji and Akela arrived.

"Toph, help me plug up this drain!" Katara told her. The two Benders worked together to send the slurry back further the drain, taking Ty Lee with it. It also made the pipes in the drill bulge almost to the point they were about to burst.

(Location: Top of the Drill)

Slurry had begun to leak from the wall on to the top of the drill. Aang took no notice of that as he was still cutting through the metal hull with the water. The result was an X-shaped cut in the hull. Aang stopped bending the water and panted. "What I give to be a Metalbender." He said to himself as he bent the water back into the pouch.

"Aang, we've got company!" Shù Yè called out before dodging a blue fireball, which sailed right past her and towards Aang, who deflected it with Airbending. "Momo, get out of here!" He ordered the winged lemur. The attacker was none other than Azula.

"This is either going to be really bad or really fun." Shù Yè said as she took a fighting stance and watched Azula. The tension was thick between the three people. Shù Yè made the first move by charging directly at Azula.

Azula caught the punch Shù Yè swung and flipped her over onto her back. Shù Yè didn't just lay on the surface of the drill in a daze; she swung her legs into a kick, trying to knock Azula off her feet. Azula avoided this by flipping over the downed girl and charging at Aang.

She hesitated when another barrage of boulders began to rain down. Aang took advantage of her hesitation by grabbing one of the boulders via Airbending and throwing it at her. She dodged the thing by doing the splits. Snapping out of the splits, she sent another blue fireball at Aang, who protected himself by bending the rock rubble around him to form a shield.

Once the fireball hit the shield harmlessly, he retaliated by bending chunks of rock at Azula, who kicked them away. Shù Yè got back on her feet and attacked Azula again. She got in close and traded blows with the Princess. "You're good." She complimented. "I didn't expect a charcoal-sucker would be good in hand-to-hand. You always fight your enemies at a distance."

"You haven't learned from my teacher." Azula replied.

"Well, he must've beaten the idea into your head hard. I can't imagine the bruises you were left with."

Aang tried to help by bending an Air slice at them but Azula flipped over it, which sent Shù Yè flying down the length of the drill. While still flipping in midair, Azula pointed her feet and bent a large blue fireball at Aang's shield, blasting it apart and sending him straight into the wall and knocking him unconscious.

Azula looked at her prize but her balance was shaken when the section she was standing on moved forward. The action made the drill actually break through the Outer Wall of Ba Sing Se. Aang's unconscious body was moved halfway under the wall. Azula walked forward and grabbed him, holding him against the wall itself. She heard movement behind her and turned to see Shù Yè coming at her in a flying kick. She caught the kick effortlessly with one hand and threw Shù Yè back down the length of the drill.

Aang regain consciousness as Azula held fire in her hand. Realizing what she was about to do, he bent the Outer Wall to cover his right arm into a rock gauntlet. As Azula was about to strike him, he caught her arm and pushed it away. He then grabbed her midsection and pushed her back, sending her skidding across the drill.

He took an Earthbending stance and she charged him, blue fire blazing in her hands, giving her additional speed. As they were about to clash, the backed up slurry burst out of the hole in the wall, surprising Aang and sending him to his knees. It caused Azula to stumble and slide on the slurry.

Aang tried to stand up again, but slipped and fell back onto his knee. Looking up, he saw Azula run into him. It sent them slamming into the wall and then sliding down opposite sides of the drill. Azula slid down on her stomach and tried to stop her sliding by planting her feet on the side. Eventually she stopped sliding but also got a little stuck due to the slurry she had on herself.

Aang slid backwards down the drill, his rock gauntlet breaking away in the process. He tried to stop himself but due to him being on his back, he couldn't get a grip. Momo came to his rescue by flying down to him, grabbing the back of his shirt and lifting him back onto his feet. Swinging his arms wildly, Aang ran back to the side of the drill using Airbending.

He landed safely on the top of the drill. "Thanks Momo, I owe you one." He told the lemur.

Shù Yè joined him. "You know, you might want to take care of the drill before the charcoal-sucker gets back up here." She pointed out.

Aang nodded in agreement. He made his way back to the cut in the metal. "Now all I need is a—" He began to say before a boulder slammed down next to him. "Actually, that is what needed for once."

"Nice timing." Shù Yè commented.

Momo flew off of Aang's shoulder as he moved the boulder onto the cut with Airbending. He then turned the boulder into a rough shape of nail. "Shù Yè, stand behind it." He told the girl. As she did so, he back up a little and took a runners starting position. He took off. After taking a few steps, he bent an Air Scooter to stand on. He ran up the wall, as far as the Air Scooter could take him. Once the Air Scooter faded away, he continued running up the wall. When he felt gravity taking hold of him, he turned and with a yell of effort, ran back down the wall, using Airbending to full effect.

Azula had managed to climb back to the top of the drill in time to see Aang running down the wall. He leapt for the rock nail and she tried to stop him with a fireball but she missed. Aang landed on the nail hard, like he intended. He also bent a wide stream of air in front of him, making Azula fly away.

The nail had the intended effect. The braces that had been cut through broke apart, allowing the slurry to flood in. The drill sections had slurry explode into the air and leaked down the sides.

(Location: Rear of the Drill)

"Here it comes!" Toph cried out. She bent the area of earth they were standing on up into a big pillar. Without Katara or Toph stopping the slurry, it flowed freely out of the drain, bringing Ty Lee along with it. Unable to stop herself, she slammed into the pillar.

The drill finally stopped moving as the sections broke down, allowing steam to hiss out in large quantities

(Location: Top of the Drill)

Aang just stood on top of the nail, once again covered in slurry. As he wiped his face clean, Momo landed on his shoulder and began licking the slurry.

"You know, you should be glad that I am not a high maintenance girl." Shù Yè said. She too was covered in slurry.

"Sorry about that." He apologized.

She shrugged. "Well, at least the rock-head got some of it." She pointed to the top of the wall. The slurry had spread up to the battlements; although he was small, they could see General Sung had also been covered in slurry. "I'm just bummed they didn't get some." She pointed to the command tower. Even though slurry covered the tower, the windows were still intact so those inside were safe.

"We should meet up with the others." Aang said.

"Might as well."

(Location: Ty Lee)

She sat up and spat out the slurry that was in her mouth and wiped the slurry from her eyes. Looking around, she saw that the pillar she had run into had disappeared and the Avatar's friends (including the cute guy from the Water Tribe) had left already.

Hearing a noise, she saw that Azula was sliding down the rear ramp above the slurry drain. She leapt off and landed in front of Ty Lee, splashing more slurry on her.

A valve opened up to reveal Mai. "We lost." She stated.

As Ty Lee cleared her face again, she saw Azula was smirking. "No we didn't. Mai, go tell War Minister Qin that the primary goal has been accomplished."

"What do you mean? The drill was destroyed." Ty Lee said.

"Lesson number 6: The best way to get in silently is to make a loud distraction." Azula recited.

"What does Naruto's lessons have this?" Mai asked.

"Lesson number 7: If you can't go through, you have three other options: over, under or around." She continued.

Realization dawned on her two friends. "So that's what the message was about." Ty Lee said.

Azula nodded. "They played right into our hands."

"What does he want us to do?" Mai asked.

"To find a way into the city ourselves and help him in the game plan." Her smirk grew wider. "And it's a good thing I know his game plan."

(Location: Monorail station)

"Last call for Ba Sing Se!" called out the announcer.

Jet walked through the station with his Freedom Fighters behind him. "Jet, relax." Smellerbee told him. "So the old guy is into hot tea, Big deal."

"He heated it himself!" Jet declared. "Those guys are Firebenders!"

Watching Zuko and Iroh board the monorail, they made sure to board the same monorail, just a few cars behind.

Meanwhile, Zuko and Iroh boarded the monorail car. They sat down next to a couple who were parents, judging by the infant in the mother's arms.

"What a handsome baby." Iroh complimented.

"Thank you." The mother replied.

The Earthbenders on the end of the monorail began to push on the tracks. The monorail moved out of the station and through the farmland.

(Location: Top of the Outer Wall)

They stood on the wall, watching the sun set. After getting back into the wall, they managed to get all the slurry muck washed off. "Good effort out there, Team Avatar." Sokka said.

"Enough with the 'Team Avatar' stuff." Katara said. "No matter how many times you say it, it's not going to catch on."

"You're wrong about that, Princess." Shù Yè told her. "I already see us as Team Avatar."

"Hold on, 'us'?" Sokka asked her. "You're not a member of this team, Shù Yè. I still don't trust you."

"But I thought me coming with you guys was so I could prove that you could trust me!"

"Just because you helped us do one thing doesn't make you a part of this group."

"What about the Serpent's Pass?"

"Sokka, she tried to stop Azula from taking me." Aang told him. "I say she can be trusted."

"And because you're the Avatar, we should just obey your wishes." Sokka said with obvious sarcasm. But before Katara could get on his case, he continued. "But I already said I'll try to rein in my paranoia. However, if you show so much of hint of betraying us, you're gone."

"Then I'll just have to make sure I don't betray you guys." Shù Yè told him.

As that point, a man stumbled out of a nearby command post. He was wearing nothing but his undergarments. "Hey! You've gotta help me." He yelled at the group when he saw Aang. "You have to stop him!"

"Easy there," Asuma told him. "What happened to you?"

"Someone knocked me unconscious. When I came to, he was putting on my uniform and was about to head for the stairs when he saw that I was awake. He knocked me unconscious again, this time I came to in a closet. I had just gotten out of there."

"How long do you think you were unconscious the second time?" Ino asked him.

"I'm not sure, maybe ten, fifteen minutes." He answered.

"Can you describe the person who took your uniform?" Shikamaru asked.

"Yeah, he had blonde hair, blue eyes and I think he had whiskers on his face."

Everyone in the group (minus Shù Yè) looked at each other, they knew who that was. "Where did he go?" Asuma demanded.

The guard pointed to where he came from. "He was heading to the stairs, I swear!"

They all charged in the direction that was pointed and headed for the stairs. They ran down all the flights of stairs and reached the bottom in almost record time.

"We've got to look for him. Spread out!" Asuma ordered them. They did so, moving away from the staircase entrance to look nearby for the blonde.

"Um…if we're going to look for a guy in a stolen uniform, that's going to be a little difficult." Shù Yè called out.

"Why's that?" Katara asked.

"Because I'm looking at said stolen uniform," She answered. They all grouped around her. The stolen uniform was indeed laying there on the ground in front of the wall. Above the uniform and embedded in the wall was a kunai with a piece of paper attached to it.

"Kami take it, how did he get through!?" Ino demanded.

"What does the paper say?" Shikamaru asked.

Asuma, who was the closest to the kunai, took the piece of paper and read it aloud. It read:

To the Avatar and friends

Thanks for letting me get into Ba Sing Se. It was easy, due to the fact everyone's attention was on the drill (which was its intended purpose).

Now here's the question: Should I destroy Ba Sing Se from within or should have the gates opened and let the Fire Nation just walk in? 

But since you're reading this letter, I'm going to assume you'll try and stop me from doing either of these things. If I'm right, then I just have one thing to say:

Catch me if you can.

Naruto 

"The drill was bait." Shikamaru realized. "And we fell for it."

Sokka took a look at the kunai. "Hey, there's other piece of paper wrapped around the handle." He announced. He removed the paper from the hilt and opened it up. It read;

To the good-looking girl with violet eyes and grey hair

I managed to see you try to fight against Azula. If you ever want some lessons in close combat, just let me know. You're quite good; you just need a little work.

Naruto

Shù Yè had a small blush on her face. "Wow, nobody's complemented me like that before." She said.

"As flattering as that is, it doesn't change this simple fact." Shikamaru said. "Naruto is now somewhere in Ba Sing Se and we don't know where he is or what he's planning to do."

They looked out the farmlands that stretched for miles. "Then we need to get moving." Sokka announced. "The sooner we can deliver the information form Wan Shi Tong's Library, the sooner we can plan an invasion on the Fire Nation and also potentially stop whatever Naruto is planning."

Everyone agreed with what Sokka had said. As they made their to the monorail station they had passed on the way down, Sokka and Shikamaru shared the same thought. _"Let the game begin."_

**End**

**Author's note: **Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

If you think about it, what Shù Yè said does make sense. After a while, Benders get a little predictable. Since Sokka's is not a Bender, he is unpredictable and thus, dangerous.

Now, I've gotten a few reviews that said I've been focusing on Sokka more than Naruto or Azula. I'm doing that now for a reason, which you will soon find out.

Next up is Team Avatar and Team Asuma entering Ba Sing Se, only to meet people they did not expect to see in the city.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	14. Attempts and Surprises

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 14: Attempts and Surprises

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Avatar)

They had stayed the night in the monorail station and taken the first ride out in the morning. The ride was long but they knew they had to be patient.

Katara was the first one to notice. "Look, the Inner Wall!" She said, directing everyone's attention to said Inner Wall. "I can't believe we finally made it to Ba Sing Se in one piece."

"Hey, don't jinx it." Sokka told her. "We could still be attacked by a giant exploding Fire Nation spoon or find out the city's been submerged in an ocean full of killer shrimp."

Both Shù Yè and Akela gave him the "Are you crazy?" look. "You been hitting the cactus juice again?" asked Toph.

"No, that's Chōji." He replied, making Shù Yè snicker and Chōji wince at the memory. "Besides, weird stuff happens to us." And as if to emphasize his point, a large man sucking on some sort of corn plant sat down between them with a very dazed look on his face.

"What do you think happened to him?" Ino whispered to Shikamaru.

"It's too troublesome to think about it." He replied.

"That's your answer to everything!"

"That's enough you two." Asuma told them.

Aang looked away from the window with a downcast expression. Katara saw the expression and decided to cheer him up. "Don't worry Aang." She told him. "We'll find Appa."

"It's such a big city." He replied.

"He's a giant bison." Sokka said, joining the conversation. "Where could someone possibly hide him?"

They soon got an answer as the monorail passed through the Inner Wall tunnel and they saw the city for the first time in their lives. "Dear Kami, it's at least twenty times bigger than Konoha!" Chōji said in awe as he looked the gigantic city, with buildings that were spread out for miles.

"Hey, ice-chewier," Shù Yè called.

"What?" Sokka asked; resigned to the fact she was going to keep calling him that.

"Would you like some help putting your foot in your mouth?" She asked with an innocent expression.

"Shut up." He told her.

They soon came into a monorail station where they disembarked. "Back in the city," Toph said as she rubbed Momo's head. "Great."

"What's the problem?" Sokka asked her. "It's amazing!"

"Just a bunch of walls and rules," She answered. "You wait; you'll get sick of it in a couple of days."

"Okay, our first order of business is to find some food!" Chōji declared.

"You had food at the monorail station just before we left." Ino told him.

"That was not food!" He declared. "That was fertilizer at best and something a rat wouldn't eat at worst!"

"That's harsh." Asuma commented.

"You gotta remember Asuma-sensei." Shikamaru said. "If an Akimichi isn't a shinobi, he's a food critic. Since Chōji's going to be the next clan head, he's gotta be both."

Aang stood near the railing with an open view of Ba Sing Se. He took out the bison whistle and blew. "I'm coming for you buddy." He said to himself. As Katara walked up behind him, he turned his head to her. "He's here, I can feel it."

"Then we might as well go find him." Shù Yè said, joining them. "Come on, let's go, arrowhead!"

"Hold up, we've got company." Asuma said. The monorail had started up again and left the station. It revealed a woman with a very (and I mean _very_) creepy smile on the opposite side of the tracks. She quickly made her way over to the group. "Hello, my name is Joo Dee." She introduced herself in a polite (but strange) way. "I have been given the great honor of showing the Avatar around Ba Sing Se. And you must be Sokka, Katara, Toph, Asuma, Ino, Shikamaru, Chōji and Shù Yè."

Akela then did something strange. He began to growl and bark at Joo Dee, like he was warning her to stay away from the group. "Akela, heel!" ordered Sokka, restraining the wolf just as he was about to attack Joo Dee. "Calm down, would ya? She hasn't done anything to us."

"Welcome to our wonderful city." Joo Dee continued without missing a beat. "Shall we get started?"

"Shikamaru, can you take care of this?" Sokka asked. "My hands are kinda full here."

"Troublesome." Shikamaru muttered before walking over to Joo Dee. "We have information that needs to be given to the Earth King ASAP."

"Great, let's begin our tour and then I'll show you to your new home here. I think you'll like it." She started to walk away.

Sokka managed to calm Akela and then went after Joo Dee. "Maybe you missed what the guy said." He told her. "We need to talk to the king about the war, it's important."

"You're in Ba Sing Se now." She replied. "Everyone is safe here."

The group looked at her, but they could do nothing except follow her to a carriage large enough to accommodate them all. They started off and began the "tour".

"This is the Lower Ring." Joo Dee told them as they passed through.

"What's that wall for?" Katara asked looking out the carriage window.

"Oh, Ba Sing Se has many walls. There are the ones outside, protecting us and the ones inside that help maintain order. This is where our newest arrivals live as well as our craftsmen and artisans, people who work with their hands. It's so quaint and lively."

"That's not what I'd call it." Shù Yè said as she and Katara looked out the window and looked at the people in the streets. "I'd call it the slums."

"Well…you'd do want to watch your step." Joo Dee agreed.

"That's putting it mildly." Asuma commented.

"Why do they have all the poor people blocked off in one part of the city?" Katara asked.

"This is why I never came here before." Aang said. "I always heard it was so different from the way the monks taught us to live." He looked out the window.

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

In a different part of the Lower Ring, Zuko was walking down a marketplace. He was soon joined by Iroh, who was holding a vase of flowers. "I just want our new place to look nice in case someone brings home a lady friend." He said after seeing Zuko's glare, giving him a nudge and a wink.

"This city is a prison." Zuko said with bleakness in his voice. "I don't want to make a life here."

"Life happens wherever you are, whether you make it or not." Iroh told him. "Now come on, I found us some new jobs and we start this afternoon."

They walked on, obvious of who was glaring at them. "Look at them, Firebenders living right under everyone's nose." Jet said with contempt.

"Jet, you saw a man with a hot cup of tea, it doesn't prove he's a Firebender." Smellerbee told him. "And what if he is? Are we supposed to attack them? I thought we were starting over here, changing our ways."

"We are." He assured her. "When I get the evidence I need, I'll report them to the police and let them handle it. Okay?"

Smellerbee and Longshot shared a look and left Jet alone. "Your friends don't seem think you're right about this." A voice in a nearby alley said.

Jet whipped his head around to face the alley. "Who's there?" He demanded.

"Someone who loves the Earth Kingdom just as much as you do," The person answered as he stepped out of the shadows of the alley. He was a teenager who looked to be a little older then Jet. He had black hair and dark green eyes. "I heard you say that they were Firebenders and I'm willing to believe you where your friends haven't."

Jet looked at him in silence before holding out his hand. "Okay then, if you're willing to help me prove they're Firebenders, I'll trust you. I'm Jet."

The stranger took the offered hand and shook it. "The name's Guǐ."

Jet gave a chuckle. "Who name's their kid ghost?"

He grew quiet. "The matron at the orphanage called me that. She kept saying that I was too damn quiet."

Jet was silent. "…I'm sorry. I lost my parents too."

"Think nothing of it. Let's go prove these guys are Firebenders." The two of them proceeded to go after Zuko and Iroh.

(Location: Team Avatar)

"This is the Middle Ring of Ba Sing Se, home to the financial district, shops and restaurants and the University." Joo Dee told them as the carriage crossed over a bridge.

Sokka heard the last part and tried again. "Yeah, we met a professor from Ba Sing Se University. He took us to an ancient underground library where we discovered information about the war that is absolutely CRUICAL FOR THE KING TO HEAR!" He told the guide.

She just gave the creepy smile. "Isn't history fascinating? Look, here is one of the oldest buildings in the Middle Ring, town hall." The carriage stopped and she got out of the carriage.

"Okay, something's wrong with that woman." Sokka stated. "She only seems to hear every other word I say."

"It's called being handled." Toph told them. "Get used to it."

"This is becoming more troublesome then it's worth." Shikamaru stated.

Akela just looked out the carriage to Joo Dee and snarled.

(Location: Jet & Guǐ)

They stood outside a teashop, on opposite sides of the door, looking through the shutters. Inside the teashop were the two supposed Firebenders.

"Well, you certainly look like official tea servers." The owner of the teashop told them. "How do you feel?"

"Ridiculous." Zuko answered. Both he and his uncle were wearing aprons.

Iroh struggled to tie the apron strings behind his back. "Uh…does this possibly come in a larger size?" He asked.

"I have extra string in the back." The owner told him as he poured two cups of tea. "Have some tea while you wait."

He left to go get the string, leaving the two with their tea. Zuko just scowled at his tea while Iroh drank his before making a disgusted sound. "This tea is nothing more than hot leaf juice!" He complained.

"Uncle, that's what all tea is." Zuko said in a long suffering voice, like he's had this conversation before.

"How could a member of my own family say something so horrible!?" demanded Iroh. "We'll have to make some major changes around here." He took hold of the teapot, walked over to one of the windows and threw out the tea.

Jet gave a small gasp and moved out of the way to avoid getting tea splashed on him. He signaled Guǐ and the two of them disappeared into an alley.

(Location: Team Avatar)

"The Upper Ring is home to our most important citizens." Joo Dee told them. "Your house is not too far from here."

They soon passed a large wall. "What's inside that wall?" Katara asked, looking out the carriage window. She could see the roof of a building beyond the wall but nothing more than that. She could also see three men standing in a doorway, watching the carriage pass.

"And who are the mean looking guys in robes?" Sokka asked.

"Inside is the Royal Palace." Joo Dee answered. "Those men are agents of the Dai Li, the cultural authority of Ba Sing Se. They are the guardians of all our traditions."

"Can we go see the king now?" Aang asked.

"Oh no, one doesn't just pop in on the Earth King."

The members of Team Asuma all shared the same thought. _"This is getting complicated."_

Soon afterwards, the carriage stopped and they got out. "Here we are your new home." Joo Dee the group looked at the house, a courier ran and gave her a message. "More good news, your request for an audience with the Earth King is being processed and should be put through in about a month, much more quickly than usual."

"A month!?" repeated Sokka.

"Six to eight weeks actually," She clarified before giving the creepy grin.

The group was silent until both Shù Yè and Ino broke it in unison. "WHAT?" They yelled at Joo Dee.

"There is no need to shout." She replied calmly. "Please, let us go inside." She ushered them into the house. "Isn't it nice? I think you'll really enjoy here."

"I think we'd enjoy it more if we weren't staying so long." Sokka told her. "Can't we see the king any sooner?"

"The Earth King is very busy running the finest city in the world. But he will see you as time permits."

Aang looked out a nearby window. "If we're going to be here for a month, we should spend our time looking for Appa." He said. Momo perked up when he heard those words.

"I'll be happy to escort you anywhere you'd like to go."

"No, you're staying here." Shikamaru told her.

"Yeah, we don't need a babysitter." Toph said before getting up from where she sat and headed for the door.

"Oh, I won't get in the way." Joo Dee said while she moved to block Toph's path. "And to leave you alone would make me a bad host. Where shall we start?"

They decided to start at a pet store. The minute they went in, Momo went straight for the feed only to be scared off by a cat owl, which then had a snarling match with Akela.

"I'm sorry." The pet store owner said. "But I haven't heard anything about a flying bison. I didn't even know there were any."

"If someone wanted to sell a stolen animal without anyone knowing, why would they go?" Aang asked. That question made Team Asuma looked at him with incredulous expressions. _"Dear Kami, he actually doesn't have a clue!" _They thought.

"Where's the black market!?" Sokka demanded. "Who runs it? C'mon, you know."

The owner started to sweat nervously when he saw Joo Dee shake her head. "That would be illegal." He finally answered. He noticed noise coming from the sides. "You'll have to leave now; your pets are causing a disturbance." Momo was trying to take feed while waving off birds while Akela was still barking at the cat owl.

They left the pet store and decided to try the University. "Hm, I've never seen any Sandbenders or nomads around here." A student told them. "You should ask Professor Zei. He teaches the class on desert cultures."

"_Well, we can't do that since he's still in the Library." _Sokka thought to himself but aloud, he said. "Right and which of your professors could we ask about the war with the Fire Nation?"

The student grew nervous as he looked at Joo Dee, who again shook her head. This time, both Sokka and Shikamaru noticed it. They turned their heads to look at her but she had already stopped moving her head. "I don't know. I'm not a political science student."

"It's not that hard a question." Shù Yè told him. "Just tell us who to talk to about the war."

"I…uh…I have to get to class!" The student leapt up from where he sat but tripped and dropped his scrolls. Picking them up quickly, he ran away from them.

At this point, Joo Dee had decided that was enough and had them driven back to their house. "Well, I'm sorry no one has seen your bison." She told them as they stood on the stairs. "Why don't you go get some rest? Someone will be over with dinner later." The carriage rolled away, leaving them alone. They then noticed that a person in the house across from them was peeking out from his door. When he noticed that they noticed, he tried to hide.

"Hey, come with me." Sokka told everyone. They walked across to the other house and Sokka knocked on the door.

The man opened the door. "You're the Avatar! I heard you were in town. I'm Pong." He introduced himself.

"Nice to meet you, Pong." Aang greeted.

"So Pong, what's going on with this city?" Sokka asked. "Why is everyone here so scared to talk about the war?"

"War? Scared? What do you mean?" Pong asked as his eyes kept looking around.

"I can feel you shaking." Toph told him.

"It's not a good idea to lie right now." Chōji warned him.

"Look, I'm just a minor government official." He told them in a whisper. "I've waited three years to get this house. I don't want to get into trouble."

"Get into trouble with who?" Katara asked in a normal level of voice.

"Sssh," He said with a finger over his lips. "Listen, you can't mention the war here, and whatever you do, stay away from the Dai Li." He closed the door in their faces.

"…Well that was weird." Shù Yè said as they went back into their own house. The sun had begun to set as they walked through the door.

"Aside from that, something is going on in this city." Shikamaru stated. "That guide was pretty much blocking us the entire day."

"But we really can't do anything." Chōji pointed out. "We don't have any contacts here. We're literally on our own."

"That and we did a pretty bad job at interrogating people out there." Sokka admitted.

"Don't beat yourself up. You did okay for an amateur." Ino told him. "You just pressed them too soon."

Dinner soon came and they eat the meal slowly, thinking about what to do. They threw out suggestions but nothing really seemed to work. Finally they finished the meal. Aang, Katara, Toph and Shù Yè decided to go to bed, taking Momo and Akela with them and leaving Sokka with Team Asuma.

"Is there something you need, Sokka?" Asuma asked him.

"Actually, I've had a question that I wanted to ask since I first met you all in the swamp." He told them.

"Why did you wait this long?" asked Ino.

"I had the feeling that if I asked the question in front of everyone, I would have caused some bad tension between us. Also the answer that we got would also somehow cause both Katara and Aang to vehemently deny it."

"We wouldn't do that." Aang's voice came from behind the door leading to the bedrooms.

Both Team Asuma and Sokka glared at the door. "Aang, did the monks ever teach you that it was rude to eavesdrop?" Sokka asked aloud.

The door opened and Aang walked in sheepishly. "Sorry but I was curious about why Sokka wanted to talk to you guys."

"Are you still going to ask us?" Chōji asked.

Sokka sighed. "Might as well, it'd probably be better this way." He took a deep breath. "My question is this: Who are Kakashi, Sakura and Sasuke and what are they to Naruto?"

Team Asuma grew silent for a few minutes before Asuma spoke. "Kakashi Hatake, Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha are all members of Team Kakashi, of which Naruto is a former member."

"Why aren't they here?" Aang asked.

"Actually we don't know why ourselves." Ino answered.

"Guy-sensei knew." Shikamaru said. "I asked him about during the aftermath of Kouzan."

"I thought he knew something too, but I didn't approach him for the same reasons." Sokka admitted.

"According to Guy-sensei, it was Lady Tsunade who decided not to bring in Team Kakashi. She didn't bring them because of personal feelings."

"Oh, I see." Asuma said.

"Now it makes sense." Ino stated.

"They hate Naruto that much!?" Aang asked with surprise.

That question caused Team Asuma to snort in disbelief. "Hate him? It's Team Kakashi that wants him back the most!" Chōji told the Airbender.

"…How far would they go to get him back?" Sokka asked.

"If there was a choice between saving your lives and going after Naruto, they would leave you for dead in a heartbeat." Shikamaru stated bluntly.

While Sokka had a neutral face, Aang had one of horror. "No one would do that!" He stated. "No one would leave people to die just so they could try and find one person!"

"I rest my case." Sokka simply said.

Asuma looked at Aang. "Yes they would, Aang. They want Naruto back in Konoha and they are willing to do anything to make it happened. If they had to kill you to find him, you would be dead before you realize it."

If it was even possible, Aang grew more horrified. "But I…I am the Avatar. They…they wouldn't kill me." He protested weakly.

"They wouldn't care if you were Kami herself." Shikamaru told him bluntly. "If killing you was a way to get to Naruto, your successor would be the one to defeat the Fire Lord."

The room was silent until Sokka finally broke it. "Perhaps it's best we all get some sleep." Everyone agreed with what he suggested and went to their separate bedrooms.

(Location: Jet & Guǐ)

They crouched behind a laundry line, watching Zuko and Iroh in their apartment.

"Would you like a pot of tea?" Iroh asked his nephew.

"We've been working in a teashop all day." Zuko told him. "I'm sick of tea!"

"Sick of tea!?" repeated Iroh. "That's like being sick of breathing!" He looked through the cupboards. "Have you seen our spark rocks to heat up the water?"

"They're not there." Jet said to himself, his hand holding the same spark rocks Iroh was looking for. "You'll have to Firebend, old man." He then noticed that Iroh was leaving the apartment. "Where are you going?"

"Jet," Guǐ whispered. "Did you steal the spark rocks from their apartment only?"

Their answer was given when Iroh came back in. "I borrowed our neighbor's. Such kind people," He told Zuko. With two strikes of the spark rocks, the fire was lit and the tea was boiling.

"Damn!" Jet swore. "I thought that would work."

"It just shows that we need to survey them better, that's all." Guǐ told.

(Location: Team Avatar house)

The morning was up and going, as evident by the birds singing. Katara yawned as she walked outside the door. She grabbed the newspaper that was in the front basket, read it and gave a gasp of excitement. She ran back into the house. "I've got it!" She declared. "I know how we're going to see the Earth King."

"How are we supposed to do that? One doesn't just pop in on the Earth King." Toph asked, mimicking Joo Dee.

"Not to mention the guide problem." Shikamaru added.

"The king is having a party at the palace for his pet bear." Katara told them.

"You mean platypus-bear?" Aang asked her.

"No, it just says bear."

"Certainly you mean his pet skunk-bear." Sokka said. Akela had a look of distaste when he heard the skunk-bear.

"Or his armadillo-bear," Toph said.

"Gopher-bear?" asked Aang.

"Just…bear." Katara repeated.

"This place is weird." Toph stated.

"Actually, there are a lot of bears where we live." Chōji told them.

"But that's on your side of the world." Sokka pointed out.

"No, there are definitely bears here. They're just rare." Shù Yè said.

"And how do you know that?" Asuma asked her.

"Mainly because I spent a winter with a mother bear and her cub when I was five," She said. She saw the surprised and curious faces and knew she had to explain. "I got kicked out of the house for the season and was left to fend for myself. I ended up in the forest and collapse in a cave. When I came to, I was sleeping next to a bear cub and the mother." She smiled sadly. "After that winter, they had left and I never saw them again. There are days when I miss that cub, we would always roughhouse when we weren't sleeping or eating."

"Did you ever go looking for them?" Aang asked.

She shook her head. "They disappeared after that winter and I couldn't leave the village."

"Could we get back to the main subject here?" Katara asked them. "The palace will be packed. We can sneak in with the crowd."

"Won't work," Toph said as she kicked back and relaxed.

"Why not?" asked Katara.

"Well, no offense to you simple country folk, but a real society crowd would spot you a mile away. You've got no manners." She picked up a pastry and munched on it loudly.

"Excuse me? I've got no manners? You're not exactly Lady Fancy Fingers."

"Also, we were taught manners!" Ino said, gesturing to herself and her teammates.

"Yeah and it was a drag, but her idea of manners are probably different than ours." Shikamaru pointed out.

Toph burped and tossed the pastry away. "I learned proper society behavior and chose to leave it. You never learned anything and frankly, it's a little too late."

"But you learned it, so you could teach us!" Aang said, getting an idea in his head. "I'm mastering every element, how hard can manners be?" He grabbed a nearby drape and put on like a cloak. "Good evening Paragon Sokka, Miss. Katara Water Tribe, Mr. Sarutobi, Miss. Yamanaka, Mr. Nara, Mr. Akimichi, Chief Akela of the White Wolves clan, Lord Momo of the Momo dynasty , your Momo-ness." He said in what he thought was a civilized voice, bowing to everyone. He kept bowing until he accidently hit Sokka on the head as he was standing up.

"Katara and Shù Yè might be able to pull it off." Toph noted. "But you two would be lucky to pass as busboys."

"No." Sokka said. "Shù Yè stays here."

Before anyone (Katara or Aang) could tell him to stop being paranoid, Shù Yè spoke up. "Oh trust me, ice chewier. I wasn't planning on going. I don't think I would really fit in, and besides…" She gestured (almost shyly) to her chest. "Once they start talking about these, I'll be a wreck."

"We'll stay here as well." Asuma said. "We'll keep an eye on Shù Yè and make sure that we're safe."

"Then let's get to work." Toph said. The rest of the day was spent on shopping and getting ready (the last part Katara and Toph had disappeared into a room alone for). Aang and Sokka started to play a variation on Rock-Paper-Scissors, Asuma was writing up a mission report and Shù Yè was talking to Shikamaru, Ino and Chōji. Akela was taking a nap while Momo sat by.

Finally the door to the room where Katara and Toph had disappeared to opened to reveal Toph and Katara all dressed up. They held the pose for a few seconds before giggling.

"Wow, you look beautiful." Aang told Katara as he blushed.

Katara was about to respond but was stopped when Toph put her fan in front of her face. "Don't talk to the commoners, Katara. First rule of society," She told her.

They started to walk to the door. "We'll get in the party and then find a way to let you through the side gate." Katara said to them.

"Just be careful in there and for Kami's sake, don't blow your cover." Asuma warned them.

"Got it," Toph said. The two left, leaving everyone else in the house. Had they stayed a little longer, they would have seen Momo walking across the floor, wearing a curtain like a cape.

(Location: Jet & Guǐ)

They stood in an alleyway across from the teashop and watched as one of the city guards went into the shop. "We should go in there and tell the truth right now!" Jet told Guǐ.

"Take it easy, Jet." He replied. "We don't have enough evidence. Even if there weren't off-duty guards in there, if we go in and accused people without evidence, we're in jail."

Jet only scowled at the teashop. "Jet!" called out Smellerbee as she and Longshot joined the two. "We need to talk."

"What? Oh great, it's you guys. Where've you been? We could use some help with surveillance here." He said, gesturing to himself and Guǐ.

"Who's this?" Smellerbee asked.

"My name is Guǐ." He introduced himself.

"He's been helping me out." Jet told them.

"Look, Jet. We've been talking and we think you're becoming obsessed with this. It's not healthy."

"Oh, really? You both think this?"

Longshot simply put his hand on Smellerbee's shoulder, showing his agreement. "We came here to make a fresh start." Smellerbee told him. "But you won't let this go, even though there's no proof!"

"Well, maybe if you'd help us!"

"Jet, you've gotta stop this."

"Maybe you've forgotten why we need to start over. Maybe you've forgotten about how the Fire Nation left us all homeless. How they wiped out all the people we loved." As he talked, Smellerbee and Longshot looked down at the ground as they remembered. "If you don't want to help us, we'll get the evidence on our own."

"Jet, we just need to keep an eye out until we have the evidence. We can't go barging in there." Guǐ told him.

"Then I guess I have to do this on my own!" He marched towards the teashop, leaving the three of them in the alley.

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

Zuko was serving the tea while Iroh poured it.

"This is the best tea in the city!" One of the customers, an off-duty guard, declared.

"The secret ingredient is love." Iroh told them as he wafted in the steam. As he walked away, Zuko gave him a look. _"If tea was power, then uncle would rule the world." _He thought to himself.

Looking at how many people were in his shop, the owner looked over at Iroh. "I think you're due for a raise." He said.

The shop's door slammed open and Jet stormed in. "I'm tired of waiting. These two men are Firebenders!" He shouted pointed at Zuko and Iroh, who shared a look as he drew his hook swords. "I know they're Firebenders, I saw the old man heating his tea!"

"_Agni! He did see it!"_ Zuko swore to himself before quickly giving Iroh a glare. Iroh managed to look sheepish and apologetic at the same time

The two off-duty guards looked at each other and then back at Jet. "He works in a teashop." The one with Dao swords said.

"He's a Firebender, I'm telling you!" Jet shouted.

The guards stood up. "Drop your swords boy, nice and easy." The guard told him.

Jet didn't listen. He just started to walk towards the accused. "You'll have to defend yourself. Then everyone will know." He told Iroh. "Go ahead; show them what you can do."

Zuko took that as an invitation. He walked forward and grabbed the guard's Dao swords, drawing them out of the sheath. "You want a show? I'll give you a show!" He said, taking a stance. He tested Jet's reaction time by hooking his leg behind a table leg and pushing the entire table at the Freedom Fighter.

Jet sliced the table apart and then jumped over it. When he landed he swung at Zuko, making him jump backwards onto a table. Jet cut the table in half and when Zuko stayed on one side of the table, balancing on one foot, he sliced off the table legs.

Zuko leapt high in the air before coming back down and swing his borrowed swords at Jet's feet. Jet flipped backwards to avoid the strike. He landed on his feet and charged Zuko again. The two of them swung their swords at each other, continuing the fight.

(Location: Royal Palace)

There was a line already lined up in front of the palace. Katara and Toph walked up to the guard who was checking the line. "Invitation please," He said.

"I think this will do." Toph said, holding up the Beifong seal.

"No entry without an invitation." The guard told her. "Step out of line please."

"Look, the Pangs and the Yum Soon Hans are waiting in there for us!" She replied, putting the seal away. "I'm going to have to tell them who didn't let me in."

"Step out of line please." The guard repeated, pointing his finger.

The two of them did so. They saw a carriage coming up to the entrance. A man got out of the carriage and began walking to the entrance. When Katara saw nearby guards bowing to the man, she got an idea. She grabbed Toph and made her way over to the man. "Sir," She began. "I'm sorry to bother you but my cousin lost our invitations. She's blind." She whispered the last part before speaking normally. "Do you think you could help us? Our family's inside and I'm sure they're very worried."

His eyes gazed over them before a warm smile. "I am honored." He said with a small bow of his head.

"Is something the matter?" A quiet voice (almost hoarse if you felt nasty) asked from behind them.

The man turned and Katara and Toph saw who was talking. Behind the man stood three people that were about the same age as Ino, Shikamaru and Chōji. The one who had spoken stood in the middle. He had red hair and light green eyes, almost the same color Toph's eyes had. He wore a long sleeved crimson coat and when the wind blew, it was shown that he wore dark pants with a pair of laces on each leg, one below the waist and the other beneath the knee. He wore a couple of buckled belts and a grey vest with one strap over his left shoulder. He had a gourd strapped to his back that was held by the vest and the belts. However the two things that attracted their attention was the fact that his eyes were surrounded by black rings and he had a symbol the color of blood on his forehead above his left eye.

The person on the right of the first person was a young woman. She had green eyes and blonde hair (darker than Ino's) which was tied into four separate ponytails. She wore a black short sleeved kimono that had slits along the sides. She also wore black fingerless gloves and a red sash around her waist. She had what appeared to be some sort of iron club on her back.

The third person was a young man. What he wore was simple enough. He wore black trousers and a black top with long sleeves, also with a red sash around his waist. He wore a black hood that cover his head and looked like it had cat ears. What was truly odd about him was the fact he wore face paint. It was purple and he had drawn it across his eyes, from cheek to cheek and from the upper lip to his chin.

What caught their attention was the headband the woman wore and the hood the second man wore. Both the headband and the hood had the same kind of metal plate the Konoha shinobi had, but the symbol was not a leaf. Instead, it showed a symbol of an hourglass figure with a thin rectangle above it.

"Not at all," The man Katara had spoken to said. "These two girls lost their invitations and have family waiting inside. They had asked for my help."

"Very well," The red haired teenager spoke.

"Let's get inside; people will start looking if we stay here." The woman said.

"Follow me please." The man told them. He walked up to the guard, who bowed to him and let him passed. Both Katara and Toph couldn't resist blowing raspberries at the guard as they passed.

Inside the palace ballroom, people stood together in groups and made small talk. In the center of the room was a long table and at the end of the table sat a big, brown bear. The bear was eating everything in front of him, much to the disgust of the two men sitting beside the bear.

"He's taking all the good stuff!" The older man complained

"Quiet! You don't know what I had to do to get seats this near the bear!" The younger man hissed.

The bear had then smacked away the food in front of him and leapt for the roasted meal in front of him, eating like an animal (wait…he is an animal). A waiter came by with some food. "Excuse me, sirs." He told the two men. "But the Earth King wanted the bear near the best food. If you'll excuse me…" He held the food under the bear's nose, getting his attention. Slowly, the waiter forced the bear back to the end of the table where his seat was by using the food's delicious smell. Once the bear was seated, the food was placed in front of him. "Here you are, sir." The waiter told the bear. "The Earth King wants the catering staff to tell you to mind your manners. So please be careful about how you eat. You wouldn't want the Earth King to be mad at you, would you?"

The bear seemed to understand what he was saying, because he nodded and then eat the food in front of him with a little more care. The waiter walked away to continue his job

At the entrance, Katara and Toph had arrived with the man and the three others. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" The man asked the group. "By the way, I'm Long Feng. I'm a cultural minister to the king." He introduced himself to Katara and Toph.

"I'm Kwa Mai," Katara introduced herself. "And this is…Dum." Gesturing to Toph, who yanked on a string attached to Katara's headdress, making her wince in pain.

"Now where is your family? I'd love to meet them."

Katara took a quick look around. "Uh…I don't see them right now. But I'm sure we'll find them soon." She grabbed Toph and started to walk away. "Thanks for all your help."

When they looked away, he suddenly appeared in front of them. "Don't worry. As your escort, it would be dishonorable to abandon you ladies without finding your family first. We'll keep looking."

Katara and Toph were in a pinch. They tried to think of a way out when the red haired teenager spoke up. "Perhaps they don't wish to appear incompetent to their family. Losing their invitations would qualify as incompetence." He said.

Katara nodded in agreement. "Truth be told sir." She said to Long Feng. "This is our first party where we were going to be treated as adults. That's why we were alone outside. If our parents discovered that we had lost our invitations, they'll say that we're still too immature for these kinds of parties."

"No kid wants to appear like that in front of their parents." The face painted man said.

"I understand but I still must help you find them." Long Feng said. "We will simply tell your parents that you ran into me and we began to have a conversation." He continued walking in front of them and they followed.

(Location: Outside the palace)

Aang, Momo and Sokka hid behind a lion statue, watching a side entrance. "Where are they?" Aang asked, as he and Sokka peeked out to look at the entrance.

"I don't know." Sokka said as they went back behind the statue. "They might have been held up. We need to improvise."

"What about them?" Aang asked, looking at a group of busboys. "Toph said we could pass as busboys."

"Sounds like a plan." He agreed. "We just have to be careful."

(Location: Teashop)

The door to the teashop shattered as Zuko went through it. _"Wasn't expecting that kick," _He thought as he landed in the street.

Jet went after him and swung his hook blades at him. Zuko managed blocked them using the hilts to stop them. "You must be tried of using those swords. Why don't you go ahead and Firebend at me?" asked Jet.

"_Does this rock-headed idiot realize he's fighting a master of duel Dao blades!?" _Zuko thought to himself.

"Please,son, you're confused!" Iroh shouted from the doorway as the two fought. "You don't know what you're doing!"

"Bet you wish he'd help you out with a little fire blast right now." Jet told Zuko as he hooked the ends of his swords together and started to swing them around, like a flail. He pushed Zuko back until the Dao sword wielder used one of his swords to stop the flail-like attacks, trapping it in the pavement.

"You're the one who needs help!" Zuko told him. Both letting go of their respective stuck swords, Jet tried to attack but pulled it back as Zuko advanced, swinging at his head. He bent backwards to avoid the sword strike, the piece of wheat in his mouth chopped in half.

He quickly regained his balance and leapt back to a nearby well. "You see that!?" He called out to the people who were nearby. "The Fire Nation is trying to silence me. It'll never happen!" Using his remaining hook sword as momentum and the well's wooden beam as an anchor, he swung himself at Zuko into a flying kick, starting the fight up again.

(Location: Palace ballroom)

Both Sokka and Aang had managed to get into the party as busboys. Aang was pouring drinks when he heard a voice behind him. "Hey, you with the pitcher," The voice called out. He turned around and saw the man with face paint. "Fill her up." He held out a cup.

Aang wordlessly pour a drink. The man took a sip, nodded in appreciation to Aang and walked away. Sokka soon walked past with a tray of food. "Where are Toph and Katara?" He asked.

"I don't know. I haven't seen them." Sokka replied. "Ah! I wish Shikamaru or Ino were here. They'd be great at helping us find the Earth King."

"But they'd have more trouble fitting in then us." Aang replied. "They said so themselves."

"Yeah, I know. Just keep looking for the Earth King."

"I don't know what he looks like."

Momo's tail began to wave in front of Sokka's face. "You know, royal, flowing robe, fancy jewelry." He said as he grabbed the tail tightly and pulled it back down, making Aang's hat squirm.

"That could be anyone." Aang said as he looked out to the crowd.

"Another crab puff, please." Toph asked, standing next to them.

"You found us!" Aang exclaimed as Sokka served a cream puff.

"I'd know your little footsteps anywhere, Twinkle Toes." She told him.

"Thanks for letting us in." Sokka said to his sister with very obvious sarcasm as she joined them.

"Sorry, but the guy who escorted us won't let us out of his sight!" She told him.

"What guy?" He asked looking around. Long Feng had disappeared.

"Excuse me." The blonde haired women said as she stood next to Sokka. "A crab puff, please." Sokka extended the tray towards her and she took one. "Thanks." She said before walking away.

"Have you guys seen the king?" Sokka asked the girls.

"No we haven't." Katara said.

He gave an irritated sigh. "Next time, we bring Team Asuma with us."

That was when Joo Dee showed up. "What are you doing here?" She demanded; the creepy smile not on her face for once. "You need to leave immediately or we'll all be in terrible trouble!" She tried to push Sokka away but he used the tray as a shield, spilling the crab puffs.

"Not until we see the king." He told her.

"You don't understand. You must go!" She pushed Sokka onto Aang, who spilt the pitcher he was carrying onto a guest who screamed in surprise.

She looked over to who had spilled the drink on her, her makeup ruined. "Sorry." Aang apologized. "No, don't shout!" He dried her without thinking using Airbending, making his hat fly off. The end result for the guest was a rather…spiky outfit and hairstyle.

Oddly (or predictably, take your pick) enough, her reaction was something else. "The Avatar!" was what she said. "Oh, I didn't know the Avatar would be here!" When she said that, she got everyone's attention and a small crowd had circled around him. This made a revealed Momo go for the hat on the floor and scurry away. Meanwhile, the smile on Joo Dee's face had melted away, replaced with a look of dread.

He gave a nervous grin and waved to the people around him. "You keep their attention while I look for the king." Sokka whispered into his ear.

"Watch this everybody!" Aang called out as Sokka moved away. He leapt out of his busboy uniform and high into the air. He landed on the table and by bending the drinks out of people's cups, put on a show with multi-colored drinks. Impressed and awed, the people clapped at the show. Even the bear approved.

"Hey look, dinner and a show." The man with face paint noted. He then looked over at the bear. "Is anyone else besides me wondering what a bear is doing in a ballroom?"

"No, we're just wondering why you haven't shut up yet?" The woman replied.

"Enough." The red haired teenager told the both of them quietly.

(Location: Zuko & Jet)

The swordfight between the two of them raged on. The fight was attracting a crowd. Somehow, the two of them ended up back-to-back. But that didn't stop them; they just kept swinging at each other from the sides, trying to get to the opponent behind them.

The ruckus had finally gotten the attention of two Dai Li agents. "Drop your weapons!" One agent ordered.

The swordsmen broke apart. "Arrest them!" Jet told the Dai Li. "They're Firebenders!"

"This poor boy is confused." Iroh told the agents. "We're just simple refugees."

"This young man wrecked my teashop and assaulted my employees!" The teashop owner said, pointing at Jet.

"It's true sir, we saw the whole thing." One of the off-duty guards supplied. "This crazy kid attacked the finest tea maker in the city."

Iroh blushed. "Oh, that's very sweet."

The Dai Li agents walked up to behind Jet. "Come with us, son." The second one told him. He swung his sword at one of them but was quickly disarmed. The two agents forced Jet's hands behind his back and put him into handcuffs made from the stones of their rock gloves.

"You don't understand." Jet yelled at them as they dragged him away. "They're Fire Nation! You have to believe me." He was put into the carriage and rode off. Amongst the crowd, Smellerbee and Longshot quickly walked away while Guǐ left in another direction.

Zuko turned back to the off-duty guard from whom he had taken the Dao swords from. "Sorry about that." He said, handing the sword back and leaving with Iroh.

(Location: Palace ballroom)

A gong sounded as the Earth King was carried in a large, curtained palanquin, along with guards.

Sokka got closer to the front of the crowd to make sure it was the man they were looking for. The palanquin was put down and a line of guards stood in front of it. "Aang!" called out Sokka. "The Earth King!"

Aang was still putting on a show, this time with multi-colored bubbles and with the bear trying to grab them. Turning around and letting the bubbles disappear, he bent an Air Scooter and rode it down the length of the table. "Greeting, Your Majesty!" He called out. As he flew by, people grabbed their food and drinks and pull them out of the way.

The curtained palanquin was picked up and quickly walked out of the ballroom while a line of guards stood at the end of the table. Noticing that the Earth King was leaving, Sokka broke through the crowd and went after the palanquin. However, two Dai Li agents grabbed him and took him out of the room. The same happened to Toph, Katara and Momo.

Aang reached the end of the table and made a dismount but it wasn't the Earth King that greeted him, it was the man who escorted Katara and Toph. "Avatar, it is a great honor to meet you." He said. "I am Long Feng, Grand Secretariat of Ba Sing Se and head of the Dai Li. I would like to talk to you. Your friends will be waiting for in the library." He walked away. Aang got off the table and followed.

Neither one noticed that three people also left the ballroom and who were also discreetly following them.

The door to the library slammed shut, making it dark except for a pair of lights at the door and a heath behind Long Feng, which burned green fire.

"Why won't you let us talk to the King!?" Sokka demanded, out of his busboy uniform. "We have information that could defeat the Fire Nation!"

"The Earth King has no time to get involved with political squabbles and the day-to-day minutia of military activities." Long Feng told them.

"This could be the most important thing he's ever heard." Aang said.

"What's most important to his Royal Majesty is maintaining the cultural heritage of Ba Sing Se." Long Feng placed emphasis on the word 'cultural'. "All his duties relate to issuing royal decrees on such matters. It's my job to oversee the rest of the city's resources, including the military."

"So the king is just a figurehead." Katara said, realizing what that meant.

"He's your puppet!" Toph accused.

"Oh no, no." said Long Feng, rising his hands in defense. "His Majesty is an icon, a god to his people. He can't sully his hands with the hourly changes of an endless war."

"But we found out about a solar eclipse that will leave the Fire Nation defenseless." Sokka told him, hoping he'd listen. "You could lead an invasion—"

"Enough!" Long Feng cut him off. "I don't want to hear your ridiculous plan. It is the strict policy of Ba Sing Se that the war not be mentioned within the walls. Constant news of an escalating war will throw the citizens of Ba Sing Se into a state of panic."

(Location: Unknown)

The two Dai Li agents dragged Jet into a room and strapped him into a chair.

"You have to believe me, they're Firebenders!" He told them. "They won't stop until they win the war."

The agents bent a circle of small rocks to clamp down around his head.

"Calm down." A third Dai Li agent, standing in the middle of an iron track said. "You're safe now." A lantern began to move along the track, going in a circle.

(Location: Palace library)

"Our economy would be ruined. Our peaceful way of life, our traditions would disappear." Long Feng told them.

(Location: Unknown)

"There's no war in Ba Sing Se." The agent said as the lantern circled around him.

"What are you talking about?" Jet asked. "Where do you think all the refuges come from? You can't hide it."

(Location: Palace Library)

"In silencing talk of conflict, Ba Sing Se remains a peaceful, orderly utopia. The last one on this planet," Long Feng continued.

(Location: Unknown)

Jet now had a circle of stones around his mouth, which muffled his protests. The only thing he could do was track the lantern with his eyes.

"There is no war within the walls." The agent continued. "Here we are safe. Here, we are free."

Jet's eyes went wide as he heard the last part as he finally succumbed to the brainwashing.

(Location: Palace library)

"You can't keep the truth from all these people." Katara told Long Feng. "They have to know."

"I'll tell them!" Aang declared. "I'll make sure everyone knows!"

Long Feng walked up to Aang. "Until now, you've been treated as our honored guest." He bowed down to look Aang in the eye. "But from now on, you will be watched every moment by Dai Li agents. If you mention the war to anyone, you'll be expelled from the city." He walked back to the heath. "I understand you've been looking for your bison. It would be quite a shame if you were not able to complete your quest."

Aang scowled at him, it was blatant blackmail and everyone there knew it.

"Now Joo Dee will show you home," Long Feng said as he sat back down. The door to the library opened, a woman walked in and stood in front of Team Avatar.

"Come with me, please." She said.

The group looked at the woman. "What happened to Joo Dee?" Katara asked with both surprise and fear.

"I'm Joo Dee." The woman answered, she wore the same uniform as the first Joo Dee. But it was a different woman, which was evident by her face and hair. But she wore the same creepy grin. "I'll be your host as long as you're in our wonderful city."

Long Feng stood up again. "If you'll excuse me, I've neglected my duties as a host long enough. I have guests to entertain."

"That will no longer be required." The red haired teenager's voice rang out in the library. Out of a darkened corner, he and the other two stepped out. The thought that both Team Avatar and Long Feng had was _"How did they get in?"_

"How long have you been there!?" Long Feng demanded.

"Since the beginning," The red-haired teenager said.

"That's impossible; my agents would have noticed your presence."

The man wearing face paint wore a smirk on his face. He raised his right hand and wiggled his fingers. Dai Li agents flew from the walls and the ceiling and landed in a pile in front of Long Feng, their necks all clearly broken. "You mean these guys?" He asked.

"Or do you mean the ones outside the door." The woman asked, pointing. Everyone (minus Joo Dee 2.0, who just stood there in a pile of bodies and smiled) looked towards the opened door and saw the headless bodies of more Dai Li agents.

"How did you…?" Long Feng tried to ask, stunned that Dai Li agents were so effortlessly killed.

"It is always wise to never underestimate a foe." The teenager said. "We have heard your ways of how you run this city. If you wish to wallow in ignorance, we will not stop you." His gaze hardened. "But we will not put our lives into your hands if you choose to do so. I will not trust a man who controls a city through fear and denial."

Long Feng snorted in derision. "And where will you go? You cannot leave this city unless I allow it. I could make you rot in the dungeons."

The teenager narrowed his eyes and that was when Team Avatar saw something amazing happen. The cork on the gourd he wore popped off and _sand _flew out of it! The sand flew over to Long Feng, wrapped itself around his neck and lifted him up into the air. It brought him back towards the teenager, holding the Grand Secretariat in front of him. "You would do well to watch how you insult people." He told Long Feng. "It would be so easy for me to snap your neck." The sand tightened around his neck, making him start to choke. "But I will not." The sand released him, sending him crashing to the ground. "As for your question, we will go with the Avatar."

"Me?" Aang repeated.

The teenager nodded. He and the others walked over to Team Avatar. "We should leave now." The man wearing face paint said. "Otherwise, things might get nasty."

"Agreed," Sokka said. They were about to leave when Long Feng spoke. "Why did you spare me?" He asked the teenager.

"You bore me." He answered. "There is no challenge in fighting a rat who desperately wants power." With that insult said, they left the library and the Royal Palace.

"Who are you guys?" Toph asked as they made their way back to the house.

"The people who pulled your rear ends out of the fire," The man with face paint answered. "That's who we are."

"That's not an answer!" Toph declared.

"And your point is what, exactly?"

"Will you knock it off?" The woman said.

"We are friends of friends." The teenager told her. "That is who we are."

"That's even more cryptic." Katara said.

"But the truth, nonetheless," He replied.

"We're here." Sokka announced as they stood in front of the house. He walked in and saw that Team Asuma and Shù Yè were still up.

"So how did the mission to talk to the Earth King go?" Ino asked him.

"We botched it, thoroughly and utterly botched it." He answered as Akela padded over to him.

"It couldn't have gone that bad." Shù Yè said.

"Well we did learn that if we are going to do something like this again, Aang's not coming."

"Hey!" Aang protested as he joined Sokka. "It wasn't my fault!"

"You blew our cover so badly that there was no way we could do anything about it and because of that, we had to improvise. You just had to blow-dry that lady with Airbending."

"I panicked! Besides, you were the one who made me spill the pitcher."

"You blow-dried the lady with Airbending, ruining our cover. You should've gotten her a towel! Also add in the fact that you decided to fly down the table, announcing your intentions to everyone who could hear it!"

"Sokka does get some of the blame but he's also right about your actions." Shikamaru said. "You're not going on any undercover missions anytime soon."

"We did learn something else." Toph said as she entered the house. "We learned that the Earth King is a puppet. The real power is with Long Feng and the Dai Li."

"On the upside, we made some new friends." Katara said as she too entered the house. She looked back outside the door. "Aren't you going to come in?" She asked.

The three people entered the house. When they saw who it was, Team Asuma immediately stood up from where they sat. "Lord Kazekage." Asuma said to the red haired teenager as he bowed.

"I am not your Kage; you need not bow to me." He replied.

"Hey little boy," The woman said as she looked at Shikamaru. "How have you been?"

"Hello to you too, troublesome woman," He replied.

"Wait, you guys know each other?" Aang asked, looking back and forth between the two groups.

"Well, we did say we were friends of friends." The man with face paint said.

"Hang on, time out!" Shù Yè said, raising her hand. "Could we get some names, please?"

"Of course," The teenager said. "Long Feng never actually introduced us."

"Aang, Katara, Sokka, Toph and Shù Yè," Asuma began. "This is the Godaime Kazekage, Gaara no Sabaku." He introduced the teenager. "The lady is his sister, Temari and the man is his brother, Kankurō. They are shinobi who are from Sunagakure, the Village Hidden in the Sand."

"Is the Kazekage anything like the Hokage?" Sokka asked.

"Troublesome." Shikamaru muttered. "The Kazekage is the leader of Suna, just like the Hokage is the leader of Konoha."

"You're a Kage!?" Katara asked. "But you're their age!" She gestured to Shikamaru, Ino and Chōji.

"It doesn't mean he can't be one, lady." Kankurō told her, protective of his little brother.

"Sorry," She apologized. 'It's just surprising."

"You have nothing to apologize for." Gaara told her.

Sokka looked at both Team Asuma and the siblings and noticed they were attempting to have a silent conversation. "Hey, I think that after all we've been through tonight," He told Aang, Katara and Toph. "It's best if we go to bed."

"Sounds like a good idea to me too." Shù Yè agreed, trying to stifle a yawn.

The others agreed to the idea as well. They went to the bedrooms with Akela and Momo. Once Team Asuma made sure they were all asleep, both they and the Sand Siblings sat down at the table in the main room. "First things first," Asuma said. "What are you three doing in the Bending Countries?" He asked the Sand Siblings.

"The council thought that it would be best if I took a vacation." Gaara answered.

"What happened?" Ino asked.

"An incident," Temari answered. "That's all."

"How troublesome," Shikamaru groaned. "We need to exchange information."

"Agreed," Gaara replied.

"Then let's start with this." Asuma said. "Naruto Uzumaki has been living in these Countries for the past three years and is now currently our enemy." That got the Sand Siblings attention. The information exchange went on well into the night.

(Location: Ba Sing Se Street)

Guǐ made his way through the streets, often looking back to see if he was being tailed. Noticing an alleyway, he walked through it and came across an empty space devoid of people.

"Great, Jet has been captured by the Dai Li, just great." He muttered to himself. "Those two men are Firebenders, I know it now. I have to break Jet free from the Dai Li and prove those men were Firebenders." He stopped walking and then laughed. "At least, that's what I would say and do if I actually wanted to imprison those two." His form shifted and blurred. When it finally cleared, his black hair was blonde and his green eyes were blue.

"It's a good thing I decided to get rid of that pesky Freedom Fighter." Naruto said to himself. "Now Zuko and Iroh can breathe a little easier and there's the added bonus of what happens to Jet helps further my plan. Now all I have to do is to wait for them to go for the bait." He walked into another alleyway, this one darkened by shadows. Once he stepped into the alley, it was like he wasn't there at all, like he actually was a ghost.

**End**

**Author's note: **Thanks for the reviews you've sent me.

Yes, the Sand Siblings are in town. Now before you start saying that I had killed off Gaara earlier, I would like to remind you that I had told you to remember how he actually died. He died after the Akatsuki extracted Shukaku from him and was revived by Chiyo at the cost of her own life. I plan to write about that while Gaara is in the story, plus some other things.

I made Jet's arrest a little deeper than it originally was because of Naruto's designs and his plans. That'll be revealed over the stay in Ba Sing Se.

Now I'm going to say this right here and now: I'm skipping Tales of Ba Sing Se and Appa's Lost Days. The reason I'm skipping the first one is because it's pointless for this story. Besides, if I did do that, I'd also have to write a tale of Shikamaru, of Ino, of Asuma, of Chōji, of Shù Yè, of Gaara, of Temari, of Kankurō and of Naruto (if need be). That's too much of a headache there, so sorry but not happening.

The reason I'm skipping the second one is the same thing. It's pointless for this story.

Now I'm sure there are some of you who I'm bashing Aang at the end but I'm not. Let's face it, he did literally blow their cover and did it spectacularly too.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	15. Struggles and Reunions

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 15: Struggles and Reunions

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Avatar house)

It had been a month since Team Avatar and Team Asuma arrived in Ba Sing Se and met up with the Sand Siblings. Ever since they discovered that Long Feng held the power and that they were being watched all the time, they couldn't really do anything. Therefore, they tried to make the best of it.

Sokka, Shikamaru and Kankurō had managed to land themselves in a poetry class and proceeded to have a three-on-one haiku duel with the teacher. They were doing pretty well until Kankurō flubbed it and added an extra syllable. At that point, they were tossed out of the building.

At one point, Katara had managed to convince the other girls (including Shù Yè) that they needed a "girls' day out" at a spa. It had been going well, until they ran into another group of girls. The other girls took one look at Shù Yè's bust and let loose the mocking and the insults. She tried to ignore them but they then started to poke her bust, wondering aloud if they were actually real or fake. It was then Shù Yè broke down and began to cry, causing the girls to leave the spa. Unfortunately, the other girls followed them onto a bridge, continuing with the mocking insults. At this point Toph had enough, she bent a hole in the stone bridge beneath the rude girls, making them fall into the river. Katara helped by bending the river into sending the girls faster down river. They cheered Shù Yè up afterwards, each telling her that they were a little jealous of her bust. She smiled at that and went back to her normal self.

Aang, Gaara, Asuma and Chōji also got into a little adventure of themselves. As they walked around the city, they came across a zoo that had seen better days. After listening to the zookeeper, Aang had the brilliant idea to let all the animals out and did so even when Asuma and Chōji said it was a bad idea, Gaara just stayed silent. The end result was rampant chaos throughout the city. The animals caused trouble everywhere and caused people to panic (especially a certain cabbage merchant who was about to scream his trademark complaint and then just gave up). After some initial confusion, Aang managed to herd the animals outside the city and into the farmlands. Once out there, he quickly bent stone walls up from the ground and made a new, spacious zoo. Although some house pets were caught in the zoo, they were quickly brought out and people enjoyed the new zoo. Aang still got smacked upside the head three times in a row for the boneheaded move he made. For the day and a half, he had a bright red handprint on the back of his head.

However, it wasn't all just fun and games. Sokka and Shikamaru had almost literally torn the library of Ba Sing Se apart, trying to find something that could help them get around Long Feng's power. While covering different sections of the library, Sokka had an encounter with Naruto.

(Flashback: two and a half weeks ago, Location: Ba Sing Se library)

"The spirits take it!" Sokka swore as he slammed a book down on a table. "There has to be a way to get around Long Feng's control."

"Perhaps you've been thinking about it the wrong way." Naruto's voice came from behind him. He whipped his head around to see the Fire Nation Paragon leaning against a wall, reading a book.

"How did you get in?" He demanded.

"Same way as you," He answered. "Through the front door," He walked over to the table where Sokka was sitting and sat down, closing the book.

"What's stopping me from calling Shikamaru?" Sokka asked, his eyes drifting to his boomerang lying on the table, off to the side.

"Eyes up here, Sokka," Naruto told him. "What's stopping you from calling for Shikamaru is the fact he's on the other side of the library and if he's called, the only thing he'll find is you on the ground unconscious."

"What else?"

"I just want to talk."

"We have nothing to talk about."

"As a matter of fact, we do. We've both seen the level of corruption in this city and we both know who's responsible for that."

"When did you see the level of corruption?"

"The minute I walked into the city. If the Princess saw this kind of corruption in the Fire Nation, blood would be flowing in the streets."

"Well, we can't exactly create a revolution in the streets." Sokka replied with dry sarcasm. "We'd be arrested by the Dai Li, companions of the Avatar or not."

"And therein lays your problem." Naruto told him. "Long Feng controls the Dai Li and as such, holds the power of the city. But your problem can also be your solution."

"What?"

"Look at it like this: what would happen to Long Feng if his control of the Dai Li was taken away? It's food for thought." He stood up from the table and began to walk away.

"Why are you doing this?" Sokka asked him. "Why are you helping me?"

He stopped. "You're my Opponent. We fight on different sides and for different ideals but I trust you to help me out and to watch my back when needed. I'm simply doing the same thing. The corruption in Ba Sing Se needs to be destroyed. How it's destroyed is up to you." He walked away from the table, whether to go deeper into the library or to leave, Sokka didn't know.

Turning his attention to the books in front of him, Sokka noticed that the book Naruto had been reading was still on the table. Picking it up, he noticed that there was a piece of paper sticking out of the book. Turning to the page that had the paper, he read the page and his eyes widened.

(End Flashback)

Ever since then, Sokka had an ace in the hole against Long Feng and the Dai Li. However due to his paranoia (which was justified) that the Dai Li would find out, he kept the ace secret. Only he knew what it was.

But he did tell the others about his encounter with Naruto. This led to Team Asuma trying to track down Naruto in the city. They finally found him and spent the next few days trailing him (Shù Yè called it stalking).

(Flashback: a week ago, Location: outside Old Badgermole restaurant)

They looked at the restaurant. It was almost as old as the city and was quite expensive to eat in. "How can Naruto afford to eat in a place like this?" Ino asked as they stood at the entrance.

"I don't know." Chōji answered. "I took a look at the menu and despite some of the ingredients, what they're serving is top grade and well worth the price."

"From what I understood, the Old Badgermole has been among the top five restaurants in Ba Sing Se since they started ranking restaurants." Asuma told them.

"Excuse me sirs, madam." A waiter said, bowing to them. "If you will follow me please, I'll escort to your table."

"We didn't have a reservation." Asuma told the waiter.

"Yes, we noticed." The waiter sneered at them. "However, we've been told that should you come in at lunchtime, we were to escort you to his table."

"His table?" asked Ino. "Who are we talking about?"

She got her answer when they were shown to a corner booth where Naruto sat eating. "They are here, sir." The waiter told him.

"Thank you." Naruto told the waiter before giving him four gold pieces. The waiter took the tip, bowed and walked away.

Team Asuma just stare at him as he ate. "…I took the liberty of ordering food for you four." He finally told them. "Please sit."

They did so. "What are you doing here, Naruto?" Asuma asked.

"Eating," He answered.

"You know what Asuma-sensei meant, Naruto." Shikamaru told him. "What are you doing in Ba Sing Se?"

"What do you think I'm doing?"

"I…don't know." The other members of Team Asuma were surprised. Shikamaru admitting that he didn't know was not something they wanted to hear.

"Then we'll keep it like that." The food for Team Asuma had arrived.

Ino was the first to try it. "This is good!" She declared.

Chōji took a bite. "She's right!" He agreed.

"The Old Badgermole has been around for quite some time." Naruto told them. "I think that they wouldn't keep bad recipes around."

"Naruto, why would you help us out?" Asuma asked. "You and your princess have been trying to take Aang for a while, why would you just turn around and help us?"

He looked at the Jōnin. "I didn't help you, I helped Sokka."

Ino scoffed. "Right, you 'helped' Sokka. He won't even tell us what he discovered."

"That was smart of him. If he had told you guys, odds are the Avatar would've either said that they go straight for the Earth King right away or would've blabbed the secret where Dai Li could hear him."

"Aang's not that bad." Chōji defended him.

"Really?" asked Naruto. "From what I heard, he decided to fly right up to the Earth King, despite being undercover, on that little air ball for the whole world to see. If he was a Konoha shinobi and he pulled something like that, he would have been severely punished. Or have standards changed since I left?" He eyed the team from Konoha.

"Don't get so high and mighty, Naruto. You would've done the same thing." Ino accused.

"Contrary to popular belief, I knew when to keep my mouth shut." He then threw a look at Ino. "And I also knew what the word 'undercover' meant, something he doesn't."

"Why do you hate Aang?" Shikamaru asked. "What did he do that earned your distaste?"

Naruto looked away from them. "It's not so much what he did as it's what he is. I don't hate Aang, I hate the Avatar."

"Aren't they the same thing?" Chōji asked.

"No, Aang's just a little brat, the Avatar is a title. Look at the people in this restaurant." He turned his gaze on the rest of the Old Badgermole. "For Kami only knows how long, the people on this side of the planet have regarded the Avatar as a savior, someone who can fix all the problems they could've fixed themselves. The reason the Fire Nation is winning this war is because people are still waiting for the Avatar to win this war for them, it disgusts me. They don't need the Avatar; they can solve their problems on their own."

"That may be true." Asuma conceded as he looked back at Naruto. "But you're lying to us Naruto, that's not all there is to it. There is something else about Aang that makes you dislike him."

"No, there isn't."

Shikamaru narrowed his eyes at Naruto but then widened them in realization. "Yes there is. You dislike Aang because he reminds you of yourself when you were younger."

He winced slightly but enough for the other people at the table to see it. It was silent for a few minutes, and then Naruto stood up from the table. "Where are you going?" Asuma asked him.

"I'm leaving and I'm making you get the bill."

"You leave and we'll come after you." Chōji told him. "This time, we'll get you. We're the kind of team that was made for capture, and confinement."

Naruto just looked and smirked. "Is that right…fatso?"

Asuma, Shikamaru and Ino went pale while Chōji went red. "What did you just call me?" He growled.

Naruto's smirk grew wider. "You still denying that and saying you're just big boned. Face it, Akimichi…you're a fat ass."

Chōji let out a roar of rage and leapt for Naruto, who just sidestepped and let him crash into another table. This went for a few more minutes as Naruto caused Chōji to destroy more of the restaurant while the rest of Team Asuma tried to calm him down. When that finally happened, they were surrounded by the staff of the Old Badgermole and Naruto was nowhere to be seen.

(End Flashback)

In order to repay for the damages, Team Asuma had to work as dishwashers in the kitchen for three days. After they had finished that, they tried to look for Naruto but only to fail.

During all of this action, Aang decided to once again start the search for Appa.

Sokka had decided to help by trying to paint pictures of Appa to for the missing posters. He sat on the floor next to Akela while Toph lounged nearby, Momo licking her foot. Kankurō had borrowed two tables and placed them together and against the wall. He sat there, working on something that nobody (aside from his brother and sister) really knew was. Shikamaru and Temari were playing Shogi with Gaara keeping an eye on them, a combination of watching both of their strategies and making sure Shikamaru stayed on his side of the board (due to an incident in Suna that involved a game of strip Shogi, both Gaara and Kankurō agreed that one of them should always keep an eye on the two whenever they were near a Shogi board).

The front door opened, letting Aang, Katara, Asuma, Ino, Chōji and Shù Yè in. "We found a printer to make our posters." Katara announced, holding a poster of Appa.

Sokka looked up at the poster. "Good to know, because I don't think this is going to work." He held up a painting to emphasize his point.

"Sokka, the arrow is on his head." Aang told him. Katara tried to hold in her laughter.

"See what I mean?" He asked. Akela nodded in agreement.

"It's not that bad." Kankurō said.

"Yeah, it looks just like him to me." Toph said.

"Okay, you're not even looking in this direction." Sokka told Kankurō, who was indeed still looking at his workbench. "And why do you feel the need to do that?" He asked Toph.

"Let's stick with the professional version." Katara suggested.

"No complaints here." He told her, ripping up the poster he held on his hands.

"Come on, let's get busy!" Aang told them, holding stacks of posters in his hands.

"Well, he's certainly upbeat." Temari noted.

"It's troublesome." Shikamaru told her. "Checkmate."

She looked at the board. "Dammit, you always do that!" She swore. Then she reached for the sash around her waist. "I guess I should reward you…"

Gaara's gaze hardened and Kankurō whipped his head around to look at them. "I don't want to run down the street to avoid becoming a eunuch because of you, troublesome woman." Shikamaru told her. "That already happened once."

"Oh you're no fun." She said, putting her hands down.

"Hey, can you and the lazy ass save the honeymoon for later?" Shù Yè asked. "Look at the arrowhead; he's practically vibrating where he's standing." She pointed at Aang, who was indeed practically vibrating with barely contained energy.

"Perhaps it is best if we went to work." Gaara told them. That was all Aang needed to hear, he was out of the door with Momo before anyone could blink. The two of them flew over the city, dropping posters as they went.

(Location: Teashop)

It was another day in the teashop. Both Iroh and Zuko were serving tea. But things soon became different.

"So, you're the genus behind this incredible brew." A richly dressed customer told Iroh after drinking some tea. "The whole city is buzzing about you! I hope Pao pays you well."

"Good tea is its own reward." Iroh told him.

"But it doesn't have to be the only reward." The customer replied. "How would you like to have your own teashop?"

Iroh was stunned. "My own teashop? This is a dream come true!"

Having overheard the last part of the conversation, Pao decided to join in. "What's going here? Are you trying to poach my tea-maker?" He demanded.

"Sorry Pao but that's business for you. Am I right?" The customer asked, laughing a little.

"Mushi, if you stay, I'll…make you assistant manager," Pao told Iroh. "Wait, senor assistant manager!"

"I'll provide you with a new apartment in the Upper Ring. The teashop is yours to do whatever you want, complete creative freedom." The customer told him.

"I even get to name the shop?" Iroh asked.

"Of course!" answered the customer.

"Uh…senior executive assistant manager?" tried Pao. Iroh simply handed him the tea pot in his hands and bowed to the customer. Pao groaned and walked away.

"Did you hear, nephew?" Iroh asked to a passing Zuko. "This man wants to give us our own teashop in the Upper Ring of the city!"

"That's right, young man." The customer agreed. "Your life is about to change for the better."

"I'll try to contain my joy." Zuko told him with heavy sarcasm; slamming the tray of tea he held onto a table and going outside the teashop and leaning against the wall. Seeing something floating down through the air, he grabbed it to see that it was a poster of the Avatar's bison. He quickly looked up but saw nothing. He climbed to the roof of a nearby building to get a better look but saw no one.

"I swear this moron has no understanding of the words 'discreet' and 'subtlety'." Naruto's voice spoke from behind Zuko.

Zuko turned around and sure enough, Naruto was there on the roof. Naruto noticed him as well. "Hey Zuko," He greeted. "Love what you did with your hair." Over the past month, Zuko's hair had grown out and gotten shaggier.

"What are you doing here, Naruto?" Zuko asked him carefully.

"Well, I'm currently wondering just how idiotic the Avatar is." He answered. "Doesn't he know that this will just get the attention of the Dai Li?" He looked at Zuko thoughtfully. "So what are you going to do about it?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Zuko, you've been going after the Avatar for three years now and you're just going to let an opportunity like this slip by?"

"What I do is none of your concern."

"Hey, it's your choice. It just seems like you've been given an easy chance to capture the Avatar. All you have to do is get the sky bison." He shrugged. "Well, do what you want to do." He walked over to the edge of the roof and stepped off, falling to the ground. Zuko quickly made his way over to the edge to see if Naruto was alive, only to see no one on the street below.

(Location: Team Avatar house)

Everyone was doing their own thing. Kankurō was still working on something. Toph was throwing a ball against the wall. Shikamaru was teaching Shù Yè how to play Shogi. Ino was doing some flower arranging. Chōji was checking the supplies they had recently bought. Asuma was sharpening his Chakra Blades. Temari was checking her equipment. Gaara just sat in a corner, waiting. Sokka and Katara were playing a game involving tiles.

Aang walked through the front door with Momo. "I just finished dropping all the leaflets. Has anyone come in with news about Appa?" He asked them as he ran to where Katara and Sokka were sitting.

"It's only been a day." Katara told him. "Just be patient."

Aang did sit down but when they heard knocking on the door, he stood right back up. "Wow, you're right!" He said. "Patience really pays off!" He ran back to the door and opened it. Who was at the door was someone he was not expecting. "Joo Dee?" He asked.

Joo Dee (the one they actually know) walked into the house. "Hello Aang, and Katara, and Sokka, and Toph, and Shikamaru, and Ino, and Asuma, and Chōji, and Gaara, and Temari, and Kankurō, and Shù Yè." She greeted them as they gathered up in front of her.

"Mouthful," Shù Yè commented.

"What happen to you?" Sokka asked as he placed a restraining hand on a snarling Akela. "Did the Dai Li throw you in jail?"

"What? Jail?" repeated Joo Dee. "Of course not, the Dai Li are the protectors of our cultural heritage."

"But you disappeared at the Earth King's party." Toph said.

"Oh, I simply took a short vacation to Lake Laogai, out in the country. It was quite relaxing."

"But then they replaced you with some other woman who also said her name was Joo Dee." Katara told her.

"I'm Joo Dee." She replied. Her answer made Team Asuma, the Sand Siblings and Sokka share a look.

"Why are you here?" Aang asked.

She pulled out a poster of Appa. "Dropping flyers and putting up posters isn't permitted within the city. Not without proper clearance."

"We can't wait to get permission for everything." Sokka told her.

"You are absolutely forbidden by the rules of the city to continue putting up posters." She told them with the creepy smile on her face.

Aang got into Joo Dee's face, his head actually getting bigger and turning red. "WE DON"T CARE ABOUT THE RULES AND WE'RE NOT ASKING PERMISSION!" He bellowed at her, steam actually coming out of the back of his head. "WE'RE FINDING APPA ON OUR OWN AND YOU SHOULD JUST STAY OUT OF OUR WAY!" He slammed the door in her face.

"That's going to come back and bite us in the rear." Chōji noted.

"Aang, you shouldn't have lost your temper like that." Asuma told him.

"I don't care!" He snapped, his head going back to normal size and turning less red. "From now on, we do whatever it takes to find Appa!"

"Yeah, let's break some rules!" Toph cheered before destroying a side of the house via Earthbending.

The rest of the group was silent. "…I don't think that was what he meant." Gaara finally said.

"Let's just get going." Aang said.

"One question though." Kankurō said. "Did anyone else see his head go big and red or was it just a Genjutsu?" He pointed to Aang.

"I saw it and I don't even know what a Genjutsu is." Shù Yè told him.

"We can save it for later." Katara told them. "Let's go."

They exited the house, unaware that they were being watched by Dai Li from a nearby roof.

(Location: Royal Palace library)

"I'm very disappointed in your work with the Avatar and his friends, Joo Dee. I had hoped that you would be able to control this situation." Long Feng said as he sat in front of the fire.

"I'm so sorry but they don't trust me anymore." Joo Dee told him. "I don't think I can keep working like this."

"Joo Dee, the Earth King has invited you to Lake Laogai."

"Joo Dee's eyes dilated. "I am honored to accept his invitation." She said without emotion.

"Good, now go await further orders." She left the room. Long Feng stood up and stared into the fire. "If the Avatar keeps searching for his bison, it could upset the delicate balance we've worked so hard to achieve in this city. It could even cost us control of the Earth King."

"Should we take care of him?" One of the Dai Li agents standing at the door asked.

"No. It's much too dangerous for us to confront him directly. Let's see if we can handle this quietly."

"Sir, might I suggest we use the boy we took care of?" The other agent suggested. "Apparently, he and the Avatar have had a history."

Long Feng said nothing, he just nodded his agreement. The two Dai Li agents left the library.

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

Iroh was packing away clothes when the door to the apartment opened and Zuko walked in. "So I was thinking about names for my new teashop." Iroh told him. "How about the Jasmine Dragon? It's dramatic, poetic, has a nice ring to it."

Zuko didn't comment, he simply showed Iroh the poster. "The Avatar is here in Ba Sing Se, and he's lost his bison." He stated.

Iroh took the poster and looked at it. "We have a chance for a new life here. If you start stirring up trouble, we could lose all the good things that are happening for us."

Zuko had staring out the window. "Good things that are happening for you!" He snapped at Iroh, turning back to face him. "Have you ever thought that I want more from life then a nice apartment and a job serving tea?"

"There is nothing wrong with a life of peace and prosperity. I suggest you think about what it is that you want from your life and why."

"I want my destiny." He said before walking away.

"What that means is up to you." Iroh then had another idea for the teashop. "The Tea Weevil! …No, that's stupid."

(Location: Team Avatar)

They put up posters of Appa along the walls. "We'll split up to cover more area." Sokka decided. "Toph, you should come with me."

"Why?" She demanded. "Because you think I can't posters on my own?!" She yanked the paintbrush out of Sokka's hand, swiped a streak of glue on the wall and slammed a poster onto the glue. However, she put had put the poster up backwards. "…It's upside-down, isn't it?" No one said a word. "I'll just go with Sokka." She handed him back the paintbrush. They split up and went different ways.

Katara and Shù Yè were putting up posters near a river when they heard a voice, one Katara knew. "Katara?" said the voice. She turned her head and gasped, confusing Shù Yè. Standing behind the two girls was Jet. "I think I can help you." He told them.

Katara's reaction was to bend the river behind her and hurl it at Jet.

"Katara, I've changed!" He protested before the water sent him flying into an alley.

Katara went after him. "Tell it to some other girl, Jet!" She told him before bending some of the leftover water into ice spikes and throwing it at Jet.

"I think I'm missing something here!" Shù Yè called out.

Jet drew his hook swords to shatter the spikes but was forced to the end of the alley. "I don't want to fight you. I'm here to help." To prove his point, he dropped his swords, sending them to the ground. Katara looked baffled. Jet then reached for something behind his back, making Katara pin him to the alley wall via more ice spikes.

By now, the rest of the group had shown up. "Katara, what is it?" Sokka asked.

"Jet's back." She growled.

"Oh boy," Aang replied.

"Hey!" Shù Yè shouted. "I'm pretty sure the rest of us are lost here, could you please explain who exactly this guy is?!"

"I'm with her." Kankurō said.

"Same." Ino agreed.

"An explanation would be best." Gaara said.

"We met Jet a while back." Sokka told them. "We didn't leave on good terms."

"So we can't trust anything he says!" Katara said.

"That's a bit much." Asuma noted.

"We don't even know why he's here." Sokka told her.

"I don't care why he's here. Whatever the reason is, it can't be good!"

"I'm here to help you find Appa!" Jet finally said. He revealed what he had been reaching for, one of the Appa posters.

"Open mouth, insert foot." Shù Yè said.

"No kidding." Ino said.

"Shut up you two." Katara told them.

"Katara, we have to give him a chance." Aang said.

"I swear I've changed!" Jet told them. "I was a troubled person and I let my anger get out of control. But I don't even have the gang now! I've put all that behind me."

"You're lying!" Katara said.

"Toph, check," Sokka said. She walked to the wall and placed her hand next to Jet.

"He's not lying." She said.

"How can you tell?" Chōji asked.

"I can feel his breathing and heartbeat. When people lie, there's a physical reaction. He's telling the truth."

"Katara, we don't have any leads." Aang told her. "If Jet says he can take us to Appa, we have to check it out."

"All right," Katara agreed, before pointing a finger at Jet. "But we're not letting you out of our sight." She pointed again to emphasize her point.

"Can you say tension?" Kankurō asked.

"I believe you can." Gaara answered, smiling a little.

They unhooked Jet from the wall and he led them to a warehouse. "This is the place I heard about." He told them.

They looked around but the place was empty. "If this is a trap…" Katara warned.

"I told you, I work nearby!" He replied. "Two guys were talking about some giant furry creature they had. I figured it must be Appa."

"He was here!" Toph called out. She was holding a clump of white fur.

They all gather around her. She gave the clump to Aang, who felt it. "We missed him." He said.

"We're going to call in Team Kurenai." Asuma stated. "They're the tracking team."

"But it might be too late." Ino pointed out. "The trail could already be stale."

"They took that big thing yesterday." An old man with a broom said. "Shipped him out to some island. About time, I've been cleaning up fur and various, uhh…'leavings' all day."

"What island? Where's Appa?" Aang demanded, rushing over to the old man.

"Foreman said some rich royal type on Whale Tail brought him up. Guess for a zoo or such. Though, could be the meat be good."

"We've got to get to Whale Tail Island!" Aang declared. "…Where's Whale Tail Island?" He asked after a moment of silence.

Both Sokka and Asuma checked their maps (Asuma's map also had the current locations of the other teams). "Far, very far," Sokka said.

"Neither Team Kurenai or Team Guy are close to it." Asuma said.

"Here it is." Sokka pointed to Whale Tail Island on his map. "It's near the South Pole, almost all the way home."

"Aang, it'll take us weeks just to get to the tip of the Earth Kingdom." Katara told him. "And then we'll need to find a boat to get to the island."

"I don't care." He told them. "We have a chance to find Appa. We have to try!"

"Must be nice to visit an island," The old man said aloud. "I haven't had a vacation in years."

"Don't you have some more hair to clean up?" Katara asked him.

"There's no need to be rude." Chōji told her.

"Shuffle on, I get ya." The old man replied. "No more need for Old Sweepy."

"You're right, Aang." Katara told him. "Right now our first concern has to be finding Appa. We can come back when we have him."

"Alright, let's get moving." Sokka told them, both he and Akela taking the lead.

"I'll come with you." Jet told them.

"We don't need your help!" Katara vehemently replied.

"Why won't you trust me?" He asked before following the rest of the group, leaving Katara, Toph and Shù Yè.

"Gee, I wonder." She replied.

"Was this guy your boyfriend or something?" Toph asked her.

"What…no!"

"I can tell you're lying!" She said in singsong.

"Even I can see that." Shù Yè said. "You know what this means, Princess? We're going to have to fish for details later."

Katara just walked out of the warehouse. They made their way down the street. "We can take the train to the wall but then we'll have to walk." Sokka said.

"Don't worry; on the way back, we'll be flying!" Aang told him.

"We still have to figure out a way to get the three of us out without Long Feng finding out." Temari said, gesturing to herself and her brothers.

"We'll worry about that when we get there." He told her.

"We're finally leaving Ba Sing Se. Worst city ever!" declared Toph. However, things did not go as they had planned.

"Jet!" cried Smellerbee as she and Longshot came out of a nearby side street.

"I thought you said you didn't have your gang anymore!" Katara told him when she heard Smellerbee.

"I don't." He told her as he turned around, only to be hug by Smellerbee.

"We were so worried!" She said. "How did you get away from the Dai Li?"

"The Dai Li!?" repeated Katara.

"I don't know what she's talking about." Jet told her.

"He got arrested by the Dai Li a couple of weeks ago. We saw them drag him away!" Smellerbee explained.

"Why would I be arrested? I've been living peacefully in the city!"

Toph knelt down to the ground between them. "This doesn't make any sense." She announced. "They're both telling the truth."

"That's impossible!" Katara said.

"Nothing is impossible." Gaara told her.

"Gaara's right." Sooka agreed. "Toph can't tell whose lying because they both think they're telling the truth. Jet's been brainwashed!"

"That's crazy! It can't be!" Jet denied. He then noticed that everyone was beginning to enclose upon him. "Stay away from me!" He told them, they didn't listen.

(Location: Ba Sing Se Street)

It was dark outside and everyone was in their own home. A Dai Li agent walked down the street, patrolling the city.

"**Out of my way, skinny," **A voice declared behind him. The Blue Spirit ran by, shoving the agent out of the way.

Watching him turn into an alley, the agent gave chase. When he came to the front of the alley, he saw the Blue Spirit standing in the middle of the alley, swords drawn and obviously expecting a fair fight.

The agent launched one of his rock gloves at the Blue Spirit's chest, making a hole and launched the other at the Spirit's head, knocking clean off. As the head landed, it was revealed that it was only a dummy.

"Huh?" The agent asked before feeling a sword at his neck.

"**If you don't want to end up like him, you'll do what I'll say." ** The Blue Spirit threatened the agent as he stood behind him.

(Location: Team Avatar & the Freedom Fighters)

They took Jet to a building where the Dai Li would not go looking for them. To ensure that they didn't get sneaked up on, Momo and Akela stood outside and kept watch.

"The Dai Li must have sent Jet to mislead us. And that janitor was a part of their plot too." Katara said.

"This is becoming a drag." Shikamaru said.

"Just pay attention, little boy." Temari told him.

"I bet they have Appa here in the city." Aang said. "Maybe he's in the same place they took Jet! Where did they take you?" He asked Jet, who was sitting in a chair.

"Nowhere!" answered Jet. "I-I don't know what you're talking about!"

"We need to find a way to jog his real memories."

"Ino, get to work." Asuma ordered.

"Understood," She answered. "Everyone, give me some room." They did as they were told. **"Shintenshin no jutsu **(Mind Body Switch Technique)**!"** She said, her hands flashing through handseals. The first thing she saw in his mind was the memory of his home burning to the ground. He was a child and could do nothing as he watched his family burn to death, their screams still reaching his ears.

"NO!" He screamed, lurching forward and sending Ino back into her own body. "It's too painful, don't ever do that again!"

"Ino, are you okay?" Chōji asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." She said, getting from where she fell. "I'm just surprised that a guy who doesn't know anything about chakra was able to push me out."

"Were you able to get into his memories?" Shikamaru asked.

She shook her head. "Not fully, I only managed to loosen the grip of the memory block but I don't think he'll let me in again."

"Maybe this will help." Katara walked behind Jet, bent water out of her pouch and held it to his ears, trying to heal his mind.

He sat there, looking at the floor. His vision began to get blurry, so he tried to look up. When he did, he saw the floor give way to water and saw a man standing on the water. Before he could get a good look at the man, he disappeared under the water. What he saw next were only flashes. He saw an underground tunnel and a Dai Li agent with a light circling around him.

"They took me to a headquarters under the water." He said as he opened his eyes. "Like a lake."

"Wait!" Sokka said as he remembered the last conversation with Joo Dee. "Remember what Joo Dee said? She said she went on vacation to Lake Laogai."

"That's it! Lake Laogai!" said Jet as he stood up.

"Now we know where to go!" Aang said.

"We should head for the monorail and make our way to the lake." Asuma told them.

"It'll take us some time to get there." Gaara said. "We should rest once we get to the lake area and we begin our search in the morning."

The suggestion was agreed with. They made their way to the monorail station and took it out to the closest station to the lake. They found a nearby inn and went to sleep (they practically had to knock out Aang because he couldn't go to sleep and kept everyone else up). They had a quick breakfast and then made their way to the lake.

"So where's this secret headquarters?" Sokka asked.

"Under the water, I think." Jet answered, scratching his head.

"So how will we get in?" Shù Yè asked. "I'm hoping you're not thinking about having us swim out into the middle of the lake and then dive."

"Why? Are you afraid of water?" Temari asked.

"It's not exactly easy to swim with these." She pointed to her breasts.

"There's a tunnel right there near the shore." Toph told them. She walked to the shore whistling. When she reached the edge of the shore, she brought up a slab of rock with Earthbending. At the end of the slab was a stone that looked like it was covering something. Toph moved the stone to reveal a hole with a long ladder leading down.

Momo flew away, not wanting go underground. "Akela," Sokka told the wolf. "Stay out of sight." Akela nodded in agreement and headed back to the shore.

They made their way down the ladder and into the headquarters, Jet led the way. "It's all starting to come back to me." He whispered.

They passed by a slightly open door and took a quick look inside. "I'm Joo Dee. Welcome to Ba Sing Se." A Dai Li agent said as he stood in front of several women.

"I'm Joo Dee. Welcome to Ba Sing Se." They repeated.

"We're so lucky to have our walls to create order."

"We're so lucky to have our walls to create order."

"By the Spirits, that's terrifying." Shù Yè whispered as she looked through the door. "How could they do this?"

"The rat only wishes to have power and control." Gaara told her. "He does not care about the methods to get them."

"That's why we have to stop him." Sokka said.

Shù Yè was silent for a minute. "Sokka, can you promise me something?" She finally asked.

Sokka turned to face her. It was the first time she actually used his name. "What?"

"Promise me that I won't become a Joo Dee."

"Don't worry, you won't."

"I think there might be a cell big enough to hold Appa up ahead." Jet told them. They soon came across the door he mentioned. "I think it's through here!" He began to open the door.

(Location: Appa)

The sky bison was chained to the floor. After finally escaping the Sandbenders and having bad experiences (which ranged from hunger to a Fire Nation circus). Appa had made it to Ba Sing Se, only to be captured by Long Feng. The only one who had gotten closest before now was Momo, who found the location where Appa was taken. But that was it.

Now, he was in a dark room, lighted by the palest light, and chained to the floor so that he could not fly. The door to the cell opened and he opened his eyes, hoping that it was Aang. But what he got was a person wearing a blue mask. He stood up into a defensive position and growled at the person. He knew who it was just by his scent.

"**Expecting someone else?" **The Blue Spirit asked him before walking into the room, drawing his swords.

(Location: Team Avatar & the Freedom Fighters)

Jet opened the door and they all walked in. The room was big, empty and dark. Despite all that, they couldn't shake the feeling that they weren't alone in the room. Their fear became true when the door behind them closed and the room lit up, revealing Dai Li agents hanging from the ceiling and walls.

"Now that's something different." Sokka commented.

"Next thing you know, it'll be raining men." Ino said.

"Of which I think you'll love every minute." Temari told her.

"You have made yourselves enemies of the state." Long Feng announced. "Take them into custody." He ordered the Dai Li. They dropped down from the ceiling and encircled the group.

Two of the Dai Li acted first by bending their rock gloves at the group, which then turned into fists. Toph shattered the gloves by Earthbending them, which allowed Temari and Kankurō to get in close and take them down, Kankurō knocked the legs from underneath the one he was fighting while Temari used her folded up fan as a club (hey, if it works, it works).

Jet and Shù Yè charged two other Dai Li agents, who also launched their rock gloves at them. Jet shattered them with his sword and slid past one of them, using his hook sword to trip up one of the agents. Shù Yè punched the other agent hard in the stomach, sending him flying into the wall.

Aang dealt with agents with both Airbending and Earthbending. Sokka and Katara also destroy a pair of rock gloves, but got caught by the second pair. They started to get dragged towards the Dai Li agents who had fired the gloves but were saved when Toph bent a rock wall between them and the agents. They tried sending a rock-line at her but she bent the earth beneath her upwards into a column. The two agents went after her using columns, along with two other agents running up opposite sides of the walls. They bent columns out of the walls and sent straight at Toph. She took down the first pair easily, jumped over the columns coming from the walls and took out the other two.

However, a rock glove caught from behind, making her fall back to the ground and towards the agent bending the glove. She was saved by Jet, who was using a steel chain to swing past her. The agent fired off a rock shoe after the two but Longshot destroyed the shoe with an arrow.

Two other agents joined the first and bent more rocks at them. Jet leapt over Longshot's back and destroyed the rocks with his hook swords. The agents were about to bend another round of rocks at them but were grabbed by their legs and thrown at the wall by sand. Toph, Jet and Longshot turned and saw the sand coming out of Gaara's gourd. Gaara wasn't moving himself but whenever a rock glove (or shoe) was sent at him, the sand would protect him from the attack. He gave them a nod and then went to help Team Asuma.

Long Feng just watched all this happen. When he realized that the odds were not going to be in his favor, he left through the door, closing it behind him.

Aang saw him leaving. "Long Feng is escaping!" He yelled out. He went after him with Jet and Shù Yè behind him, blowing the door apart with Earthbending. They chased after Long Feng, entering a room that pipes in the walls and water coming out of them. They looked around for Long Feng, only to hear and see the door seal them in.

Long Feng dropped down in front of the sealed door. "Alright, Avatar, you've caused me enough problems." He said. 'This is your last chance…if you want your bison back."

"You do have Appa! Tell me where he is!" Aang demanded.

"Agree to exit the city now, and I'll waive all charges you and allow you to leave with your lost pet."

"How about you give us the bison and I don't smash your face in as well as making you unable to have children!" Shù Yè threatened.

"You're in no position to bargain." Jet told Long Feng, readying his hook swords.

"Am I not?" He asked.

"You're definitely not!" Aang told him, readying his staff.

"Jet, the Earth King has invited you to Lake Laogai."

Jet went still as his eyes dilated. "I am honored to accept his invitation." He intoned before turning on Aang and Shù Yè, who quickly dodged.

"What's the matter with you, Jet?!" Shù Yè demanded. Jet's only reply was to charge them.

(Location: Appa's cell)

Appa growled at the Blue Spirit, stomping his front feet to warn him off.

"**You're mine now." **The Blue Spirit said. Hearing the door behind him open, he turned and readied his swords for a fight. But who he saw was not someone he was expecting. **"Uncle?" **

Iroh stood at the door, closing it behind him. "So the Blue Spirit," He said. "I wonder who could be behind that mask…"

The Blue Spirit sighed, lowered his swords and took of his mask, revealing Zuko's face. "What are you doing here?" He asked Iroh.

"I was just about to ask you the same thing." Iroh replied. "What do you plan to do now that you've found the Avatar's bison? Keep it locked in our new apartment? Should I go put on a pot of tea for him?"

"_Uncle's using sarcasm. He's never done that." _Zuko thought to himself. "First I have to get it out of here." He said aloud.

"And then what!?" Iroh shouted. "You never think these things through! This is exactly what happened when you captured the Avatar at the North Pole. You had him and then you had nowhere to go!"

"I would have figured something out!"

"NO! If his friends hadn't found you, you would've frozen to death!"

"I know my own destiny, uncle."

"Is it your own destiny? Or is it a destiny someone else has tried to force on you?"

"Stop it, Uncle! I have to do this." He turned to face the bison.

"I'm begging you, Prince Zuko!" Iroh used his title, something he hadn't really used since the North Pole. "It's time for you to look inward and begin asking yourself the big questions: who are you and what do you want?"

Zuko's emotions ran rampant. He tried to calm them, but two voices rang in his head. His younger self pleaded for him to let the bison go while the Blue Spirit told him to ignore his uncle and take the creature. Not being able to take it anymore, he gave a frustrated yell and threw both the swords and the mask to the ground. His yell echoed all around them.

(Location: Waterway room)

Jet kept coming at both Aang and Shù Yè, swinging wildly. "Jet, it's me, Aang!" Aang told him as they dodged. "You don't have to do this!"

"I'm afraid he no longer has a choice." Long Feng said smugly.

"You can it!" Shù Yè shouted at him. She tried to charge him but Jet attacked them again. Aang and Shù Yè moved out of his swings.

Aang sent him skidding back with a blast of air. "Jet, I'm your friend." He said. "Look inside your heart."

Jet shook his head, like he was trying to clear it. "Do your duty, Jet!" Long Feng commanded.

He walked towards the two and stopped, breathing heavily. "He can't make you do this!" Aang told him. "You're a Freedom Fighter." Those words caused Jet to remember everything those words meant, the thought of his friends, what they did and why they chose to do it. The memories started to blur together and he kept seeing Long Feng's face interspaced between the memories. Finally, the haze of memories cleared and Jet returned to normal.

Long Feng did not see this. "Do it! Do it now!" He commanded. Jet responded by throwing one of his hook swords at him like a spear. Long Feng sidestepped and responded by bending a rock-line at Jet. It struck him hard in the chest, sending him to the ground.

Both Aang and Shù Yè saw this when the dust cloud finally cleared. They over to Jet as Long Feng bent a rock column upwards and leapt into a pipe. "Foolish boy," He said. "You've chosen your own demise."

"Don't run away, you coward!" Shù Yè shouted going after him. But the column had dropped back into the ground and Long Feng had disappeared into the pipe.

"I'm sorry…Aang." Jet croaked out as both Aang and Shù Yè knelt beside him.

"Don't be." Aang told him.

"It wasn't your fault." Shù Yè agreed. The door to the room opened, letting the rest of the group in. They were all shock to see Jet lying on the floor. They rushed over to him.

Katara bent the water out of her pouch and covered her hands with it. She placed them over Jet's chest. "This isn't good." She declared after a few minutes.

Ino knelt down and did her own diagnostic, her hands glowing with green chakra. "She's right." She finally said. "Not even Lady Tsunade or Sakura could save him, there's too much damage. I'm sorry." She told Smellerbee and Longshot.

"Don't be." Smellerbee replied. "You guys go and find Appa. We'll take care of Jet."

"We're not going to leave you." Katara told them.

"There's no time. Just go. We'll take care of him. He's our leader." Longshot replied, speaking for the first time, surprising everyone.

"Don't worry Katara." Jet said to her. "I'll be fine." He gave a small smile.

Katara stood up from where she knelt, Ino did the same thing. They started to walk away. "He's lying…" Toph whispered to Sokka.

They walked away through another door, not looking back to see Smellerbee crying or Longshot standing guard with an arrow ready. They finally found the cell that held Appa. They opened it only to find an empty room.

"Appa's gone." Aang said. "Long Feng beat us here."

"If we keep moving, maybe we can catch up with him!" Sokka stated. They all ran out of the room and found an exit. Toph bent it up to the surface and broke the through the stone serving as a blocker. They jumped out of the hole and saw Akela running towards them.

"We have to keep moving!" Asuma ordered. They all started running down the path when both Aang and Shikamaru noticed that there were Dai Li coming out of the exit and chasing them.

"We've got Dai Li agents on our six!" Shikamaru told them.

"You think we can out run them?" Shù Yè asked.

"I don't think it's going to matter!" Chōji answered. In front of them stood a line of Dai Li along with Long Feng, there were also Dai Li along the cliff on their right. The agents in front of them bent a large wall to rise up so that they were blocked. They hung to the wall while Long Feng stood on top of it. When they stopped, the Dai Li behind them did the same thing. They had been blocked in (except for the shinobi, who could walk on the water).

"Spirits take it!" Sokka swore. "Do we have any options?"

Momo flew down onto Aang's shoulder, making noises at them. "What is it, Momo?" Aang asked. Momo took off from his shoulder and flew into the sun.

Akela raised his nose up and sniffed the wind. His lips curled back into a wolfish grin when he realized what was coming. He threw his head and howled to the sky. The howl caused the Dai Li agents to shiver, it almost sounded like a battle-cry.

After Akela was done howling, no one said a word. Then, from above they heard a roar that seemed to answer Akela's howl. From the direction of the sun, a certain sky bison flew down.

"Appa!" cried Aang with joy. Appa smashed through both walls, sending Dai Li everywhere. Aang and Toph took care of the ones on the wall by bending the area of the cliff they were on to jut out, sending them flying into the drink.

After Appa had smashed through both walls, he turned around and landed on the ground. As Long Feng stood back up, he saw that the Dai Li had gotten away. He then turned around and came face to face with a very, very, _very_ pissed off sky bison.

"I can handle you by myself." He declared. He charged at Appa, bending the earth to form a ramp beneath him. He threw a kick at the sky bison but all Appa had to do to stop him was bite down on his leg. He then tossed Long Feng out into the water, making him skip like a stone before finally sinking into the water. Appa stood there for a few seconds and then spat out Long Feng's shoe.

Then he turned his head towards the group, causing them (except for the Sand Siblings and Shù Yè, who had never met him) to run forward and circle around him. He sat down and let them get close. Sokka hugged his arm while Akela and Momo jumped onto his head. Aang leapt onto his forehead, trying to hug him for all he's worth. "I missed you, buddy." He said, tears of joy flowing freely down his face. Appa closed his eyes in contentment.

"So that's a sky bison." Shù Yè said as she looked at Appa.

"Truly, an impressive creature," Gaara commented.

Sokka lifted his head from Sokka's leg. "Come on guys, get over and meet Appa." He told them. They walked over and placed a hand on Appa. When he didn't growl at them, things went more smoothly. A few minutes later, Appa was flying over the water with passengers on board.

Katara looked down at the water, remembering Jet. She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned around to see Aang, Toph and Sokka. The four of them on Appa's head gave a group hug while the others stayed on Appa's back. Appa himself just lowed in contentment, Akela woofed in agreement.

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

They climbed out of the hole that served as an entrance. "You did the right thing, nephew." Iroh told him. Zuko didn't reply, he just took out the mask of the Blue Spirit and looked at it. "Leave it behind." Iroh told him.

He walked to the edge and tossed the mask into the water. After he watched sink into the water, he and Iroh left.

"**Do you think that because you have thrown away my mask, you have thrown away me?" **The Blue Spirit hissed in his ear. **"I will always be here, Zuko. I am the rage and anger in your heart. You can never get rid of me."**

(Location: Naruto)

He stood on the cliff, watching as the sky bison flew away. "Hook, line, and sinker," He said as a smirk grew on his face. He turned back and disappeared into the nearby forest.

**End**

**Author's note: **Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

Okay, I kinda wrote about the Tales of Ba Sing Se but did not add new tales. I simply put other characters into them. Think of it as a compromise.

If you truly think about it, Naruto was just like Aang when he was twelve. Now that he's grown up a little, you can see why he doesn't think very highly of Aang.

Also, I gave Naruto a little more screen time then intended so the people who are complaining that I've been focusing too much on Aang can shut up. The reason I haven't done a lot of Naruto lately is because right now I want him to be the Man in the Shadows, you can't see him but you can feel his presence.

For those of you are wondering about what Sokka's ace against the Dai Li is, just wait. The end game of Ba Sing Se is beginning.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	16. To Dream and To Convict

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 16: To Dream and To Convict

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Lake Laogai Island)

They had landed on a small island in the middle of the lake. Due to weeks on his own, Appa had some trouble readjusting to carrying multiple people on his back. Everyone else wanted to take a break, so they agreed to land on the island.

"I missed you more then you'll ever know, buddy." Aang told Appa, once again hugging his forehead, Momo did the same thing. Appa just responded licking Aang with his tongue, making him laugh.

"Hey, arrowhead!" called out Shù Yè. "Enough with the hug-fest, we've got more important things to worry about."

"Shù Yè is right." Sokka said. "We should go to the Earth King and tell him our plan. We're on a role." Akela barked in agreement.

"One good hour after weeks of trouble isn't much of a roll." Katara told him.

"A roll is a roll." Asuma told her. "You just have to build on it."

"Speaking of rolls," Chōji said. "Does anyone have any food?"

"Here, eat this." Shikamaru handed him some jerky.

"Thanks." He took the jerky and began to eat it.

"Look," Sokka told his sister. "If we want to invade the Fire Nation when the eclipse happens, we'll need the Earth King's support."

"What makes you think we'll get it?" Toph asked him. "I don't know if you've noticed, but things don't go that smoothly for our group."

"It does not matter if what you plan goes smoothly or not." Gaara told her. "It only matters if your plan works."

"Gaara, Long Feng is control of the city." Katara told him. "His conspiracy with the Dai Li is too powerful. I think we should just keep flying and leave this horrible place behind us."

"I'm with Sweetness." Toph agreed. "I've seen enough of Ba Sing Se. And I can't even see!" She felt a bop on her head. "Don't be a downer, Toph." Shù Yè told her. "We can turn this around."

"And don't worry about the Dai Li." Sokka said. "I've got that covered."

"Are you ever going to tell us what that ace is?" Kankurō asked.

"No."

"Come on, tell us. Please?"

"Knock it off." Temari told her brother. "You're not five."

Aang joined the group. "Now that we have Appa back, there's nothing stopping us from telling the Earth King the truth. About the conspiracy and the War," He said.

"It's the whole reason we came here in the first place. We have to try." Sokka supported.

Katara thought it over. "Well, I guess if the Earth King knew the truth, things could change." She reasoned.

"I don't trust the new positive Sokka." Toph said as she stood up. "Long Feng brainwashed you, didn't he!?" She accused, pointing a finger. Akela growled at her for the statement (not seriously, mind you).

"Hey Temari, can I borrow your iron club?" Shù Yè asked. "I think the resident rock-head needs a harder whack on the head."

"It's not a club, it's a fan." Temari retorted, sounding a little offended.

"And yet, you have used it as a club." Kankurō commented.

"Do you want me to brain you?" She threatened.

"You see? That's what I'm talking about, right there!"

"Temari, stop threating to brain Kankurō," Gaara told her. "Kankurō, stop antagonizing Temari,"

"Sorry, Gaara," The two said together.

"You know what the funniest thing about this is?" Ino said. "He's the youngest."

"Ino, you're not helping." Shikamaru told his teammate.

Aang saw something in the water. He ran closer to the shore to get a better look and saw that it was a couple of ships. "That's probably the Dai Li searching for us." Sokka said as the others joined Aang.

"Then let's fly!" Katara declared.

And fly they did. Aang had Appa pour on the speed as they flew back towards the city. Due to the lack of a saddle, everyone had to hold on for their lives, an idea that didn't really appeal to some (but exhilarated others).

"Can we please buy a new saddle?" Toph begged. "Riding bareback is terrifying!"

"Are you kidding?! This is great!" Shù Yè whooped.

They flew to the center of the city. "There it is." Sokka stated pointing at the building in the center (while also holding onto to Akela, who shared Toph's opinion of riding bareback). "That whole thing is the palace. The Earth King's chamber should be in the center."

"We have to be careful." Katara told them. "Long Feng's probably warned the king that we're coming."

"What makes you say that?" Shù Yè asked. "It seems to me that we're going to fly nice and…LOOK OUT!" She screamed the last part as a boulder almost hit them.

"What was that!?" Toph demanded.

"Surface-To-Air Rocks!" answered Sokka. "More incoming!"

"Temari, can you help?!" Gaara asked as Appa began to do evasive maneuvers.

"If we were flying straight and steady, yes!" She answered.

The Royal Guards kept launching SARs at the sky bison. One looked like it was about to hit Aang, but he shattered it via Earthbending without even looking at it. Another came at him, this he split in half using his staff. Seeing that another batch of the Royal Guards was waiting to attack them when they landed, he leapt off of Appa and landed on the ground. As he landed, he bent the surrounding tiles to heave the soldiers up into the air as well as scattering them. It only left the captain, who was sitting an armored ostrich horse. All Appa had to do to scare him off was growl.

Everyone else got off of Appa and they made their way forward to the palace. On both sides of them, Royal Guards lined and bent cubes of earth at them. Aang, Toph and Gaara worked together to destroy the cubes, Aang using his staff, Toph using her Earthbending and Gaara using his sand, while still moving forward.

Katara and Kankurō cleaned up shop in the back. Katara used her Waterbending to knock the Royal Guards down while Kankurō used chakra threads to slam Royal Guards into each other.

"Sorry!" Katara apologized as she hit Guardsmen after Guardsmen. In front of them came more Guardsmen. Toph took care of them by Earthbending the tiles to flip over and pin them.

"Sorry!" Katara apologized again. "We just need to get through to see the Earth King!"

"Would you stop apologizing!?" demanded Shù Yè. "It's weird!"

They made their way to the palace. In their path was a river, with three bridges connecting one side to the other. The other side held the stairs leading up to the palace. While Guardsmen gathered on the other side of the river to stop Team Avatar, the next level on the staircase also had Royal Guards. The Guardsmen worked as one and bent two Badgermole statues off the ground and hurled it at Team Avatar.

Both Aang and Toph managed to block the two statues by Earthbending the tiles to form a shell over them. The two statues shattered against the shell, but it held. Katara was the first to move out of the shell and towards the river. Bending the water out of her pouch, she bent it into a thin half-bridge made of ice. Using the ice-bridge, she leapt over the Guardsmen there while also Bending water out from the river. Swinging her foot in a kicking motion, she bent the water to push the Guardsmen into the river. Then she bent it into a water whip and pulled the Guardsmen from the next level on the stairs into the river as well. As this occurred, the others made their way across the bridge while Aang leapt over the river and froze the water with Airbending, trapping the Guardsmen there.

Everyone gathered together but then had to deal with rocks dropping from above. There were also Guardsmen coming down the stairs. Toph stepped forward and raised her hands, making the earth rumble. As a SAR smashed beside her, she drew her hands back and bent the stairs leading up to the Palace to flatten into a ramp, making all the Guardsmen on the stairs to slide down.

Aang and Toph then bent a chunk of the ground to lift everyone to the stair-turned-ramp. They went up the ramp, they past all the Guardsmen who had been caught on the stairs and who were now sliding down to the ground. "Seriously, we're actually on your guys' side!" Sokka told them as they went past. But the only thing they could answer were screams of surprise and pain. "Sorry." Sokka finally said after watching this for a few minutes.

"Oh great, now you've got the ice-chewier apologizing as well!" Shù Yè accused Katara.

They reached the top of the staircase, where two groups of Royal Guards were waiting. Aang and Toph both reacted by pushing them away with Earthbending.

"In there!" Sokka told everyone as they charged into the Palace.

They soon entered a room that had three other exits. More Guardsmen entered but were easily defeated when Toph bent the ground to shoot up into columns and pin the Guardsmen to the ceiling.

"Toph, which way to the Earth King?" asked Sokka as he looked around.

"How should I know?" She asked.

"You're the one who can see everything with her feet." Temari told her.

"Well, I'm still voting we leave Ba Sing Se." She continued to demolish the Guardsmen that kept coming.

Sokka and Shikamaru decided to check each and every door. They didn't have much success. Sokka opened one door and saw that it was a woman's dressing room, which already had a woman in there (dressed, thankfully). After she had fainted, Sokka closed the door and apologized.

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

They entered their apartment, getting back from Lake Laogai. "You did the right thing, letting the Avatar's bison go free." Iroh told Zuko.

Zuko staggered away from the door. "I don't feel right." He said. His vision of the room blurred. He tried to clear it by blinking, but that didn't help.

"**You alright, Commander?" **asked a voice that should have been dead. Turning his head, Zuko saw a familiar face, one that had died at Akawan.

"Sheng, what are you…?" He tried to ask but he collapsed to the ground, breaking a pot in the process."

"Zuko!" cried Iroh as he rushed over to his fallen nephew.

(Location: Team Avatar)

They had managed to beat all the Royal Guardsmen, while also causing a bit of a mess in the process. Sokka climbed over some debris and saw a big, fancy door that was untouched. "Now that's an impressive door!" He declared. "It's gotta have to go somewhere." He looked over at the resident Earthbenders. "Aang, Toph, would you mind?"

The two went to the door and knocked it down. They all ran into the room, which turned out to be the throne room. Beneath a giant Badgermole statue sat the Earth King. Standing in front of the Earth King was Long Feng and a group of Dai Li agents.

Everyone prepare themselves for a fight. "We need to talk to you!" Aang declared.

"They're here to overthrow you." Long Feng told the Earth King.

"No we're not!" Shù Yè shouted.

"We're on your side." Sokka said. "We're here to help."

"You have to trust us." Katara agreed.

The Earth King stood up from his throne. "You invade my palace, laid waste to all my guards, break down my fancy door and you expect me to trust you?!"

"He has a good point." Toph pointed out.

"We weren't exactly expecting a warm welcome." Chōji told her.

"We were right too." Ino agreed.

"If you're on my side," The Earth King said. "Then drop your weapons and stand down!"

Everyone shared a look. Aang dropped his staff, Sokka dropped his machete, Katara bent her water back into her pouch, and Toph bent the rock she held back into the earth. Sokka, Chōji, and Ino put the kunai they held away while Asuma did the same with his Chakra Blades. Shù Yè lowered her fists, Kankurō put his hands down and Temari folded up her fan. Gaara simply folded his arms.

"See?" Aang asked. "We're friends, Your Earthiness."

"Really, arrowhead?" asked Shù Yè. "Your Earthiness?!"

The Earth King did nothing. Long Feng, however, did. He simply raised his hand and the Dai Li agents bent their rock gloves at the group, cuffing their hands behind their backs. Long Feng gave a smug smile. "Detain the assailants!" He ordered.

The Dai Li slid forward to the group. They were about to grab them when sand blasted out of Gaara's gourd and grabbed the Dai Li agents. "If you move, the sand will crush you." He warned.

"Don't kill them, Gaara!" Temari told her little brother. "If you do, more might be summoned."

"…Very well." He agreed. The sand released the agents and flew back into the gourd. The Dai Li rushed behind them and grabbed their shoulders.

"We're your allies!" Sokka tried to tell the Earth King.

"Make sure that the Avatar and his friends never see daylight again." Long Feng commanded.

The Earth King was surprised at what Long Feng said. "The Avatar? You're the Avatar?" He asked Sokka.

"No, he's the Avatar." Sokka looked at Aang.

"Over here." He said, bending his arms free of the rock cuffs and raising them before putting them back into the cuffs.

"You could do that at any time?" Shù Yè demanded. "You could've broken us out of these things!"

He gave a sheepish laugh. "Sorry, didn't think about it."

"You are an idiot."

"What does it matter, Your Highness?" Long Feng asked the Earth King. "They are enemies of the state."

"Perhaps you're right." The Earth King agreed. Meanwhile, his pet bear had padded over to Aang and licked his face, making him laugh. "Though Bosco seems to like him."

The bear sniffed the air and then turned to face Shù Yè. He sniffed the air again, gave a grunt of excitement and ran into Shù Yè, knocking her to the ground. To the surprise of everyone, he didn't maul her. He kept nuzzling and grunting with happiness.

"Get off of me, you furry lump!" She shouted, trying to wiggle out from under the bear.

"Bosco!" shouted the Earth King.

Bosco got off Shù Yè, allowing her to stand up. "What in the name of all the Spirits was that about!?" She shouted at the bear. "Why did you suddenly try to squish me? How do you even know me? The only bears I know are that one mother bear and her…" She trailed off as she looked at Bosco. "No way, you couldn't be…?" She looked at the Dai Li behind her. "Hey, get these things off of me." She wiggled her arms.

"No." The agent answered.

"Oh relax. I'm not going to attack you. I want to check something. Now get these things off."

"Let her go." The Earth King ordered. Long Feng had a small look of surprise on his face, but quickly suppressed it (the only people who saw it were the shinobi and Sokka).

The Dai Lee agent bent the rock cuffs off of Shù Yè. She walked towards the bear with caution. She stretched her hand towards Bosco and laid it on his head. When he didn't react, she brought the hand to his left ear and gently turned it over, so she could see the back. On the back of the ear was a little patch of white fur shaped like a star.

She let the ear go and took a step to look at Bosco. "You brown, overgrown furball!" was the first thing out of her mouth before she tackled him to the ground, hugging him. "This is where you've been all this time?!"

"Restrain that girl!" Long Feng barked out. The Dai Li who let her out of the cuffs pulled her off of the bear and re-cuffed her.

"You know Bosco?" The Earth King asked with genuine curiosity.

"Know him?" Shù Yè repeated. "I've slept with this bear!" Silence reigned in the throne room. "…Okay, that came out wrong." She admitted.

"What do you mean, 'slept with'?" Ino asked.

"You guys remember that story? About how I spent a winter with a bear and her cub?" asked Shù Yè. Everyone (minus the Sand Siblings) nodded. "Meet the cub." She looked at Bosco, who waved a paw.

"This doesn't matter." Long Feng said. "Take them away."

"Wait, I'll hear what they have to say." The Earth King declared.

Aang stepped. "Well, sir, there's a war going on right now. For the past one hundred years in fact. The Dai Li's kept it secret from you. It's a conspiracy to control the city and to control you."

"A secret war?" asked the Earth King. "That's crazy!"

"Completely!" agreed Long Feng.

"Long Feng didn't want us to tell you, so he stole our sky bison to blackmail us." Aang continued. "And blackmail is the least of his crimes; he brainwashed our friend!"

Long Feng turned to the king. "All lies." He said. "I've never even seen a sky bison, Your Majesty. Frankly, I thought they were extinct."

The Earth King sat back down in his chair. "You're claim is difficult to believe. Even from an Avatar," He told Aang.

"These hooligans are part of an anarchist cell that my agents have been tracking for weeks." Long Feng whispered into the Earth King's ear. "If you listen to them, you're playing right into your own destruction."

The Earth King was silent for a minute. "I have to trust my advisor." He finally announced.

Aang looked shocked as a Dai Li agent grab hold of him. The rest of the agents began to pull them away when Sokka made his move. "Hey, can you do me a favor?" He asked the Dai Li who was holding him. "Reach down the front of my shirt and pull out what you find."

"Sokka, do you not realize how wrong that sounded?" Asuma asked him.

The Dai Li did as he was asked and pulled out the Paragon Medallion for the rest of the Dai Li to see. "You get the point?" Sokka asked him.

"Yes sir." The agent replied, only the faintest traces of shock and surprises evident in his voice.

"Then shouldn't you be releasing us from these cuffs?" They were released from the rock cuffs. "Thank you." He turned to the Earth King. "Your Majesty, I can prove he's lying. Long Feng said he's never seen a sky bison. Ask him to lift his robe."

"What? I am not disrobing!" Long Feng retorted. The Earth King looked at his advisor with suspicion.

Gaara simply narrowed his eyes. The sand shot out of his gourd, flew over to Long Feng and flipped his robe up over his head, revealing a mark on his left leg. "Right there!" called out Aang. "Appa bit him!"

"Never seen a sky bison, huh?" Sokka asked. Akela had a wolfish grin on his face.

Long Feng pushed his robe down. "That happens to be a large birthmark. Thanks for showing everyone."

"Well, I suppose there's no way to prove where those marks came from." The Earth King said.

"Of course there is." Sokka told him. They brought Appa into the room and had him open his mouth. Aang pointed at the teeth and then at the mark on Long Feng's leg.

"Yep, that pretty much proves it." The Earth King said. Team Avatar (minus the shinobi, who were professionals and kept their opinions to themselves) got excited. "But it doesn't prove this crazy conspiracy theory." Team Avatar (minus the shinobi, who were professionals and kept their opinions to themselves) groaned. "Though, I suppose this matter's worth looking into." Team Avatar (minus the shinobi, who were professionals and kept their opinions to themselves) muttered amongst each other and agreed it was a good idea.

Long Feng just scowled and walked away, the Dai Li following him.

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

Zuko lay in bed, sweating. Iroh sat by his side. "You're burning up." He said as he pulled a cloth out of water. "You have an intense fever. This will help cool you down." He put the cloth on his nephew's forehead.

"So…thirsty," Zuko croaked. He tried to sit up but Iroh made him lay back down.

"Here's some clean water to drink." He pulled a ladle out of a bucket and held it against Zuko's mouth. "Stay under the blankets and sweat this out."

Zuko yanked the ladle out of Iroh's hands and gulped it down. He reached for the bucket and drank that too, spilling some of the water. When it was empty, he threw the bucket against the wall and lay back down.

"**You should take it easy, Commander." **Sheng's voice spoke to him. **"This isn't an injury from a weapon or a Bending attack that you can just walk off."**

"You're gone, Sheng." Zuko whispered in a hoarse voice. "I watched you die. Why do you still haunt me?"

"**If I am gone, Commander, how do you remember me?"**

(Location: Monorail Train)

"So this is what a train is like?" The Earth King asked. "I didn't realize it would be this…public." He stood in the middle of the train car with Royal Guards behind him. His presence was shocking to the people in the train.

"So you've never been outside the Upper Ring before?" Katara asked him.

"I've never been outside the palace." He answered.

"It's worse than we thought." Temari said.

"It's troublesome but we'll just have to fix this." Shikamaru replied.

The Earth King looked out the window. "Now that's the way to travel." He pointed to Aang riding Appa. "So, may I ask where we're going?"

"Underneath Lake Laogai, Your Majesty. To the Dai Li's secret headquarters," Sokka answered. "You're about to see where all the brainwashing and conspiring took place."

They rode the monorail out to the same station as before and made their way to Lake Laogai. Once they were there, Toph brought the causeway and entrance with her Earthbending, only to find it destroyed. "It's gone!" She said.

"The Dai Li must've known we were coming and destroyed the evidence!" Katara stated.

"Hm…That seems awfully convenient." The Earth King told them.

"If anything, this proves the conspiracy exists even more." Sokka said.

"Long Feng was right. This was a waste of time. If you'll excuse me, I'm going back to the palace." He turned around and started to leave.

"Crap! We need to show him something that'll convince him." Shù Yè told the others.

"The wall!" realized Katara. "They'll never be able to cover that up in time."

Aang leapt up into the air and landed in front of the Earth King. "If you come with us to the Outer Wall, we can prove to you that the secret war is real." He said.

"No Earth King has ever been to the Outer Wall." He replied. "I don't have any more time for this nonsense." He continued walking.

"If you come with us, this time you can ride on Appa." Sokka offered. It stopped the Earth King in his tracks.

"Well, that got his attention." Asuma commented.

"He's going to take the offer." Gaara stated.

"Are you sure about that?" Kankurō asked his little brother.

"Yes."

The Earth King did indeed take the offer. His screaming could be heard throughout the farmlands. "First time flying?" asked Toph.

"It's both thrilling and terrifying!" He answered.

"Yeah, I hate it too."

"I have to be honest with you." He told Aang. "Part of me really hopes that what you're telling me about this war isn't true."

"I wish it wasn't." Aang told him.

(Location: Zuko's dream)

The fever was causing Zuko to dream. In his dream, he sat in the throne room of the Fire Lord. His hair was long and held the headpiece of the Fire Lord. The left side of his face held no scar. Standing at attention in front of him were soldiers of the 41 division.

Two dragons, one red and one blue, appeared and started to circle around him. **"It's getting late." **The blue dragon said in Azula's voice. **"Are you planning to retire soon, my lord?"**

"I'm not tired." Zuko said.

"**Relax, Fire Lord Zuko. Just let go. Give in to it. Shut your eyes for a while."**

His eyes began to droop, until the red dragon spoke. **"No, Fire Lord Zuko! Do not listen to the blue dragon. You should get out of here right now. Go! Before it's too late!" **

"**Sleep now, Fire Lord Zuko." **The blue dragon whispered in his ear. The throne room disappeared. The soldiers collapsed, revealing to be nothing more than suits of armor. Zuko looked around but only saw darkness. Then a pair of eyes flashed in the darkness, revealing the blue dragon. **"Sleep, just like mother!" **It lunged at him, opening its mouth wide.

The blue dragon disappeared but Zuko heard someone else. "Zuko! Help me!" His mother's voice cried out.

But before he could do anything, the floor ate him alive.

In the real world, he started to sweat again.

(Location: Aboard Appa)

The sun was setting when they reached the Outer Wall. "It's still there!" Aang cried out as he pointed at the drill, which blocked off by a wall as big as it.

"What is that?" The Earth King asked, shock lacing his voice.

"It's a drill." Sokka told him. "A giant drill made by the Fire Nation to break through your walls."

They landed on the wall and looked down at the drill. "I can't believe I never knew." The Earth King said.

"It is not your fault." Gaara told him. "You were blinded by a rat that wanted power and control over this city and you."

They heard the sound of an earth elevator coming up, revealing Long Feng and two Dai Li agents. "I can explain this, Your Majesty." Long Feng told him. "This is nothing more than…a construction project."

"Really?" asked Katara. "Then perhaps you can explain why there's a Fire Nation insignia on you little 'construction project'."

The Earth King eyed him suspiciously. "Well, it's imported of course. You know you can't trust domestic machinery."

"I call bullshit. Complete and utter bullshit," Shù Yè declared.

"I'm with her." Chōji agreed.

"Yeah, same here," Temari said.

"It's pretty stupid to import machinery from a country you're at war with." Kankurō said.

"There is no war." Long Feng told them.

"You might as well stop." Gaara said.

"There is no way you can get yourself out of this one." Ino told him.

"Surely you don't believe these children over instead of your most loyal attendant?" Long Feng asked the Earth King.

"Do I look like a kid?" Asuma asked him.

The Earth King wasn't sure what to do. Seeing that his confidence was failing, Sokka spoke up. "Your Majesty, if you will not take care of him, I will."

Long Feng scoffed. "You don't have that kind of power, boy."

"As a matter of fact, I do. Dai Li!" He began but stopped when the Earth King placed a hand on his shoulder.

"No, Sokka. I will take care of this." He turned to Long Feng and the Dai Li agents. "Dai Li! Arrest Long Feng! I want him to stand trial for crimes against the Earth Kingdom."

Both Long Feng and Team Avatar (minus the shinobi, who were professionals and kept their opinions to themselves and Sokka, who saw it coming) were shocked at what the Earth King had said. The two Dai Li agents shared a look and then cuffed Long Feng with metal shackles.

"You can't arrest me!" Long Feng protested. "You all need me more then you know!" The Dai Li agents pulled him away.

"Alright!" cheered Shù Yè. "Long Feng is Long Gone!"

"That could've been better." Ino commented.

"Hey, it was the only one I could think of."

"I probably would've said the same thing." Sokka told them.

"See, the ice-chewier agrees with me."

"Are you ever going to stop calling me that?"

"No."

A slow, almost mocking, clap was heard on the wall. "Very impressive, Your Majesty." Naruto's voice rang out as he walked out of the nearby command post. "It's nice to see you finally grow a backbone."

"Who are you?" The Earth King asked as the Royal Guardsmen moved in front of him.

"No need to panic boys. I'm not going to attack him. As for who I am, pardon my rudeness." He bowed. "I am the Paragon of the Fire Nation and bodyguard to the Princess Azula. My name is Naruto Uzumaki. And in case you already haven't figured it out already, the War is real. I've been fighting in it for three years."

"Why are you here, Naruto?" Asuma asked. His Chakra Blades out and ready to use.

"You know him?" The Earth King asked.

"He used to be one of us, a shinobi." Chōji explained. "That is, until he was banished."

"I think you mean until I left." Naruto replied. "The old hag never actually banished me." He looked over to where Gaara and his siblings stood. "It's good to see you back among us, Gaara." He said with a somber tone in his voice.

"Naruto," Gaara greeted.

"You didn't answer Asuma-sensei's question, Naruto." Ino spoke up. "Why are you here?"

"Oh it's simple; I'm just getting rid of the trash." He walked forward towards them. "You might want to give me a little more room. This is the first time I'm actually going to use this thing." He held out his hand and concentrated. A blue, spinning orb began to form in his hand.

"_A Rasengan!" _thought the Konoha shinobi.

"And now for the next step." He muttered. Four large, white blades formed on the orb and everyone heard the sound of the very air itself being cut. "Here we go." He leapt up into the air. If anyone had paid attention to his eyes, they would've noticed that they were crimson red instead of blue. **"Fūton: Rasenshuriken **(Wind Style: Spiraling Shuriken)**!" **And then he _threw_ the jutsu down at the drill.

"_He threw it!? How can he throw something that dense with chakra?!"_ the shinobi thought to themselves. The jutsu hit the drill and that was the last they ever saw of said drill. An explosion shaped like a giant sphere formed, obscuring everything within it and lashing out with violent winds. When the sphere disappeared, there was nothing left of the drill or the low wall blocking it off. The only thing left was a deep crater.

Naruto landed back on the wall. "Well, my work here is done. Bye." He walked away as everyone else was still looking at the crater.

They managed to regain their wits and decided to head back to the Palace. By the time they regrouped in the throne room, night had fallen.

"I want to thank you, young heroes, for opening my eyes." The Earth King told them. They stood before the throne. Bosco lay next to Shù Yè, who absently scratched his ear. "All this time, what I thought was a great metropolis was merely a city of fools. And that makes me the king fool." He covered his eyes with his hand. "We're at war, with the Fire Nation."

"That's why we came to Ba Sing Se, Your Highness. Because we think you can help us end the war." Sokka told him, walking forward. Akela padded forward as well and sat on his haunches.

"We don't have much time." Aang said. "There's a comet coming this summer. Its energy will give the Firebenders unbelievable strength. They'll be unstoppable."

"But there is hope." Sokka continued. "Before the comet comes, we have a window of opportunity: a solar eclipse is coming. The sun will be entirely blocked out by the moon and the Firebenders will be helpless."

"What are you suggesting, Sokka?" The Earth King asked.

"That's the day we need to invade the Fire Nation, the Day of Black Sun."

"Ooh, that's a good title." Shù Yè said.

"Not bad." Shikamaru agreed.

The Earth King thought it over. "I don't know. That would require moving troops out of Ba Sing Se. We'd be completely vulnerable. Not to mention the power the Fire Nation Paragon wields could easily destroy the troops."

"You're already vulnerable. The Fire Nation won't stop until Ba Sing Se falls. You can either sit back and wait for that to happen, or take the offensive and give yourself a fighting chance."

"And you also do not need to worry yourself about Naruto." Asuma said. "If he tries to attack us during the invasion, he'll be facing not only us, but also two other teams from Konoha as well as the Kazekage and his siblings."

The Earth King contemplated the information he was given, staying silent. "…Very well. You have my support." He announced, sending Team Avatar (minus the shinobi, who were professionals and kept their opinions to themselves) into victory cheers (and Aang going around on an Air Scooter).

"Your Majesty." A voice spoke out. An Earth Kingdom general walked in and bowed before the king. "I apologize for the interruption."

"This is General How." The Earth King explained. "He's the leader of the Council of Five, my highest ranking generals."

"How did he do that, I wonder?" Shù Yè asked aloud.

"Was that really necessary?" Ino asked her.

"I couldn't resist."

"We searched Long Feng's office." General How said, raising his head from the ground. "I think we found something that will interest everybody."

They made their way to Long Feng's office. When they got there, a chest was presented to the Earth King. "There are secret files on everyone in Ba Sing Se, including you kids." General How told Team Avatar. "The exceptions seem to be you seven." He looked at Team Asuma and the Sand Siblings.

"That's to be expected." Gaara replied.

"We're not from this side of the planet." Asuma told the general. "Information about us would be sketchy at best."

"Toph Beifong." The Earth King read one of the scrolls. He handed to Toph, who handed it to Katara.

She opened it up and read it. "It's a letter from your mom." She told Toph. "Your mom's here in the city. And she wants to meet you."

"Long Feng intercepted our letters from home?" Toph asked before shaking her head. "That's just sad."

"Aang," The Earth King handed him a scroll.

"This scroll was attached to the horn of your bison when the Dai Li captured it." General How explained.

Aang opened the scroll. "I-it's from the Eastern Air Temple."

"Is there a letter for me and Sokka, by any chance?" Katara asked.

The Earth King looked through the chest. "I'm afraid not." He answered.

Sokka and Katara were disappointed. "But there is an intelligence report that might interest you." General How handed them a scroll.

"A small fleet of Water Tribe ships," Katara read.

"What?" Sokka asked. "That could be Dad!"

"Protecting the mouth of Chameleon Bay, led by Hakoda," Katara continued reading. "It is Dad!"

"Way to go, you two." Shù Yè said with genuine happiness in her voice. "You know where your dad is."

"That reminds me." The Earth King pulled out another scroll. "Shù Yè, this is addressed to you. It seems to be from your village."

"What?" She took the scroll and opened it. "It's from the village leader. He's says that the village will welcome me back with open arms now." She began to tremble.

"That's great news. Congratulations, Shù Yè." Katara told her.

"Yeah, you must be happy that your village wants you back now." Ino agreed.

Shù Yè was still trembling and hadn't said a word. "Shù Yè? Aren't you excited?" Aang asked.

"…Those Spirits-damned, egoistical, ROCK-HEADS!" She yelled, fury lacing her voice. Everyone there then realized that she wasn't trembling with happiness, she was trembling with rage. "They want me back? After all this time?! ARGHH, I HATE THEM!" She stomped over to the fire and threw the scroll into it.

"What's the matter, Shù Yè?" Asuma asked.

"They only want me back because I helped the Avatar destroy the drill." She growled. "They want me back because I'm famous now, not because they want me!" Feeling her side being nudged, she turned and saw Bosco at her side, worry and concern shining in his eyes. She fell to her knees and hugged his head, crying freely. "Why? Why can't they just want me back for me? Why do they think I'm so useless?"

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

"You should know that this is not a natural sickness." Iroh told Zuko as he poured tea. "But that shouldn't stop you from enjoying tea." He fed the tea to Zuko.

"Wh-what's happening?" Zuko asked.

"Your critical decision," Iroh told him. "What you did beneath that lake. It was in such conflict with your image of yourself that you are now at war within your own mind and body."

"What's that mean?"

"You are going through a metamorphosis, my nephew. It will not be a pleasant experience, but when you come out of it, you will be the beautiful prince you were always meant to be." He placed another cloth on Zuko's head.

"**You hear that, Commander?" **Sheng's voice asked him. **"You can make it."**

(Location: Long Feng's office)

Team Avatar, as well as the shinobi, regrouped the next morning in Long Feng's office. Shù Yè was sitting against Bosco's side. Akela took a nap at Sokka's side.

"I can't believe it." Aang said as he reread the scroll. "There's a man living at the Eastern Air Temple. He says he's a guru."

"What's a guru? Some kind of poisonous blowfish?" asked Sokka.

"No, a spiritual expert," Aang explained. "He wants to help me take the next step in the Avatar journey. He says he can teach me to control the Avatar State." He looked at the scroll again. "But there's also writing here I can't read."

"Let me have a look at it." Shikamaru said. Aang passed him the scroll. He took one look at the writing and his eyes widened.

"What is it, Shikamaru?" Chōji asked his friend.

He simply handed the scroll to Gaara. "It's addressed to you."

"How would someone we've never met send a letter to Gaara?" Temari asked.

Gaara read the scroll until his eyes went wide as well. "This guru says that he can help quiet what remains of Shukaku. He says he can help me finally sleep."

"What? Are you serious?" Kankurō asked.

"Read for yourself." Gaara handed him the scroll.

"Well?" Temari asked.

"He's right. That's what this guru guy says."

"Who's Shukaku?" Shù Yè asked, the question getting everyone's attention (minus Team Asuma, who knew who Shukaku was).

"Um…well…" Temari tried to come up with a good excuse.

"Up until recently, I had something of a…different personality." Gaara explained. "If I were to fall asleep, the other personality would take control of my body. We called this other person Shukaku and he was often insane and bloodthirsty. Whenever he took control, a bloodbath was soon to follow. Whether it was friends or enemies did not matter. Recently, there was an incident that resulted in Shukaku disappearing. But a shadow of him remains. Every time I've tried to fall asleep, he is there, torturing me with memories of we did."

"Why do you say 'we'?" Aang asked. "He's the one who would gladly kill a person."

"That is true but people did not see it like that. They did not know of Shukaku, so they thought I was a bloodthirsty monster."

They were silent for a few seconds. "I think you should go, Gaara." Kankurō said. "This could help you."

"Are you sure?" Gaara asked his brother.

"Of course," Temari agreed. "And we'll come with you."

Gaara said nothing, he simply nodded his thanks.

"Well, I can't believe we know where our dad is now." Katara said, holding the scroll that had the good news.

"I know what you mean." Toph said, holding her letter. "My mom's in the city. And from her letter, it sounds like she finally understands me."

"This is all such big news." Sokka said. "Where do we even start?"

"Perhaps it's best if you split up." Shikamaru suggested.

"Split up?" Aang repeated. "We just found Appa and got the family back together. Now you want us to separate?"

"He has a point. You and Gaara have to meet this guru, Aang." Katara told him. 'If we're going to invade the Fire Nation, you need to be ready. And Gaara should be allowed to actually sleep."

He thought it over. "Well, if we're going to the Eastern Air Temple, Appa and I can drop you off at Chameleon Bay to see your dad."

"Someone has to stay here with the Earth King and help him plan for the invasion." Sokka said.

"I can do that." Shù Yè raised her hand.

"No, you're not going to stay and help the Earth King without someone watching you."

"Oh come on, ice-chewier. You still don't trust me?" She asked. Bosco threw a glare at Sokka and growled at him. Akela opened his eyes and returned the growl.

"There's no need to worry, Sokka." Asuma told him. "We'll stay here and keep an eye on her."

"And I will too." Katara said, standing up. "I'll stay here with the king. Sokka, I know how badly you wanna help Dad. You go to Chameleon Bay."

Sokka also stood up and gave Katara a big bear hug. "You are the nicest sister ever!" He declared.

"Easy there, big brother." She said, pushing him off. "But you're right, I am.

A servant walked into the room. "The Earth King invites you to join him for breakfast." He announced, before bowing and leaving the room.

"There's food?" Shù Yè asked, perking up. Bosco did the same thing and the two of them shared a long, silent look. "…I call dibs on the meat!" She declared before leaping up and running for the door. Bosco grabbed her by the leg and pulled her back, letting him to run out the door. He didn't get far before Shù Yè jumped on him and wrestled him to the ground, letting her take the lead.

Everyone else was silent. "I'm not the only one who saw that, right?" Chōji asked.

"Trust me, I saw it too." Ino replied.

(Location: Palace Courtyard)

After getting breakfast (which included a food duel of sorts between Shù Yè and Bosco), everyone gathered near Appa to say goodbye.

Aang walked over to Katara, who was petting Appa. "Katara, I need to tell you something." He said as he began to blush. "I've been wanting to say it for a long time."

"What is it, Aang?" She asked.

Before he could tell her, Kankurō slapped him on the back. "Let's hit the air already." He said, earning a scowl from both his sister and Katara.

The Earth King walked down the stairs to join them. "Aang, Sokka, Temari, Kankurō and Gaara," He began. "I wish you a good journey. Ba Sig Se owes its thanks. We look forward to your safe return."

They saluted the Earth King. Sokka began to climb aboard when a soldier walked to the king. "Your Majesty. There are three female warriors here to see you. They're from the isle of Kyoshi."

"That's Suki!" Sokka said in shock, falling off of Appa.

"You know these warriors?" The Earth King asked.

"Oh yeah," Sokka answered as he stood back up. "The Kyoshi Warriors are a skilled group of fighters, trustworthy too. They're good friends of ours."

"Then we shall welcome them as honored guests." The Earth King declared.

Aang moved to climb aboard Appa. "Wait, Aang." Katara said, making him turn around. She gave him a hug and a kiss, making him blush.

"I'm really going to miss you guys." Toph told them. Aang and Katara gave her a hug as well. They then gave Sokka a group hug.

Noticing Shù Yè's downcast expression, Sokka decided to do something. "Get over here, Shù Yè." He told her. She brightened up and gave them all a big bear hug.

After the hug-fest was over, the groups parted ways.

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

Zuko awoke from his sleep, the fever gone. He stood up and noticed that Iroh was still asleep. Making his way to the bathroom, he washed his face. Looking up into the mirror, he gave a shout of surprise and took a step back. The person in the mirror had Zuko's eyes, but had no hair, no scar and had an arrow tattoo on his head. He looked a lot like the Avatar.

Hearing movement behind him, he turned to see the Blue Spirit standing at the door. **"You'll never be rid of me!" **The Blue Spirit declared before launching himself at Zuko with drawn Dao swords.

"AHHHH!" screamed Zuko as he actually woke up. He panted for a minute, his eyes wide. He placed two fingers on the scar and, for once in his life, was glad that it was there.

"**I think you can take it from here, Commander." **Sheng's voice told him before fading away.

(Location: Aboard Appa)

Appa flew away from the Outer Wall. "What did I tell ya?" Sokka asked everyone on Appa as he lay on his back, absently scratching Akela's ear. "A little positive thinking works wonders. We got the king on our side, we got Long Feng arrested, and when we get back, Suki's waiting for me."

"Yeah, girls are waiting for us." Aang agreed. "Thanks, positive attitude."

"When did he get a girl waiting for him?" Kankurō asked.

Temari slapped him across the head. "You were the one who interrupted their moment."

"Everything's gonna work out perfectly. From now on and forever," Sokka declared.

"Nothing ever works out perfectly." Gaara warned. "Be careful about what you say."

(Location: Prison cell)

Long Feng sat alone in his cell. A Dai Li agent came to the door. "Dinner," He stated, pushing an tray of extravagant food through the bottom flap.

Long Feng grabbed a piece of food. "The Council of Five and the Military are loyal to the Earth King." The agent said. "But the Dai Li remains loyal to you, Long Feng, sir."

Long Feng raised an eyebrow. "Is that so? Then why did that Water Tribe peasant ordered you to let them go and you obeyed?"

"The boy thinks he had control over us, but we are loyal to you." The agent repeated before leaving.

Long Feng began to eat, a sinister smile growing on his face.

(Location: Toph)

She stood in front of a house. Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door and the door opened on the third knock. "Hello?" She called out as she walked into the house. "Mom? Anyone home?" She kept walking until she sensed something. But before she could do anything, a metal cage dropped on her, trapping her inside. "Hey! Who do you think you're dealing with!?"

"One loud-mouthed little brat who strayed too far from home." A familiar voice told her. It was Xin Fu and Master Yu.

(Location: Palace Courtyard)

The Earth King stood on a platform a line of Royal Guards stood on either side of the platform. Three Kyoshi Warriors walked up the stairs and bowed to the Earth King.

"In our hour of need," The Earth King began. "It is with the highest honor that I welcome our esteemed allies, the Kyoshi Warriors!"

The Kyoshi Warriors raised their heads, revealing them to be Azula, Ty Lee and Mai. "We are the Earth King's humble servants." Azula said, her golden eyes looking at the Earth King.

**End **

**Author's note: **Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

So you've seen Sokka's ace on the Dai Li. If you want an explanation on it, you're just going to have to wait.

Odds are there are going to be telling that Naruto wasn't able to throw the Rasenshuriken until the toads taught him how to use Nature Chakra. I want you to read the part on the wall again carefully. He had to use the Kyuubi's chakra to help him throw it.

I had Sheng join Zuko's hallucinations because it add a little more depth to what he was going through.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	17. To Meditate and To Separate

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 17: To Meditate and To Separate

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

It was the start of a new day in their new apartment. Iroh was standing over the stove, cooking as Zuko walked in. "What's that smell?" He asked, rubbing his eyes and yawning.

"It's jook." Iroh answered as he stirred. "I'm sure you wouldn't like it."

Zuko walked over to the pot and took a sniff. "Actually, it smells delicious. I'd love a bowl, Uncle." He said, holding up said bowl.

"Now that your fever is gone, you seem different somehow." Iroh noted as he poured some jook into the bowl.

"It's a new day." He replied as he walked over to the table. "We've got a new apartment, new furniture and today's the grand opening of your new teashop. Things are looking up, Uncle."

Iroh was shocked at what his nephew said, but he soon smiled. It may have been a trick of the light but for a second, he could've sworn he saw Zuko as a young boy sitting there instead of Zuko as a teenager.

(Location: Aboard Appa)

They flew towards Chameleon Bay. Aang had Appa land on a nearby cliff. "You haven't seen your dad in over two years." Aang said to Sokka. "You must be so excited!"

Sokka, however, was trying not to throw up. "I know I should be." He replied. "But I just feel sick to my stomach." Akela gave him the "this is not that hard" look.

"You do not need to worry." Gaara said. "Be glad that you are able to reunite with your father."

Sokka calmed down. "I guess you're right. Thanks, Gaara." He looked at Aang. "What about you? Are you nervous to meet this guru?"

"Not at all," He answered. "I'm ready to master the Avatar State. I'll do whatever it takes." He answered before looking back at Gaara. "What about you, Gaara? Are you nervous?"

He shook his head. "I just wish to put this shadow away."

Sokka and Akela got off of Appa. "See you in a week." Aang told him. He yip-yipped Appa and off they flew, leaving Sokka and Akela alone.

Sokka turned to look at the tents on the beach. He felt a nudge against his side. "Sorry Akela," He took a deep breath. "We might as well get moving." Both he and the wolf began to make their way to the camp. They entered the camp, getting the warriors' attention.

Noticing the looks, Akela began to growl. "Take it easy, Akela." Sokka told him. "They're friends."

They kept walking forward, until they were blocked by a warrior. However he, as well as the other warriors, welcomed Sokka warmly. They soon parted, allowing him and Akela to head to the big tent. They entered through the flap and that a council of war was meeting.

His father, Hakoda, looked at the map in front of him. Bato was by his side and had noticed that Sokka and Akela had entered. He nudged Hakoda, who looked and saw his son. "Sokka," He said.

"Hi, Dad," Sokka replied. Hakoda walked forward and gave him a hug, which Sokka returned with equal measure.

Akela did nothing; he just sat on his haunches.

(Location: Royal Palace, Throne Room)

"Look, Bosco." The Earth King said. "The Kyoshi Warriors are here to protect us. Aren't you excited?" Bosco just yawned. "It's been a difficult week for me. My most trusted advisor, Long Feng, and his Dai Li agents tried to take control of Ba Sing Se from me."

"It's terrible when you can't trust the people who are closest to you." Azula replied as she knelt in her Kyoshi getup. Mai and Ty Lee sat behind her, wearing the same gear.

"But there is good news. As we speak, the Council of Five is meeting to plan an invasion of the Fire Nation this summer, on the day of a solar eclipse."

"Really?" asked Azula, her face not showing anything. "Now that sounds like a fascinating and brilliant plan."

(Location; Council of Five war room)

"Due to the fact that General Fong's base was captured by who we now know as the Scarred Dragon, the launch point has been changed." General How announced. "But nevertheless, in two months the army and navy will invade the Fire Nation on the Day of Black Sun." He bent the Earth Kingdom pieces on the large map over to where the Fire Nation was. Momo leapt up onto the map and knocked down the pieces.

"Or we could send in Momo to do some damage." Katara said, laughing. The generals did not laugh with her. "'Cause, the…sorry," She finally apologized.

"Never make jokes in a war council, Katara." Asuma told her.

General How bent the pieces Momo had knocked over back up (scaring Momo, who ran back over to Katara). "All we need is the Earth King's seal in order to execute the plan." He bent a piece of the table over to where Katara, Team Asuma and Shù Yè knelt.

Katara picked up the scroll. "I'll get these scrolls to him right away. Thank you, General How." They bowed and began to walk away.

(Location: Aboard Appa)

They approached the Eastern Air Temple. As they came closer, Aang saw that someone was mediating alone.

Aang had Appa land on the ground beneath the meditating man. "Umm…hello?" called out Aang. Both he and Gaara got off of Appa and walked up the stairs. "You're Guru Pathik, right? The person who attached the note to Appa's horn that brought me and Gaara here."

"Indeed." The guru answered. "I was a spiritual brother of your people and a personal friend of Monk Gyatso."

Aang was briefly surprised at that revelation while Gaara kept his face emotionless. "In your note, you said you could teach me to gain control of the Avatar State." He said as the two of them sat down. "How?"

"You must gain balance within yourself, before you can bring balance to the world." Pathik answered. "And the first step to gaining balance is this." He handed Aang and Gaara a cup each. "Drink up!"

Aang tried to drink it but spat it back out. "It tastes like onion and banana juice!"

"That's because it is!" Pathik drank his cup. "Yum yum!"

Gaara lifted the cup to his mouth and drank. "How can you drink that stuff?" Aang asked him.

"I've drunk worse." He replied.

"We can vouch!" Temari and Kankurō shouted up from Appa.

Gaara looked at Pathik. "Guru," He began. "You know of Aang through your friendship with the Air Nomads and with Monk Gyatso. But how do you know of what I have been through? Why do you think you can help me?"

Pathik smiled. "I've traveled all over the world, young Kazekage. While it is a bit different from she went through, I believe that the same method I helped Mito go through will work with you."

Gaara's eyes widened slightly. "You knew the Lady Mito?"

"Of course, she was also a personal friend."

"Who is Lady Mito?" Aang asked.

Gaara decided to explain. "Lady Mito Uzumaki is the grandmother of Lady Tsunade, the Godaime Hokage and the wife of Hashirama Senju, the Shodaime Hokage and one of the founders of Konoha." He turned to Pathik. "To meet someone who had known them is truly an honor."

Pathik chuckled. "Ah yes, I knew Hashirama quite well. He and Mito loved each other very much. A truly interesting time to be around was when Mito was pregnant."

"Why?" Aang asked curiously.

"One day, she was trying to kill him. The next, she was pranking him." He answered with a full blown laugh. "It is always interesting to watch a woman of the Uzumaki clan when she's carrying a child in her womb."

(Location: Earth Kingdom road)

Master Yu and Xin Fu rode a cart that carried the metal cage holding Toph. Eventually they came to a choice between two roads. "I believe we need to go right." Master Yu told Xin Fu.

"What are you talking?" Xin Fu replied. "The Beifong estate's this way!"

"I'm quite certain you're mistaken!"

"Hey!" Toph called out, banging on the cage. "Can you two old ladies quit your bickering for a second? I got to go to the bathroom!"

"Ooooh…uhhhh, okay, but make it quick!" Master Yu took out a key and began to move towards the cage.

Xin Fu grabbed his arm. "What's wrong with you!?" He demanded.

"Oh, very sneaky, Toph," Master Yu said, realizing what she was trying to do. "Nice try, but you can't trick me." He sat back down on the cart.

"Let me out of here so I can kick both your butts!" Toph shouted.

"Quit your banging!" Xin Fu shouted back, banging the cage (redundant much?). "You might think you're the greatest Earthbender in the world, but even you can't Bend metal." The cart started to move again.

Toph didn't say anything; she just placed a hand on the side of the cage.

(Location: Ba Sing Se house)

Two of the "Kyoshi Warriors" sat in front of a large mirror, cleaning off their makeup.

"We've been presented with an extraordinary opportunity, girls." Azula said as she walked to the window.

"Mai finally gets to wear makeup that's not totally depressing?" Ty Lee asked with agitated sarcasm.

Mai, whose remaining consistent of red makeup beneath her eyes (almost like she was crying blood), looked at her friend, Ty Lee was not one to use sarcasm.

"I'm talking about conquering the whole Earth Kingdom." Azula told them, looking out the window. "For a hundred years, the Fire Nation has hammered away from the outside. But now we're on the inside, and we can take it by ourselves."

"Gosh, you're so confident." Ty Lee said again with agitated sarcasm.

Azula quirked an eyebrow, but did not turn around. "The key is the Dai Li. Whoever controls the Dai Li controls Ba Sing Se."

Ty Lee snorted. "Like it's going to be that easy," She replied.

Mai turned to her friend. "What's going on, Ty Lee?" She asked.

"Nothing, I'm fine."

"No, you're not. What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, okay?!"

Azula turned away from the window and walked over to the mirror. "Something is bugging you, Ty Lee. We're your friends, you can tell us."

Ty Lee dropped her shoulders. "Sorry, guys. Something has been bugging me."

Azula sat down on a nearby chair. "What is it?"

"You guys remember the swamp and who I met?" The two other girls nodded. "Well, the woman who I met was wearing the Kyoshi Warrior outfit."

"So?" Mai asked.

"So, if that woman was me, what does that mean? Does that I'll betray you guys and end up fighting for the Earth Kingdom?" Tears began to well up in her eyes. "I don't want that! You guys are my only friends! I don't want to fight you two!" She began to cry.

"…I could be wrong." Azula said drily. "But I think Naruto would be insulted by the fact you don't consider him a friend. Besides, if you what you think happens, it won't matter."

Ty Lee stopped crying. "What?"

Azula gave her a hug. "Ty Lee, even if we end up fighting each other in this war, I will still consider you my friend."

"Same here," Mai said, joining the hug.

Tears flowed down Ty Lee's face, but they were not ones of sadness. They were ones of happiness. They soon broke the hug and went their separate ways.

"_I think I'm beginning to find my answer." _Azula thought to herself.

(Location: Eastern Air Temple)

Aang and Gaara stood behind Pathik as he looked down at a creek. "In order to master the Avatar State and to be at peace with yourself, you must open all the chakras. Aang, Gaara, tell me everything you know about chakras."

"What are chakras?" Aang asked, rubbing his eye. He now only wore his pants.

"There's only one kind of chakra." Gaara told the guru. He had removed the gourd, the belts and the vest but kept the remainder of his clothes on.

"From a certain point of view, yes." Pathik told him. He turned to the pool of water in front of him. "The water flows through this creek, much like the energy flows through your body. As you see, there are several pools where the water swirls around before flowing on. These pools are like our chakras." He stirred the water, causing the moss on the water to move around.

"So chakras are pools of spiraling energy in our bodies?" Aang asked for clarification.

"Exactly," Pathik answered. "If nothing else was around, this creek would flow pure and clear. However, life is messy and things tend to fall in the creek. And then what happens?"

"The creek can't flow?"

"Yes. But if we open the paths between the pools…" He lifted the moss at the exit away.

"The energy flows!" Aang exclaimed as the water flowed through the creek faster.

Gaara watched the water. "The Eight Gates," He said quietly.

"Yes, the chakras are similar to the Eight Gates." Pathik said, catching on to what Gaara was thinking.

"The Eight Gates, what are those?" Aang asked.

"Points in the chakra network," Gaara explained. "If opened, they grant the person immense strength and power. But the more Gates you opened, the higher the price is."

"What's the price?"

"Pain," Gaara answered shortly. "If someone would open all the Gates, they would have enough power to rival a Kage or possibly even you. But they would die in return."

Aang could only gulp. Pathik decided at that point to them to another part of the temple. Eventually, they came to a giant cavern. "There are seven chakras that go up the body." He told Aang and Gaara, who sat opposite of him. "Each pool of energy has a purpose and can be blocked by a specific kind of emotional muck. Be warned, opening the chakras is an intense experience, and once you begin this process, you cannot stop until all seven are open. Are you two ready?"

"Yes." Gaara replied.

Aang looked away for a brief moment but faced him with determination. "I'll do whatever it takes." He answered.

"First, we will open the Earth Chakra, located at the base of the spine." Pathik told them. "It deals with survival and is blocked by fear. What are you most afraid of? Let your fears become clear to you."

Aang saw flashes of the Blue Spirit, himself in the Avatar State, Sokka being beaten by General Fong, Sozin's Comet and then finally, he saw the Fire Lord surrounded by fire. He screamed in fright at what he saw.

Gaara saw memories of himself when he had lost control, butchering people because he wanted to see their blood. "Stop it, stop it." He muttered to himself. "No more, please just stop!"

"Aang, Gaara, your visions are not real." Pathik's voice spoke to them. "You are both concerned for your survival. But you must surrender those fears. Let your fears flow down the creek." Both Aang's and Gaara's panicked expressions faded away as they calmed down. The images of their fear faded away as they heard a sound, almost like a chime ringing. "You have opened your Earth Chakra." Pathik announced.

He led them to behind a waterfall. "Next is the…"

"Water Chakra?" asked Aang.

"Brilliant! Maybe one day you will be a guru too!" Pathik grew serious again. "This chakra deals with pleasure and is blocked by guilt. Now, look at all the guilt which burdens you so. What do you blame yourself for?"

Aang closed his eyes and saw flashes of what he did. "I ran away." He said as he watched the memory of him running away from the Southern Air Temple. He saw what had happened at General Fong's fortress when he was in the Avatar State. "I hurt all of those people."

Gaara saw his past as well. "I had caused them so much pain." He said as he watched the people of Suna looking at him with scared expressions when he was a child. Another appeared before him, one where he was still a child but would kill anyone that earned his ire. "I have too much blood on my hands."

"Accept the reality that these things happened." Pathik told the two of them. "But do not let them cloud and poison your energy. If the two of you are to be positive influences on the world, you need to forgive yourselves."

Both Aang and Gaara were able to do that, making them hear the sound of ringing chimes again.

(Location: Water Tribe camp)

"This bay leads directly to the outskirts of Ba Sing Se." Hakoda told Sokka. "We've been using these tangle mines to stop the Fire Nation ships from getting through."

"Your father invented tangle mines himself." Bato said as he filled up the mine in front of Sokka, Akela and Hakoda.

Sokka looked over the mine as Bato walked away. "Destructive, buoyant, and…" He took a sniff, which made him gag (Akela had back away when Bato started to fill the mine, his tail drooped). "Horrible smell," He finished up.

"Very perceptive," Hakoda praised his son. "The mines are filled with skunk fish and seaweed." He placed the top on the mine. "When a ship detonates the mine, the seaweed tangles up the propeller and the foul smell forces people to abandon the ship," He used his machete to scrap off the remaining mix. "I call it the 'stink and sink'."

Sokka laughed. "Good one, Dad."

"You're definitely your father's son." Bato said nearby, rolling his eyes. Akela nodded in agreement.

A Water Tribe warrior ran up. "Hakoda, our scouts have spotted four Fire Nation ships!"

He stood up. "Bato, get these mines loaded up! The rest of you men, prepare for battle!" He ordered.

Everyone ran off to do what they were ordered. "Uhh…what should I do, Dad?" Sokka asked, still sitting on the beach.

"Aren't you listening? I said 'the rest of you men get ready for battle'."

Sokka brighten up. He stood up, nodded once and ran off to prepare, Akela on his heels.

(Location: Zuko & Iroh)

They stood at the back of their new restaurant, watching customers come in. "Who thought when we came to this city as refugees, that I'd end opening my own teashop?" Iroh asked. "Follow your passions, Zuko, and life will reward you."

"Congratulations, Uncle." Zuko told him.

"I'm very thankful."

"You deserve it. The Jasmine Dragon will be the best teashop in the city."

"No, I'm thankful because you decided to share this special day with me. It means more than you know." He placed a hand on Zuko's shoulder.

Zuko gave him a hug in response. "Now let's make these people some tea!" He declared before walking to the back.

Iroh stared at him and again, he saw the young Zuko for an instant. "Yes, let's make some tea!" He agreed, following Zuko to the back.

(Location: Eastern Air Temple)

Pathik, Aang and Gaara sat on a ledge, watching the sun rise. "Third is the Fire Chakra, located in the stomach." Pathik said.

"My Fire Chakra would like to eat something other than onion-banana juice." Aang said, holding his stomach.

Pathik chuckled. "Good one, moving on." His tone became serious. "This chakra deals with willpower and is blocked by shame. What are you ashamed of? What are your biggest disappointments in yourself?"

Aang meditated and saw a vision of when he tried to learn Firebending from Jeong Jeong and what happened due to his impatience. "I'm never going to Firebend again." He declared. "I can't."

"You will never find balance if you deny this part of your life. You are the Avatar and therefore, you are a Firebender." Aang did indeed open the Fire Chakra but it did not ring out a chime. Instead it sounded like a soft whisper. "Hmmm…that chakra opened less like a flowing creek and more like a…burping bison." Pathik noted.

Aang then proceeded to burp (loudly). "Tastes like onions and bananas." He said. "But strangely something else…pickles?"

Pathik just shrugged. He turned to look at Gaara. "And what are you ashamed of, young Kazekage?"

What Gaara saw was the villagers avoiding him, his siblings staying away from due to fear, his father giving him only looks of disappointment. "I've caused them so much grief." He muttered.

"And yet, they have forgiven you for what you did. You protected them from dangers many would run from. Let your shame flow away."

Gaara concentrated, letting his shame drift away. They heard the sound of ringing chimes again.

"That's more like it." Pathik told him with approval.

(Location: Royal Palace)

Two Dai Li agents slid down on the columns, listening in on what the "Kyoshi Warriors" were talking about. "I'm tired of wearing this girly disguise." Mai said as she sat on the steps. "I don't know how anyone can fight in this."

"Maybe that's way it was so easy to beat the Kyoshi Warriors and take their clothes." Ty Lee suggested as she practiced her chi blocking.

"How much longer do we have to serve the Earth King? If I have to clean up one more pile of bear poop, I'm going to throw up."

"Princess Azula promised we would go back to the Fire Nation as soon as we capture the Avatar. We just have to be patient." The acrobat started to practice her acrobatic movements.

"Shush up!" Mai ordered, standing up. "Do you want the whole palace to know we're Fire Nation?"

"Sorry!"

The two agents shared a look and began to climb back up the columns. What they didn't know was that in the shadows of the columns behind them was Azula. "Good work, girls" She said as she walked up to them. "I'm sure the Dai Li will deliver the message."

(Location: Eastern Air Temple)

Pathik led Aang and Gaara to a ruined building. "The fourth chakra is located in the heart." He said. "It deals with love and is blocked by grief. Lay all your grief out in front of you."

Aang looked at a statue of an Air Nomad with sad eyes before closing them. He mediated and saw his people appear before him. He smiled but the smile turned into shock when they disappeared into plumes of smoke. "You have indeed felt a great loss." Pathik's voice said as it echoed around him. "But love is a form of energy and it swirls all around us." The Air Nomads reappeared, floating in the air. The smoke lifted Aang up into the air as well. "The Air Nomads' love for you has not left this world. It is still inside of your heart, and is reborn in the form of new love." The smoke created by the Air Nomads began to coalesce together to form a face. To be more specific, it formed Katara's face. "Let the pain flow away."

The chimes rang again and Aang opened his eyes, tears of joy flowing freely. "Very good," Pathik told him.

Aang wiped the tears away. "Can I have some onion and banana juice, please?" He asked.

"Of course, but first…" He turned to look at Gaara. "You say that you have caused people grief. But what has caused you grief?"

What Gaara saw was his family when they were younger, along with his father and his uncle. "They were afraid of me, and for good reason."

"You felt that your father was disappointed in you and that your uncle tried to kill because of your mother." Pathik told him. "But even if they did not care for you, your brother and sister did. And in turn, so did the people of your village. Do not let the memories of your father and uncle trouble you any more, let them drift away."

It was difficult but he managed to do so. They did not hear the chimes when he did, but the soft whisper instead. "Is that hard to let them go?" Aang asked him.

"Despite what they did to me, they are my father and uncle; I cannot help but love and remember them."

"And there is what the Air Chakra is about." Pathik told him. He then led the two to a room that was dominated by a giant statue of an Air Nomad woman. "The fifth in the chain is the Sound Chakra, located in the throat. It deals with truth and is blocked by lies. The ones we tell ourselves."

Aang closed his eyes and saw a vision of when Katara asked him that one question.

"_Why didn't you tell us you were the Avatar?"_

"Because I never wanted to be," He said.

"You cannot lie about your own nature." Pathik told him. "You must accept that you are the Avatar."

What Gaara saw was the time at the Konoha Hospital, when he was about to kill Lee. Naruto and Shikamaru had stopped him. The words he said came back to him.

"_I live solely for myself. I love only myself."_

"I was a fool." He muttered.

"Only if you think so," Pathik said. "But if what you thought about yourself was true, why did you stay in the village? Surely, you would have left the village in order to kill more people so you could prove your existence? The fact that you had stayed shows that you had lied. But you haven't lied to yourself in a while, have you?"

Both Aang and Gaara closed their eyes and accepted the truth. Aang saw a vision of him standing on a mountain cliff, looking down on the land and ready to protect it. Gaara saw himself standing on top of the Kazekage building, looking at the village he swore to lead, serve and protect.

The chimes rang again. "Very good, you two," Pathik said. "You have opened the chakra of truth." He led them to outside of the temple. They sat on a curving staircase on the side of the mountain. "The sixth pool of energy is the Light Chakra, located in the center of the forehead. It deals with insight and is blocked by illusion. The greatest illusion of this world is the illusion of separation. Things you think are separate and different are actually one and the same."

"Like the four nations." Aang said.

"Or the Elemental Countries," Gaara said.

"Yes." Pathik acknowledged. "We are all one people, but we live as if divided."

"We're all connected." Aang said to himself. "Everything is connected."

"That's right! Even the separation of the four elements is an illusion. If you open your mind, you will see that all the elements are one. Four parts of the same whole. Even metal is just a part of earth that has been purified and refined."

(Location: Earth Kingdom road)

Toph stood in the metal cage, hitting the sides and the roof so she could feel the vibrations of it. Finally, she felt the traces of earth within the metal. She smiled and then took a deep breath. She took an Earthbending stance and struck the side of the cage. "Come on, metal." She growled. "Budge!" She struck the metal again, this time causing a dent. "Wooo! Toph, you rule!" She threw another punch at the side of the cage.

(Location: Ba Sing Se)

Katara, Momo, Shù Yè and Team Asuma walked by the Jasmine Dragon. "What do you say, guys?" Katara asked the group. "Let's get a cup of tea before we get back to the king."

"I don't think that's a good idea." Shù Yè said. "We should probably get right back to the Earth King."

"She's right." Asuma agreed. "These scrolls need to be delivered ASAP."

"Oh come on, sensei." Chōji said. "It won't hurt to take a small break."

"Yeah, it's just one cup of tea." Ino pitched in. "We have plenty of time."

Asuma thought it over. "…Fine, we can stop for a small break." He conceded.

They walked up to the entrance. "Table for seven, please," Katara told a nearby waitress. They waited nearby.

"Now that's a lovely thing!" A young man declared from a nearby table, pointing at them. Across the table sat another man. Apparently, they were in the middle of a Pai Sho game.

"Excuse me?" Katara asked.

"I never thought I would see such exquisite beauty in my life."

"Are you talking about me?" She asked.

"Or me?" Ino asked.

"What? No! I was talking about her!" He pointed to Shù Yè.

"Me?" She repeated, stunned. "What's so beautiful about me?"

"I thought it would be obvious."

She grew self-conscious. "Would you please stop looking?"

"No. I find it hard to look away from such beauty."

"Well try, pal." Ino said, stepping towards him. "You're making her feel embarrassed."

"Please sir, stop looking at my bust." Shù Yè begged, trying to cover said bust.

The man grew surprised. "What? I wasn't talking about that. I was referring to your hair and your eyes. I have never seen anything like them."

"Oh…thank you." She said, blushing.

"Uncle!" called out Zuko as he walked through the teashop. "I need two jasmines, one green and one leechi!"

"I'm brewing as fast as I can!" Iroh replied from the back.

Katara just look at the two of them with a stunned expression before bolting out of the restaurant. "Katara, wait!" Shù Yè shouted, going after her and Momo. "What's wrong?" She asked.

"Those two men were Prince Zuko and his uncle!" Katara told her. "We have to get back to the palace!"

Shù Yè grabbed Katara's arm and sped up, leaving a dust trail behind them.

Team Asuma watched in surprise as the two girls ran off. They were about to follow when the man spoke. "Oh my, did she see something that surprised her?" He asked, looking at Team Asuma. "Truth be told though, I was wondering when it was going to happen."

Team Asuma looked at the man. His hair may have been black but his eyes were the kind of blue that belonged to only one person they knew. "Naruto," Asuma said.

"Hello, Konoha shinobi." He greeted them mockingly. "Did you enjoy the show?"

"What are you doing here?" Ino demanded.

"Why does that always seem to be the first question out of your mouths? Try something that's a little more original. But to answer your question, I am enjoying a cup of tea and playing a friendly game of Pai Sho. Speaking of which…" He moved a piece on the board. "I win."

"Another game?" asked the other person.

"Why not," He answered. They began to rearrange the pieces. "Why are you still here?" He asked Team Asuma. "You should go after those girls. Who knows? They just might run into a nasty surprise."

Team Asuma shared a look of horror before running out of the teashop.

(Location: Eastern Air Temple)

Night had fallen and the stars were out in their full glory. Pathik, Aang and Gaara sat on the roof of the temple, so they could see all the stars. "This is the last chakra, isn't it?" Aang asked.

"Yes." Pathik answered. "Once you open this chakra, you will be able to go in and out of the Avatar State at will, and when you are in the Avatar State, you will have complete control and awareness of all your actions."

"Let's do this!" He declared. Gaara nodded silently.

"The Thought Chakra is located at the crown of the head. It deals with pure cosmic energy and is blocked by earthly attachments. Mediate on what attaches you to this world." Aang saw images of Katara while Gaara saw images of his friends, family and his village. "Now, let all of those attachments go. Let them flow down the river, forgotten."

Aang snapped out of his mediation. "What? Why would I let go of Katara? I…I love her!"

"Learn to let her go, or you cannot let the pure cosmic energy flow in from the universe."

"Why would I choose cosmic energy over Katara? How could it be a bad thing that I feel an attachment to her? Three chakras ago, that was a good thing!"

You must learn to let go." Pathik told him sternly. They then heard the ringing chimes and saw that Gaara had opened his eyes. "I have never seen someone open the seventh chakra so easily. Even Mito had difficulty with it."

"I had once thought I existed for myself and only for myself." Gaara replied. "You had wanted me to return to that same line of thinking. The only difference is that I returned with a positive look instead a negative look."

"An interesting way to open it," The guru stood up. "Aang, I want you to stay here and think on your attachments. I have one last thing to teach to Gaara." He led the shinobi off the roof and into the temple. Eventually, they stopped in a room that only held a large mirror.

"Why are we here?" Gaara asked.

"We are here so you can open the eighth chakra."

"But you said that there were only seven chakras."

"Do you remember when you realized that the seven chakras are similar to the Eight Gates?" Gaara nodded. "That is true from a certain point of view. But in actuality, the chakras and the Eight Gates are the same."

"But the Eight Gates are not located where the seven chakras are."

"Remember your basic lessons in chakra. It comes from both the physical energy that is in every cell of your body and from the spiritual energy gained exercise and experience. The location of the Eight Gates is the physical side and the location of the eight chakras is the spiritual side. The Earth Chakra is the Gate of Opening. The Water Chakra is the Gate of Healing, and so on. The eighth chakra is opened only by a Jinchūriki who wishes to gain control over their Biju."

"But I'm not a Jinchūriki. Not anymore."

"But you are still hunted by your memories as a Jinchūriki. It will work."

Gaara sat down in front of the mirror. "So where is the eighth chakra located?"

"Ah, that is where the eighth chakra becomes unique. Unlike the previous seven chakras, the eighth chakra is not located on a specific part of the body. It is unique to everybody. Do you know where it is for you?"

He touched the symbol above his left eye gently. He took a deep breath. "Yes, I do. I'm ready."

Pathik nodded. "The eighth chakra is the Mirror Chakra, known to shinobi as the Gate of Death. It deals with acceptance and is blocked by denial. You must be able to accept who you are and what you have been. Look deep inside yourself and find the shadow of Shukaku."

Gaara closed and concentrated. He opened his eyes again and saw nothing but darkness.

"**Well, look who it is." ** A voice echoed all around him. **"The Kazekage himself, I'm honored."**

"Show yourself, Shukaku." Gaara commanded.

Footsteps were heard coming towards him. Out of the darkness, another Gaara appeared. This was different because of the crazed grin he wore and that his eyes were not green, but gold. **"Is that any way to speak to your mother?" **Shukaku asked him.

"You are not my mother."

"**You were the one calling me that." **His gaze hardened. **"That is until you forsook me."**

"I had to rely on my power, not on yours."

"**You abandoned me!"**

"I did not abandon you. The Akatsuki extracted you from me. You're but a shadow of Shukaku."

The shadow rushed forward and grabbed Gaara by the throat. **"You think because you've opened the seven chakras, you'll be able to banish me? You'll never be rid of me! I will always be there to plague your dreams. I WON'T FADE AWAY!"**

"I know, because I will not allow you to fade away." Gaara's simple reply stunned Shukaku.

"**W-what are you saying?" **He asked as his grip on Gaara's throat loosened.

"When I first came to this temple, I wanted to get rid of you so I could be free of past memories. But I now realize that if I were to do that, I would be denying a part of myself. I must be able to accept everything about me, which includes my past and you. You may just be a shadow of Shukaku, but you are still Shukaku. You are a part of me. So…I accept you. What you are and what you will be."

"**So you'll just accept me? After all I've done to you?"** Tears began to well up in Shukaku's eyes. **"Why?"**

"It's simple, because I can."

"…**Thank you." **Shukaku said before he disappeared. What Gaara heard this time was not chimes ringing but a bell tolling. He opened his eyes and looked at himself in the mirror. He couldn't say how, but he looked different somehow.

"Congratulation, Gaara." Pathik said. "You have opened the last chakra and have made peace with yourself. I have nothing left to teach you."

He stood up. "Thank you, Guru Pathik." He bowed.

"You're welcome, young Kazekage. I have to get back to Aang and see what his decision is."

"Very well, I will go back to my brother and my sister." They walked out of the room and parted ways. Gaara headed outside to where Temari and Kankurō sat next to Appa.

"Got any three?" Kankurō asked.

"Go Fish." Temari told him.

"Damn it! Now I know you're cheating!"

"No I'm not!"

"Is this because Gaara and I walked in on you and Shikamaru? Is this why you're always cheating now?"

"Oh, will you just that go already?"

"Let it go?! We walked in on our half-naked sister straddling Shikamaru Nara and trying to take his shirt off!"

"Well you should've…!" She stopped when they heard the sound of footsteps coming towards them. They turned to see Gaara coming up the steps.

"Temari, Kankurō." He greeted.

"Gaara, is everything okay?" Kankurō asked.

"Everything is fine. I've opened all the chakras and have come to terms with Shukaku's shadow. I can finally sleep peacefully."

"That's great." Temari congratulated. "Do you feel any different?"

He walked over to Appa and climbed atop the sleeping sky bison. "I feel a little tired. I think I'll…" He never finished the sentence because once his head touched Appa's fur, he was out like a light.

Temari and Kankurō continued their game quietly. They weren't going to begrudge their little brother of his first night of peaceful sleep.

(Location: Palace throne room)

Katara ran into the throne room, Shù Yè right behind her. They noticed the three Kyoshi Warriors kneeling in front of the throne. "Thank goodness you're here, Suki." Katara said.

"Wait, Princess. That's not—!" Shù Yè tried to tell her but Katara continued, ignoring her.

"Something terrible is going on. The Fire Nation has infiltrated the city. Not only have we seen the Fire Nation Paragon, but I just saw Prince Zuko and his uncle! We have to tell the Earth King right away!"

"Suki" stood up and walked forward. "Oh, don't worry. I'll be sure to let him know." She said, her gold eyes gleaming in the light.

"That's not Suki!" Shù Yè finally said.

Momo screeched and flew away. Katara was about to attack when Ty Lee leapt at her and Shù Yè, blocking their chi and knocking them out. They both fell to the floor unconscious, Katara landing in the water from her pouch.

"Not bad for a circus freak, right?" Ty Lee asked the unconscious Waterbender. "What? Got nothing to say!?"

"That's enough, Ty Lee." Azula told her as she and Mai stood over the two unconscious girls. "So, ZuZu's in the city, too? I think it's time for a little family reunion."

They didn't notice the flying lemur escaping, nor did they notice the four shadows at the throne room door.

(Location: Eastern Air Temple)

Pathik rejoined Aang on the roof. "I've thought about my attachments." Aang told him.

"And?" asked Pathik.

"I'm sorry but I can't let go of Katara."

"Aang, to master the Avatar State, you must open all the chakras. Surrender yourself."

"…Okay, I'll try." He closed his eyes and once again, saw an image of Katara. "Now think of your attachments and let them go." Pathik's voice told him. "Let the pure cosmic energy flow." The image of Katara disappeared and he found himself standing on bridge of light above the world. Looking at where the bridge went to, he saw a larger image of himself, the eyes and tattoos glowing white. He knew that this was the form of the Avatar State

He walked forward; his own tattoos beginning to glow. The Avatar State lowered itself to him and placed its hands on either side of him, encasing him in an orb of purple energy. It was going well, until he heard a familiar scream. Turning his head, he saw a vision of Katara in chains, demanding to be let go. He ran out of the orb, dissipating it, and ran onto the bridge, making the Avatar State disappear as well as the glowing of his tattoos. The bridge followed suit, disappearing under his feet and sending him falling to the planet.

He snapped his eyes opened. "Katara's in danger!" He said, standing up. "I have to go!" He leapt off the roof and went down the said.

"No, Aang!" Pathik said, stopping him at the edge. "By choosing attachment, you have locked the chakra! If you leave now, you won't be able to go into the Avatar State at all!"

He hesitated for a second, but continued on, leaving behind a disappointed Pathik. He ran all the back down to where Appa and the three shinobi were. He woke Appa up and flew them away from the Eastern Air Temple.

(Location: Earth Kingdom road)

They continued to drive the cart during the night. They stopped when they heard a loud noise coming from the back. Stopping the cart and going to investigate, they discovered the cage holding Toph had a giant hole in it.

"It's another one of her tricks!" Master Yu declared.

"There's a giant hole in the box!" Xin Fu replied. "How is that a trick!?"

"It's not!" Toph declared from behind them. "It's the real deal!" She then bent the earth to jut out two walls from the ground. She then bent the two walls together, catching Master Yu and Xin Fu together, and then bent the walls into pushing them into the cage. She then leapt at the hole and bent the metal shut, sealing her two captors inside. "I am the greatest Earthbender in the world!" She declared after jumping to the top of the cage. "Don't you two dunderheads ever forget it!" She leapt off the cage and began to earth-surf away, heading back to Ba Sing Se.

"I'm going to be stuck in here forever with you, aren't I?" Xin Fu asked Master Yu. They crammed into the cage and couldn't really move.

"…I have to go to the bathroom." Master Yu finally said. Xin Fu just banged his head on the metal.

(Location: Chameleon Bay)

Sokka was just finished gearing up when Hakoda walked up to him and Akela. "Ready to go knock some Fire Nation heads?" He asked.

"You don't know how much this means to me, Dad." Sokka replied, standing up. "I'll make you proud and I'll finally prove to you what a great warrior I am."

He placed a hand on his son's shoulder. "Sokka, you don't have to prove anything to me. I'm already proud of you and I've always known you were a great warrior."

"Really?"

"Why do you think I trusted you to look after our tribe when I left? I knew you would live to your namesake."

"My namesake, what are you talking about?"

"You were named after the first Water Tribe Paragon. From what your grandfather said around the fire, he was both a great warrior and a great strategist. You've certainly done well in both."

"…Well that's ironic."

"What do you mean?"

He pulled the Paragon Medallion out of his shirt to show his dad. "I'm the current Water Tribe Paragon."

Hakoda looked at the Medallion, looked at his son, looked back at the Medallion and then laughed. "That _is_ ironic!"

Sokka joined in the laughter. Once they were done, they made their way to the ship when Akela turned around and started barking. Sokka turned to see what the problem was, only to see Appa land in front of them. "This can't be good news." He said when he saw Aang's concerned look.

After learning about Katara's predicament, Sokka and Akela boarded Appa, who then took off. As they flew away, Sokka looked back at the sailing ships. Hakoda looked back at the sky bison and smiled.

(Location: Prison cell)

Two Dai Li agents led Azula towards Long Feng's prison cell. "What is this about!?" She demanded as they entered the cell. "Your agents show up in the middle of the night and dragged me down here? You will not treat a Kyoshi Warrior this way!"

"But you're not a Kyoshi Warrior, are you?" Long Feng asked, standing up. "Isn't that right, Princess Azula of the Fire Nation? It was rather foolish of you to come here without your bodyguard. Where is the Fire Nation Paragon?"

"I don't need him at my side constantly. I'm cable of handling myself, despite what he thinks."

"Of course you are." He replied with condescending sarcasm.

"What do you want?"

"I want to make a deal. It's time I regained control of Ba Sing Se, and you have something I need."

"Oh?"

"The Earth King's trust," He told her.

"Why should I help you?"

"Because I can get you the Avatar," He said, walking closer.

"I'm listening."

He smirked. _"What a foolish girl." _He thought to himself.

(Location: The Jasmine Dragon)

They were closing up shop when a courier entered. "A message from the Royal Palace." He told Iroh, handing him a scroll and leaving.

Iroh opened the scroll and read it. "I…I can't believe it!" He said.

"What is it, Uncle?" Zuko asked as he walked up to him.

"It's great news! We've been invited to serve tea to the Earth King!" He ran off to the kitchen.

Zuko just smiled and continued to sweep the dust away. His smile faltered when he looked out to the city and thought that the Blue Spirit was watching him from a nearby roof. He blinked and the Blue Spirit was gone. But his last words still came to him.

"_**You'll never be rid of me!"**_

(Location: Prison cell)

Azula was led out of Long Feng's cell. As they walked, the two Dai Li agents did not notice the small smirk she had. _"Exactly right where I want him." _She thought to herself.

**End **

**Author's Note: **Thanks for all the reviews you sent me.

I apologize for taking a while. I got back home for the holidays and had only gotten around to finishing up this chapter.

The seven chakras are actually real and I apologize to any practitioners if I have offended you. I came up with the eighth chakra so that the idea of the Eight Gates and the chakras being the same thing could stick. I had to be careful about that stuff in this chapter.

Now about Guru Pathik knowing the Shodaime Hokage and Mito Uzumaki, the way I figure it if this guy has been around for a hundred years, he would not stay to just one side of the planet. If I'm judging the timeline right, he would have been alive when Konoha was founded.

Very recently, a reviewer named Jmw gave me a challenge for another Naruto/Last Airbender crossover. This is what it was:

**Naruto and Sasuke are tired of Konoha and the elemental nations in general. Naruto is tired of the hatred Konoha gives him for being a Jinchūriki and Sasuke for how they only care about for his bloodline and tired of all the marriage contracts he keeps getting. Deciding their both tired of Konoha and want a new start they decide to get help from the Kyuubi to see if he can give them a new chance at life. Kyuubi then transports them near the fire nation were they then befriend Zuko Azula Mai and Ty Lee and become best friends. Naruto and Sasuke also fall in love with Ty Lee and Azula.**

Requirements

1. Naruto and Sasuke have brotherly relationship.

2. Naruto and Sasuke must be able to both bend two elements for Sasuke he can bend fire and lightning while Naruto can bend fire and air.

3. Pairings must be Naruto/Ty Lee Sasuke/Azula Zuko/Mai

4. This cannot be a harem

5. Naruto and Sasuke must leave the fire nation along with Ty Lee Azula and Mai.

While I am glad he offered an idea, I cannot write this. The reason is this idea has the hallmarks of a Naruto/Last Airbender story that dies early. The first reason is that most Naruto/Last Airbender has the Naruto characters being able to Bend with no real good reason. This has been used so many times that it actually has become cliché. This is why I kept the Naruto in my story a non-Bender.

The second reason is that you decided that the two lands are in separate dimensions. I say dimension because you have Kyuubi "transporting" them, that sounds like another dimension to me. It does not hurt to have the two lands sharing the same planet, it really doesn't.

The third reason is that you would have Ty Lee, Azula and Mai leave behind the Fire Nation, just like that. It's not that easy, they all have ties to Fire Nation and the way you wrote them leaving is like they got rid of those ties easily. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure that's how Sasuke got the way he is now in the manga.

But still, I applaud you for coming up with this idea. It takes guts to come up with an idea and even more guts to suggest it to an author. But what takes the biggest guts of all is to take your idea and write it out yourself. What I think the reviewer should do is go over this idea and see what they can do to avoid the hallmarks I mentioned before (Ex. How are Naruto and Sasuke able to Bend? Or why exactly Azula and her friends are leaving the Fire Nation and how hard is itfor them?). If you do that and are satisfied with what you fixed, try to write it yourself (and you might want to work on your grammar as well). This is your idea, not mine. I'm not about to take something that wasn't mine to begin with and claim credit for it.

I'll see you all next chapter! Merry Christmas!


	18. Gather and Fall

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 18: Gather and Fall

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Aboard Appa)

They flew towards Ba Sing Se, Aang and Sokka sat on Appa's head while Akela and the Sand Siblings sat on his back. Gaara had woken up a little earlier from a deep, peaceful sleep.

"So, what kind of trouble is Katara in?" Sokka asked Aang.

"I don't know." He answered. "In my vision, I just knew she needed help."

"It would be nice if your Avatar powers could be a little more specific from time to time."

"Vague answers will get you into trouble." Gaara agreed.

Sokka noticed a dust trail moving fast to the Outer Wall of Ba Sing Se. "What is that?" He asked, pointing at it. Getting closer, they saw that it was Toph earth-surfing. "Need a ride?" He called out, making her lose concentration and fall off, making the others wince.

"That's going to hurt." Kankurō stated. Akela nodded in agreement.

(Location: Beneath Ba Sing Se)

The Dai Li stood in front of Azula, who now wore Earth Kingdom clothing. "The Earth King and the Council of Five do not trust the Dai Li. They imprisoned your leader, Long Feng. Soon they will turn on you and eliminate you. Seizing power today is a matter of life and death." She walked down the stairs. "This coup must be swift and decisive. The Earth King and each of the five generals must be taken out simultaneously. Long Feng has placed you in my command while we overthrow the government." Spotting a nervous agent, she walked up to him while still talking to them all. "If I sense any disloyalty, any hesitation, any weakness at all, I will snuff it out. That is all." The Dai Li marched away.

Ty Lee poured a cup of tea. Both she and Mai were still posing as Kyoshi Warriors. "Nice speech, Azula." She said. "It was pretty and poetic, but also scary in a good way."

"Yeah," Mai agreed. "I thought you were going to make that one guy pee his pants."

"There are still a few loose ends. The Avatar, and my brother and uncle," Azula said, holding the cup of tea.

(Location: Outside the Royal Palace)

Iroh and Zuko stepped out of a carriage and started to walk to the Palace. "Many times I imagined myself here, at the threshold of the palace." Iroh said. "But I always thought I would be here as a conqueror. Instead, we are the Earth King's personal guests, here to serve him tea. Destiny is a funny thing."

"It sure is, Uncle." Zuko agreed.

(Location: Aboard Appa)

They came in view of the Outer Wall. "So how did it go with the guru?" Toph asked Aang as she held on to Sokka. "Did you master the Avatar State?"

"Uh…?" Aang could only remember Pathik's last warning.

"_If you leave now, you won't be able to go into the Avatar State at all!"_

"Aang, are you okay?" Sokka asked.

"I'm great. It went great with the guru. I completely mastered the Avatar State." He told them before chuckling nervously.

"That baka," Gaara muttered. "He's lying."

"Are you sure?" Temari asked him quietly.

"Look at his body language. I've seen our Academy students lie better to their teachers. He never mastered the Avatar State."

"Should we tell the others?" Kankurō asked.

He shook his head. "No, we don't need any more problems. We'll keep silent for now."

(Location: Royal Palace)

Zuko and Iroh were led to a room. They poured the tea, sat down and waited. "…What's taking so long?" Zuko wondered aloud after a minute of silence.

"Maybe the Earth King overslept?" Iroh suggested.

"Somehow, I don't think so." He replied, half-sarcastic. He then noticed that Dai Li agents were entering the room. "Something's not right." He whispered as the agents encircled them.

"It's tea time!" Azula announced as she walked into the room.

"Azula!" He said in surprise as he quickly stood up.

"Have you met the Dai Li?" She asked the two of them. "They're Earthbenders, but they have a killer instinct that is so Firebender. I just love it."

"Did I ever tell you how I got the name 'the Dragon of the West'?" Iroh asked his niece as he stood up with a cup of tea in hand.

"I'm not interested in a lengthy anecdote, Uncle."

"It's more of a demonstration, really." He began to drink his tea. Zuko gave a small smile before Iroh pulled him behind himself and breathed fire at the Dai Li agents. While they were distracted, Zuko punched a hole in the wall that led into the hallway using Firebending. He ran through the hallway with Iroh behind him. Two agents went through the hole after them, firing off pieces of their rock gloves via Earthbending. They smashed into the wall as Zuko and Iroh turned the corner.

The wall leading to the outside burst open due to lightning generated by Iroh, who then proceeded to jump out of the hole on the second floor and landed on a bush statue. "Come on!" He called to Zuko. "You'll be fine!"

Zuko was indeed about to jump when someone pulled him back in. "Uncle, run!" He shouted out before disappearing from Iroh's view. He tried to break free from his captor's grip.

"Would you stop moving around so much, please?" His captor asked. He stopped moving, he knew that voice.

"I guess I should've expected to see you around. Anywhere my sister is, you're there or nearby. Right, Naruto?" He turned to look at him.

"I am her bodyguard." Naruto answered.

"That you are." Azula said as she joined, flanked by Dai Li agents. "What's the matter, ZuZu? You're not going to challenge your sister to an Agni Kai?" She asked Zuko with a mocking tone.

"Why should I even bother? You'll just refuse. Besides, you have the advantage in numbers." He replied.

"I guess you did learn something at Akawan." She walked away as the Dai Li agents took care of him.

(Location: Aboard Appa)

Aang had Appa land at the Royal Palace. They went straight to the Earth King to ask him about Katara.

"Katara's fine." He reassured them. "You have nothing worry about."

"But…in my vision, I felt so sure she was in trouble." Aang told him.

"Well, she met with the Council of Generals with Team Asuma and Shù Yè to plan the invasion and since then, she and Shù Yè have been off with your friends, the Kyoshi Warriors while Team Asuma went to go look for the Fire Nation Paragon again."

"That's a relief." Sokka said. "See, Aang? There was nothing to worry about."

"Okay, maybe you're right." Aang conceded.

"Believe me, if there was any danger at all, Bosco's animal instincts would sense it." The Earth King told them. Bosco just raised his sleepy head; making Akela actually snort in disbelief (the others briefly wondered how he could pull that off).

Temari threw Kankurō a look. "I wasn't going to say it." He told her quietly.

"Don't think I didn't hear you cover that snicker with a cough." She replied.

"I still wasn't going to say it. The only one who gets to say it is Shù Yè."

(Location: Crystal Catacombs)

Katara kept walking back and forth in the catacombs. "You know, you're going to wear out your feet like that, Princess." Shù Yè told her from where she sat.

"How can you be so calm?" Katara demanded.

"What? You think this is the first time I've been in a situation like this? You just have to relax and be patient. I mean, it's not like it could get any worse."

Just then, the entrance to the catacombs opened up. "You've got company." A Dai Li agent announced as he threw a person down the ramp and closed the entrance.

"Zuko!" exclaimed Katara with a surprised look, which soon turned to anger.

Shù Yè just groaned. "I just had to say it." She muttered to herself.

(Location: Team Avatar house)

Appa landed in front of the house (which had some reconstruction going on, thanks to Toph), allowing his passengers to get off. Toph walked up to the door and opened it. They walked through, only to find their movements frozen.

"What is the meaning of this, Shikamaru?" Gaara called out to the house.

They could suddenly move again. "Sorry about that, Gaara." Shikamaru said as he and the rest of Team Asuma walked into the room. "We had to be sure."

"Sure about what?" Temari asked.

"Momo!" cried Aang as the lemur ran towards and up him.

"What happened?" Gaara asked.

"Katara and Shù Yè have captured." Asuma stated.

"Katara is in trouble. I knew it!" Aang declared.

"Oh no." groaned Sokka. Akela sniffed the air and began to growl at the door, his hackles rising. "What's the matter?"

"There's someone at the door." Toph announced. They heard knocking from the other side. "Actually I know who it is. It's an old friend of mine." She opened the door to reveal Iroh standing in their doorway. "Glad to see you're okay."

"I need your help." Iroh replied. His presence surprised both Sokka and Aang. Both Team Asuma and the Sand Siblings were on guard. Toph just raised a hand in greeting.

"You guys know each other?!" Aang demanded, pointing at them while Momo flew away.

"Put your finger down, Aang." Asuma told him. "It's rude to point."

"I met him in the woods once and knocked him down." Toph told them. "Then he gave me tea and some very good advice."

"May I come in?" Iroh asked. Toph nodded and he walked into the house. "Princess Azula is here in Ba Sing Se."

"She must have Katara!" Aang realized.

"And Shù Yè as well," Gaara said.

"She has captured my nephew as well." Iroh told them.

"Then we'll work together to fight Azula and Naruto, as well as save Katara, Shù Yè and Zuko."

"Naruto is here in the city?" He shook his head. "I should not be surprised."

"Is this really a good idea?" Shikamaru asked them all.

"Do you have any other ideas, little boy?" Temari asked in return.

"I know how you must feel about my nephew." Iroh told them. "But believe me when I tell you there is good inside him."

"Yeah well, let us know when the 'good' is on the outside as well." Sokka said. Akela rolled his eyes.

"Katara and Shù Yè are in trouble." Aang told his friend. "All of Ba Sing Se is in trouble. Working together is our best chance."

Sokka stayed silent for a few seconds, and then gave a nod of agreement.

"I brought someone along who might be able to help us." Iroh told them, walking back to the door. He opened the door and walked back onto the porch with the others behind him. On the porch was a gagged Dai Li agent, relieved of his rock gloves and shoes. His feet and hands were also tied.

Toph quickly held him in place by Earthbending two columns to jut out of the ground and hold him. Iroh walked up to him and pulled the gag down. "Azula and Long Feng are plotting a coup!" He told them in a hurried voice. "They're going to overthrow the Earth King!"

"Where are they keeping my sister and Shù Yè?" Sokka demanded, pointing his machete at the agent. Akela simply bared his teeth.

"In the Crystal Catacombs of Old Ba Sing Se, deep beneath the palace." Everyone turned around and headed to Appa. Gaara stopped, turned back around and knocked the agent unconscious with his sand before catching up.

(Location: Prison cell)

"The movements of all the generals and the Earth King have been plotted out step-by-step." A Dai Li agent told Long Feng as he stood outside the prison cell.

"Good." Long Feng replied as he mediated. "And the Fire Nation princess is cooperating?"

"Oh yes. More than cooperating," The agent answered. "She's really taken charge. She's terrifying and inspirational at the same time. It's hard to explain." He walked off.

Long Feng opened his eyes. _"This might turn out to be a problem." _He thought to himself. _"I'll have to make an example of the princess to reinforce the loyalty of the Dai Li."_

(Location: Crystal Catacombs)

"Why did they throw you in here?" Katara demanded of Zuko as she paced back and forth. Zuko said nothing; he just kept his back to her. "Oh, wait, let me guess. It's a trap. So when Aang shows up to help us, you can finally have him in your little Fire Nation clutches!"

"Oh, for the sake of the Spirit World, give it a rest, Princess." Shù Yè told her.

Zuko turned his head to look at her once and then looked away.

"You're a terrible person! You know that? Always hunting us! Hunting the Avatar! Trying to capture this side of the world's last hope for peace! But what do you care? You're the Fire Lord's son. Spreading war and violence and hatred is in your blood!" Katara ranted.

"You don't know what you're about!" Zuko finally replied.

"I don't? How dare you! You have no idea what this war has put me through, me personally!" She turned away and sat down, her hand touching the necklace at her neck. "The Fire Nation took my mother away from me." Tears flowed down her face.

"Yes, yes, everything is all just about you, isn't it, Princess?" Shù Yè asked with sarcasm. "And here I thought it was all about the arrowhead. You know, one of these days that mouth of yours will get you into a lot of trouble."

"Shut up, Shù Yè. Just shut up."

"…I'm sorry." Zuko apologized to Katara, turning to face her. "That's something we have in common."

She looked with surprise, wiping the tears away.

(Location: Team Avatar)

"Well, what do you know?" Toph said as she knelt and placed a hand on the earth. "There is an ancient city down there. But it's deep." She bent the earth to open up, creating a tunnel.

"We should split up." Sokka said. "Aang, you go with Iroh and look for Katara, Shù Yè and the angry jerk, no offense." He told Iroh.

"None taken," He replied.

"And I'll go with Toph to warn the Earth King of Azula's coup." Momo landed on his shoulder.

"We'll go with Aang and Iroh." Asuma said, gesturing to his team.

"Then we will go with Sokka and Toph." Gaara replied.

They went their separate ways. Aang, Iroh and Team Asuma went into the tunnel. While Aang extended the tunnel, Iroh used his Firebending to light the way.

"So, Toph thinks you give pretty good advice, and great tea!" Aang said as they walked down the tunnel.

"The key to both is proper aging." He replied. "What's on your mind?"

Aang extended the tunnel again. "Well, I met with this guru who was supposed to help me master the Avatar State and control this great power. But to do it, I had to let go of someone I love. And I just couldn't." When he didn't hear anything from Team Asuma, he stopped and looked at them. "You guys aren't surprised?"

"Gaara already told us." Shikamaru told him. "Apparently, you're a bad liar."

"Perfection and power are overrated." Iroh told them. "I think you were very wise to choose happiness and love."

Aang extended the tunnel for a third time. "What happens if we can't save everyone and beat Azula and Naruto? Without the Avatar State, what if I'm not powerful enough?"

"I don't know the answer. Sometimes, life is like this dark tunnel. You can't always see the light at the end of the tunnel. But if you just keep moving," Aang extended the tunnel again, making the end break away and extinguishing Iroh's fire. "You will come to a better place." They found themselves looking at Old Ba Sing Se, the cavern illuminated by glowing crystals.

(Location: Sokka's group)

They climbed the staircase up to the Royal Palace. "There's General How." Sokka announced as they reached the top of the staircase. Realizing that something was wrong, he grabbed Toph and hid behind a nearby column. Momo, Akela and the Sand Siblings followed them.

General How was indeed walking towards them, but what he didn't realize was that Dai Li agents were on the columns. Two of them sprang into action by throwing metal cuffs at his hands and forcing him to his knees. "What's going on here!?" demanded the general.

"You're under house arrest." A third agent told him.

"The coup is happening right now!" Sokka whispered to the others. "We've gotta warn the Earth King!" He grabbed Toph by the arm and ran off, the others right behind him. As they made their way to the Earth King, the other generals on the Council of Five were being captured by the Dai Li.

But they were unaware of this as they entered the throne room. "Thank goodness we're in time." Sokka said as he ran up to the throne.

"In time for what?" asked the Earth King.

"Yeah, what are you in time for, cutie?" Ty Lee asked as she cartwheeled towards Sokka.

He kept a blank face. "The next time you kidnap someone, try to remember who's at the door."

"Huh?"

"Just drop the act already. We know who you are. They told us." He swung a punch at her, making her backflip onto the top of the Badgermole statue.

"What is going on?" The Earth King demanded.

"They're not the real Kyoshi Warriors!" Toph told him, making him gasp in surprise.

"Sorry to disappoint you." Mai said before throwing a couple of knives at her. She blocked them by bending a rock barrier out of the floor. She then bent at Mai, who jumped over it but got caught by a stone column that Toph bent out of the floor as well.

Ty Lee appeared in front of Sokka with a laugh, making him move away. He didn't try to fight her because he knew that if he made one mistake, she would take it. Every time she tried to jab him, he would dodged it.

"Ooooh, it's like we're dancing together!" Ty Lee told him.

"Well, this is the only dance you're getting out of me." He told her.

"This fight is over." Azula declared. She stood behind the Earth King and was literally holding him at flame-point.

Sokka looked back at the Sand Siblings, only to see that they were being held by Dai Li agents. Knowing that there was nothing they could do, both he and Toph held their hands up in surrender. Ty Lee took advantage of that by leaping in between them and knocking them out via chi blocking. Momo tried to fly away but a Dai Li agent sent him crashing to the ground by encasing him in one of his rock gloves.

"Kami take it! We should've helped them!" Kankurō swore.

"They restrained us the moment the fight started." Temari reminded him.

"Get them all out of my sight." Azula ordered, extinguishing the flame on her two fingers and shoving the Earth King down the steps. Ty Lee and Mai dragged Toph's unconscious body while a Dai Li agent dragged Sokka away. The agents also escorted the Earth King and the Sand Siblings away as well. Akela and Bosco had no choice but to follow them, Bosco grunting with worry and Akela with a furious look in his eyes.

Azula watched them go with a satisfied look. The look turned into a scowl when she saw Long Feng approaching the throne with several Dai Li agents behind him. "Now comes the part where I double cross you." He announced. "Dai Li, arrest the Fire Nation princess." The Dai Li did not move an inch, making Long Feng turn around to face them. "I said arrest her!" They still did not move. "What is wrong with you!?"

"Dai Li, restrain Long Feng!" Naruto's voice rang out in the room. Two of the agents cuffed Long Feng with metal restraints.

"What is the meaning of this!?" He demanded. "You will release me! I am your leader!"

"You're just a temp." Naruto told him, appearing from out behind a column. "I lead the Dai Li now, as is my right."

"What are you talking about?"

He smirked before turning around and walking towards the throne. "Tell me, Long Feng, do you know how the Dai Li were created?"

Long Feng managed to regain his composure. "Of course I do. During the reign of the 46th Earth King, there was a peasant uprising. The Earth King summoned Avatar Kyoshi to quell the uprising. She refused and proposed a compromise instead. The Earth King would listen to the peasants' grievances and in return, she would protect the king's interest and the cultural heritage. She created an elite group of Earthbenders that now known as the Dai Li."

"Points for trying, but you forgot the other half of the story."

"What do you mean?"

His smirk grew wider. "See? If you were the actual leader of the Dai Li, you would know the rest of the story."

"I am the leader of the Dai Li! These men have proven themselves to be traitors to the state. The rest of the Dai Li will free me soon enough. They are loyal to me."

"Wrong. The truth is that any Dai Li agent who was actually loyal to you is now dead. I had them killed."

"What?" Long Feng's composure slipped as he had a look of shock on his face.

"It is true that Kyoshi created the Dai Li, but she never told the Paragons at that time what had happened. When they had found out, they were furious. All four of the Paragons went to Ba Sing Se and straight to Kyoshi. They told her that she had no right to create a group that had the potential to wield power over the city and the Earth King. She told them that it was none of their business and that the Avatar answers to no one. They responded by telling her that the Avatar did answered to someone, she answered to them. As punishment, they stripped her of command over the Dai Li and sent her back to her home island in exile. She had stayed there, in exile, for forty years. The Paragons took control of the Dai Li after that."

"What is your point?"

The smirk on his face had become foxlike. "A Dai Li agent's loyalty to the Paragons first and to the Earth Kingdom second. I believe you saw a demonstration of that when Sokka showed them his Paragon Medallion, correct?"

"How do you know of that?"

"I gave him the book that held the laws concerning the Dai Li. He has as much right to command the Dai Li as I do. I take it that you've taken the time to read the reports about the war? If so, you'll probably realize who I am."

Long Feng's eyes went wide. "You're the Paragon of the Fire Nation."

"Correct, and now I have to take out the trash. Dai Li!" He barked out. The agents turn their attention to him. "This man is guilty of crimes against Ba Sing Se. His punishment is execution."

Long Feng chuckled. "You can't just kill me. I run this city, it's under my control. You kill me and everything will collapse." He turned to look at Azula. "I will make you another deal. Keep me alive and I will run this city for the Fire Nation in the place of the Earth King."

Azula said nothing, she simply smirked. "And wrong again." Naruto announced.

"How am I wrong?" He asked, confident and patronizing.

"I'll let you in on a little secret." He looked around, like he was making sure they were alone (which they weren't). "You haven't be in control of Ba Sing Se since about…hmmm….last autumn." His face grew serious. "The method of execution is stoning. Dai Li, you will carry out the execution immediately."

The Dai Li took Long Feng away. Long Feng didn't resist, he was just escorted away with a look on his face that he had lost in the very game he thought he was the master of.

Both Azula and Naruto watched as he left. "And that takes care of it." Naruto said.

"Indeed." Azula agreed. She then looked at her bodyguard. "You know, I was quite capable of taking care of him."

"You were going to give him the 'divine right to rule' speech, weren't you?" He asked her, giving her a pointed look.

"…Yes." She admitted.

"Do we need to have that conversation again?"

"No! We don't!" She reassured him. Her hands went around her back and covered her rear. She gave the same speech to Naruto a year ago. His response was to bend her over his knee and spanked her. He then took her to rural villages in the Fire Nation and had her meet with the village leaders. After having many talks with many different leaders, she realized the right to rule wasn't divine but choice. "I just wanted to throw him off, that's all."

"That's what I'm for." He noticed that a Dai Li agent had returned. "I take it that my orders were followed?"

"Yes sir." The agent answered. "We have taken them to a room in the palace."

"Good, keep a close eye on them. I don't want them to get into trouble." The agent bowed and left. He turned to Azula. "And now, I have to go." With that, he disappeared with a _POOF!_

(Location: Crystal Catacombs)

"I'm sorry I yelled at you before." Katara apologized to Zuko.

"It doesn't matter." He told her.

"It's just that for so long now, whenever I would imagine the face of the enemy, it was your face."

"My face?" repeated Zuko as he touched his scar. "I see."

"No, no, that's-that's not what I meant."

"It's okay. I used to think this scar marked me. The mark of the banished prince, cursed to chase the Avatar forever. But lately, I've realized I'm free to determine my own destiny, even if I'll never be free of my mark."

"Maybe you could be free of it."

"What?"

"I have healing abilities."

"It's a scar. It can't be healed."

She walked forward, taking out the vial that Pakku had given her. "This is water from the Spirit Oasis at the North Pole. It has special properties, so I've been saving it for something important. I don't know if it would work, but…" She touched Zuko's scar. However, they were interrupted when a side of the Catacombs burst open to reveal Aang, Iroh and Team Asuma.

"Aang!" cried Katara in joy. She ran towards him and gave him a big hug. He hugged back and glared at Zuko. Zuko got a hug from Iroh and glared back.

"Oh, thank the Spirits you guys got here." Shù Yè told Team Asuma as she stood up from where she sat. "It was getting too melodramatic in here. It was five minutes away from being a bad romance story."

"Well, you're certainly taking this in stride." Asuma noted.

"As I told Katara, this is not the first time I've been in this kind of situation."

"I knew you would come." Katara told Aang as she gave him another hug.

"Uncle, I don't understand." Zuko told Iroh (who broken the hug). "What are you doing with the Avatar?"

"Saving you, that's what." Aang retorted.

"How troublesome," Shikamaru said quietly.

"Now's not the time, Shikamaru." Ino told him.

Zuko took a step in Aang's direction, but was stopped by Iroh. "Zuko, it's time we talked." He stated. He looked over at the others. "Go help your other friends. We'll catch up with you."

Aang raced back into the tunnel with Team Asuma and Shù Yè behind him. Katara followed, but not before giving Zuko one last look.

"Why, Uncle?" Zuko asked.

"You're not the man you used to be, Zuko." Iroh told him. "You are stronger, wiser and freer then you have ever been. And now you have come to the crossroads of your destiny. It's time for you to choose. It's time for you to choose good."

Out of nowhere, crystals sprang out of the ground and encased Iroh. "I expected this kind of treachery from Uncle." Azula said as she and two Dai Li agents appeared. "But Zuko, _Prince _Zuko, you're a lot of things, but you're not a traitor, are you?" She asked her brother.

"Release him immediately!" Zuko demanded.

"It's not too late for you, Zuko. You can still redeem yourself."

"The kind of redemption she offers is not for you." Iroh warned him.

"Why don't you let him decide, Uncle?" Azula asked before turning her attention. "I need you, Zuko. I've plotted every move of this day, this glorious day in Fire Nation history, and the only way we win is together. At the end of this day, you will have your honor back. You will have Father's love. You will have everything you want."

"Zuko, I'm begging you." Iroh said. "Look into your heart and see what it is that you truly want."

"You are free to choose." Azula told him. She signaled the Dai Li to leave. They left via the way they came in while she went into the tunnel that Aang created.

Zuko struggled with his choices. He tried to think straight but all he could hear was his two sides arguing.

"**Please listen to Uncle." **His younger self begged. **"You know it's the right thing to do."**

The Blue Spirit laughed. **"It won't matter. He's ignored a part of himself for a while. Now, he has to pay the price. And we all know it."**

(Location: Aang's group)

They ran back into the area of Old Ba Sing Se. "We've gotta find Sokka, Toph and the others." Katara told them.

"Talk about stating the obvious." Shù Yè replied.

It was at that point a bolt of lightning landed in the middle of the group. It sent Team Asuma flying into one of the buildings carved into the rock. Another bolt of lightning hit the building, causing it to collapse and was blocked off by rubble.

A third bolt of lightning flew at them but this time Aang was ready. He brought up a wall of rock with Earthbending to block it. It did block the bolt but was destroyed in the process. However, it did show them who threw the lightning bolt. It was Azula.

Katara ran up to the water and bent a large portion of it out of the river to block another lightning bolt. She then tried to effectively drown Azula by turning the water into a tidal wave. In response, Azula bent a huge flame shield to block the water, causing it to turn into mist.

"I got her!" Shù Yè said, charging into the mist. Both Katara and Aang heard the sounds of flesh hitting flesh, grunting and finally, someone hitting something hard.

"Shù Yè?" Aang called out. "Are you okay?"

They got their answer when Azula appeared out of the mist, jumping off a crystal. While in midair, she shot two bursts of blue fire at Aang and Katara. They worked together to bend a water current out of the river to act as a shield. The mist cleared, showing Shù Yè sitting against a crystal, unconscious.

Azula landed on a rock pillar, which Aang took advantage of. He dropped the water and bent the pillar to break apart. Azula realized this and jumped off, landing between Aang and Katara. It was a standoff with nobody willing to make a move. Azula knew that if she made a move on one, the other would attack her. And Aang and Katara knew that if one attacked her, she would attack the other.

The standoff was interrupted when a fireball struck the ground in between them. They turned to see Zuko at the tunnel entrance. He had taken the more restrictive parts of his clothing off, allowing greater mobility. He held a Firebending stance and walked towards the standoff. He eyed his sister and then turned his gaze to Aang, who then realized what that meant.

Zuko shot a fireball at Aang, who bent the air around into a shield and jumped away. Azula just smirked and turned her attention back to Katara. In the midst of all this, Shù Yè was still unconscious.

(Location: Prison cell)

Sokka looked out the cell's barred window.

"See any Dai Li agents nearby?" Toph asked.

"Nope, all clear." He told her.

He backed away from the door so that Toph could stand in front of it. Using her new founded gift of Metalbending, she crumpled the door and punched it clear off its hinges.

"Let's go!" Sokka declared.

"I'm not leaving without Bosco!" The Earth King told them as he was yanked out of the cell by Sokka.

"What about Gaara, Kankurō and Temari?" Toph asked as they ran.

"We'll have to come back for them later." He answered.

(Location: Old Ba Sing Se)

Zuko fired off multiple fireballs at Aang. He bent the air to form a shield, blocking the fireballs and sent a human-shaped gust of air at Zuko, sending him crashing to the ground. Aang leapt at him with another gust of air ready. He rolled out of the way and bent another fireball at his feet, making jump high onto a rock pillar. He hopped back onto his feet and shot off multiple fireballs at Aang again, making him leap from pillar to pillar.

When he finally stopped on a cluster of crystals, Zuko fired a bigger fireball at him. He tried to Earthbend the crystals beneath him to rise up into a shield but the fireball smashed through. Zuko then bent the fire in his hands into whips and swung them at Aang. He leapt out of the cluster of crystals and hopped around the upper levels, avoiding the fire whips.

Meanwhile, Azula charged at Katara. She retaliated by sending a wave of water at her. She dodged, but it was close enough that she could see her face in the water's reflection and the water cut off some of her hair.

Zuko was still trying to hit Aang with his fire whips. Aang kept jumping along the ceiling until he landed on a stalactite. Using Earthbending, he broke off the tip and sent it slamming into the ground with him along with it. The impact caused a crater and sent Zuko crashing into a large cluster of crystal.

After knocking Azula off her feet, Katara bent the water beneath to form water whips around her hands and arms. Azula sent a burst of blue fire at her, but she swung one of the whips at Azula, blocking the fire and trapping her arm in water. She tried to do the same thing again with her foot, but Katara trapped that in water too.

Seeing that his sister was in trouble, Zuko used his foot to bend a thin wave of fire at the water whips, cutting them in half and freeing his sister. Azula looked at her brother and gave a small nod of appreciation before turning to look at the crater that Aang made and of which he just crawled out of.

She went at him while Zuko and Katara dueled with their respective whips. "I thought you had changed!" She yelled at him.

"I have changed." He replied calmly.

While they dueled, Azula and Aang were staring down the other. Azula bent fire behind to propel herself at him. His response was to bend nearby crystal to shatter and to reform as armor on him. He then used Earthbending to slide forward at Azula. They charged at each other, until Azula stopped and bent the fire she used as propulsion at Aang in full force.

He tried to go through it, but it caused the crystal armor to shatter and sent him flying into another of the buildings carved into the rock.

(Location: Royal Palace, Throne Room)

"Come on, it's easy." Ty Lee told Bosco, who sat nearby. "You just walk on your front paws instead your rear ones, like this." She did a handstand and started to walk forward. She was caught off-guard when the earth rose up and trapped her hands. Surprised, she lost her balance and placed her feet in front of her. The floor also encased them, making her completely stuck. Bosco clapped when he saw this and Akela just got up from where he sat.

"That is a nice trick." Toph said. She and Sokka readied themselves for a fight.

"Just take the animals." Mai said, raising a hand in surrender.

"Bosco!" cried the Earth King, hugging the bear, who grunted in happiness.

Akela walked over to Sokka and sat down on his haunches. "Where are Gaara and his siblings?" Sokka demanded.

Mai shrugged. "Don't know. You could go look for them, but I think you should be more concerned about your friends in Old Ba Sing Se."

He looked at her for another minute. "We have to go." He finally said. "We have to go help Aang and the others."

"What about Gaara?" Toph asked.

"Once everyone else is safe, we'll come and find them. Let's move!" They ran out of the throne room to look for Appa.

(Location: Old Ba Sing Se)

Both Zuko and Azula worked in tandem to fight against Katara, who was not faring well. After Zuko's fireball knocked away most of her water, Azula's fireball sent her flying into a cluster of crystal. It knocked her out and shaken her braid loose.

The cave began to rumble and Aang leapt out of the building he crashed into, slammed into the ground and began to earth-surf towards them. He reached the river when a Dai Li agent appeared out of nowhere and broke Aang's earth-surf, sending him flying. He tried to get up, but stopped when he looked up and saw Dai Li agents were both backing up Zuko and Azula and surrounding Katara. Katara herself regained consciousness and saw that she was surrounded. She bent water from the river to surround her and used the octopus form, using the eight tentacles to ward off the agents.

Aang stood up to fight but saw that both he and Katara were outnumbered. "There's too many." He muttered to himself.

That was when everyone heard a muffled shout of **"Tsūga** (Passing Fang)**!" **and the collapsed building that Team Asuma was trapped in burst open, sending dust everywhere and obscuring everyone's vision.

"I hope we aren't late to the party!" A familiar voice to Katara and Aang asked. The dust cleared to reveal Kiba sitting on Akamaru. Behind him were Team Kurenai, Team Guy and Team Asuma, all were ready to fight.

"Sorry for taking so long." Chōji apologized to Aang and Katara. "It was kinda hard to track down eight different chakra signatures over an entire continent while trapped underground."

"Also add in the fact that Shikamaru wasn't really helping." Ino added, throwing a glare at her teammate.

"It was a drag." He replied.

"Focus people!" Asuma barked out. "We've got a big fight on our hands!"

"Indeed!" Guy shouted. "Let us show them the power of our YOUTH!"

"Not exactly how I would say it, but Guy's right." Kurenai said. "Attack the Dai Li!"

The teams of Konoha shinobi charged directly into the fray. Guy and Lee used the **Gōken **on the Dai Li while Neji and Hinata used their Byakugan and the **Jūken**. Kiba and Akamaru tore through the agents using the **Gatsūga** while Shino helped by using his kikaichū to distract them. Ino and Kurenai held back, Ino to provide medical support and Kurenai to cast Genjutsu. Tenten protected them from harm by fighting off Dai Li agents. Shikamaru used his **Kagemane** to hold agents still while Asuma used his Chakra Blades to take them.

Once in a while, one of them would get close to Zuko or Azula but would always get stopped by an agent. Katara defended herself by using the octopus form to swat away Dai Li agents.

Aang just watched as the fight went on. _"I have to help somehow." _He thought to himself. Looking at Katara, Pathik's words came back to him.

"_The only way is to let her go."_

"Guys, Katara, I'm sorry." He whispered. He turned his back and made a crystal tent with Earthbending to protect himself. He sat down and began to mediate again. Once again, he saw himself on a bridge of light over the world, the image of the Avatar State hovering above him. It descended and again, he was encased in the orb. His tattoos glowed and in the real world, they began to glow as well, causing the crystal tent to light up, getting everyone's attention. His eyes opened and they glowed as well. The crystal shattered and, in a beam of light, he rose up into the air. Katara looked at him with hope in her eyes as she watched him gain control of the Avatar State. The shinobi watched on with varying degrees of awe or surprise.

Shikamaru then noticed that Azula was missing. Looking around quickly and calmly, he found her standing behind Aang, moving her hands around, trying to generate lightning. Reacting quickly, he extended his shadow towards her and caught her just as the lightning was ready. Raising his hand, she was forced to mimic it, sending the lightning up towards the ceiling. "It's too troublesome for you to do that." He said.

"Nice going, Shikamaru!" Kiba cheered as the others realized what he had done.

Aang had almost complete control of the Avatar State when he felt something like a cold hand grabbing him, yanking him out of the orb and away from the Avatar State. In the real world, the glow from his tattoos and his eyes disappeared as well as the beam of light.

"**None of that," **A voice said as gravity took control of Aang, sending him falling back down to the ground.

He bent a cushion of air to soften his landing. "W-what happened?" He asked in surprise.

"What's going on?" Katara asked aloud. "How could he be cut off from the Avatar State?"

"You know, you should really pay more attention to Sokka's paranoia." Shù Yè's voice rang out. Everyone looked over at her as she stood up from where she laid. "It'd probably save you a lot of trouble."

"What did you do, Shù Yè?" Ino asked.

"Isn't obvious? I cut Aang off from the Avatar State. I do have that ability." She started to walk over to the river.

"But you're not a Paragon!" Katara protested. "Not unless…"

"Not unless you're the Paragon of the Air Nomads!" Aang finished. "How could you betray your own kin? Did the Fire Nation pay you that much money to betray us!? How much did they pay you to betray me? HOW MUCH!?"

Shù Yè stopped walking, standing by the river. She began to laugh. "Wow, you really are an idiot."

"Just who are you!?"

She looked down at the water. "I thought it was so obvious. My name should've at least alerted you, but you even failed to recognize that."

"What do you mean, 'your name'?" Asuma asked.

"Katara, would you please tell the shinobi what my name means?"

"It means tree leaves." Katara answered, confused at where this was going.

"Correct. Now the shinobi wear a leaf as their insignia. They serve a greater purpose then themselves, like leaves to a tree. To them, that tree would probably be called…?"

"Konoha," Shikamaru answered, his eyes widening in both shock and realization.

"You always were the smart one, Shikamaru. Can you tell me what that means?"

"Shù Yè does not exist. She's not real. She never was real."

She walked across the water, her hand forming a handseal. **"Kai **(Release)**." **She said. A huge cloud of smoke appeared, along with the sound of _POOF! _ The person who walked out of the smoke and onto the other side of the river was not Shù Yè, it was Naruto.

To say Katara and Aang were shocked would've been an understatement. "You mean…?" Katara asked, speechless.

"That I was with you the entire time you've been in Ba Sing Se?" He asked as he stood next to Zuko. "Yes I was. And now, you've lost. The city of Ba Sing Se is now officially under the control of the Fire Nation."

"It won't be successful if we stop you here!" Aang stated, anger flashing in his eyes.

"And how exactly do you plan to do that? You can't go into the Avatar State, remember?"

"He still has us!" Lee shouted. "Your unyouthful actions will end today, Naruto!"

"Really, are you sure?"

"There's no way you can take us all, Naruto!" Kiba pitched in. "Not even with your clones and all these guys to help you."

"Actually, yes there is." He clapped his hands into a different handseal and activated his chakra. All the shinobi fell down to the ground, screaming in pain as their bodies stopped obeying their commands. Shikamaru's shadow detached itself from Azula, allowing her to move again.

"What did you do!?" Asuma demanded, struggling to say something through the pain.

"You all have a Paralyzing Seal on your bodies. I placed them there when I touched you."

Team Asuma realized that as Shù Yè, he touched them many times. Team Kurenai and Team Guy realized that when they fought him, he placed the seal on them when he made contact. They tried to stand up but their bodies wouldn't listen to them. Eventually, they passed out from the pain.

Naruto looked at his former teammates and friends with no emotion. "Take them away." He ordered a group of Dai Li agents. They quickly took hold of the shinobi and dragged them away. A burst of light appeared from behind him. Turning around quickly, he saw that Aang was trying to take control of the Avatar State again, this time with anger. He floated in the air, his eyes and tattoos glowing once more.

But before Naruto could cut him off, a bolt of lightning flew out of nowhere and struck him in the back. In Aang's vision, the orb disappeared, the Avatar State fell and the bridge disappeared, sending falling down to the planet, while also falling down to the ground in real life.

Katara watched in shock, tears falling down her face. Reacting quickly, she bent the water around her into a wave and rode it over to where Aang was falling. It caught the Dai Li agents, Zuko and Azula off guard as they got swept away (Naruto jumped up onto the ceiling and stayed there). She caught Aang and let the wave crash onto the ground. The water flowed away as she held his body.

Looking up, she saw that both Zuko and Azula coming towards her, only to be stopped by a blast of fire. Iroh leapt down from the wall of the cave and landed in front of Katara. "You've got to get out of here!" He told Katara. "I'll hold them off as long as I can!" He began to fight against the Dai Li, he used fire and they used earth.

Katara walked/carried Aang's unconscious body over to the waterfall. Bending water from said waterfall, she bent it to send both her and Aang up the waterfall and out of Old Ba Sing Se, fleeing from the battle.

Iroh took a quick look back to see that they had gotten away. That was all Naruto need to drop down from the ceiling and land behind the Dragon of the West. He drew his jian and placed it against Iroh's neck. "Don't make me do this, Iroh. Just stand down." He ordered.

Iroh complied, allowing two Dai Li agents to encase him in crystal. Naruto removed his jian from Iroh's throat and sheathed it.

Iroh looked over at his nephew, who returned the look. He turned away and closed his eyes.

(Location: Aboard Appa)

As Sokka, Toph, the Earth King, Momo, Akela and Bosco watched, Katara placed Aang on Appa's head and took out the vial holding the water from the Spirit Oasis. Bending the water out of the vial, she lifted Aang up so that she could get to his back, which now held an ugly red scar. She bent the water into the scar, which glowed brilliantly for a second and then disappeared. Thinking that she had failed, Katara gave a small cry of grief and hugged Aang's body.

However, his tattoo glowed briefly and he gasped lightly. Katara heard the gasp and looked at his face. His eyes were open; he saw Katara and gave a tired smile. Katara gave him a hug, happy she hadn't lost him.

(Location: Royal Palace, Throne Room)

"We've done it, Zuko, Naruto." Azula said as she sat on the throne of the Earth King. Naruto and Zuko stood on opposite sides of her. "It's taken a hundred years but the Fire Nation has conquered Ba Sing Se."

"I betrayed Uncle." Zuko said. He could see the Blue Spirit leaning against a column, satisfied that Zuko had listened to him.

"No, he betrayed you." She replied before standing up. "Zuko, when you return home, Father will welcome you as a war hero."

"But I don't have the Avatar." He protested. "What if Father doesn't restore my honor?"

She placed a hand on his shoulder. "He doesn't need to, Zuko. Today, you restored your own honor."

"I'd say he restored his honor at Akawan." Naruto said. He had a scowl on his face.

"What's the matter, Naruto?" Azula asked, turning to face him.

"Who in the name of Kami fired that lightning?" He demanded. "Both of you were standing in front of the Avatar and the lightning struck him in the back. So who threw that lightning bolt?"

"I did." A voice came from the doorway. A woman about eighteen years old walked up to the throne.

"What are you doing here?" Azula asked the woman, her tone both guarded and yet, filled with venom.

She smirked. "Now, is that anyway to greet your older sister, little Azula?"

"You mean half-sister." She snarled.

"But I am your sister nonetheless."

Azula was about to retort when Zuko spoke. "You never answered her question, Yāo Jing. What are you doing here?"

Yāo Jing looked at her half-siblings, while Zuko was Ursa's firstborn; he was not Ozai's. "Father sent me to go looking for Azula. He was wondering what was taking her so long."

"You were there for the entire fight, weren't you?" Naruto asked.

"I saw a chance and I took it." She replied.

"What are you going to do now?"

"I'll stay here until you leave for the Fire Nation. It's been a while since I spent time with my little brother and sister anyway." She walked out of the throne room.

"With good reason," Azula growled.

Naruto watched as the eldest and illegitimate child of Ozai walked away. _"This does not bode well." _He thought to himself. _"Though she has never admitted it, Yāo Jing was never fond of Zuko and Azula. We're going to have to be careful."_

(Location: Aboard Appa)

"The Earth Kingdom…has fallen." The Earth King stated.

The others didn't say anything, they didn't have to. What the Earth King said was true. They flew beyond the Outer Wall, the idea of being betrayed still haunting them.

**End**

**Author's Note: **Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

Shù Yè is Naruto! For all of those who guessed it, congratulations. Hopefully, I threw a lot of you off with the things I wrote. Don't worry; I'll explain all that in the next chapter. I also got a few reviewers thinking that Shù Yè was the Air Nomad Paragon, so I put that in for a bit of fun.

Now for the idiots out there, putting Long Feng to death by stoning does not mean the Dai Li agents will make him overdose on drugs. It means that stones will be thrown at him until his body is broken and he dies because of it. I thought it would be a nice irony to use on an Earthbender. Plus it's a fitting way for Long Feng to die, insufferable asshole.

Now, Yāo Jing is an OC, I promise. If I'm going to have Azula turn good, I still need someone for Zuko to fight at Sozin's Comet. What better way than to make it family? Plus I'm planning for her to have problems as well.

For those of you who thought the Konoha shinobi would be there for the invasion of the Fire Nation, oh well. What happens to the Sand Siblings will be revealed in the next chapter.

Yes, I added a little more depth to the creation of the Dai Li by bringing in the Paragons. Even the Avatar has to answer to someone and that's the Paragons. To answer your next question, the Paragons answer to Sifu. I plan to come back to what they did to Kyoshi. I'm planning to make some of Aang's past lives a little darker. Also, I had Kyoshi in exile for forty years because she lived for two hundred and thirty years, so it seemed like a good chunk of time.

The next chapter will be an original. It will deal with the aftermath of the conquering of Ba Sing Se and the return of a character you won't see coming.

I'll see you all next chapter! Happy New Year!


	19. To Converse and To Rescue

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 19: To Converse and To Rescue

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Prison cell)

Iroh sat quietly in his cell, his back to the door. When the door opened, he didn't react. The silence stretched out for a couple of minutes. "…You're just going to ignore me, aren't you?" Naruto finally asked.

"What do you want, Naruto?" Iroh asked him in return.

"Where did Lu Ten die?"

"Why do you want to know that? So you can place a statue on his grave that shows the world how the Fire Nation conquered Ba Sing Se?"

Naruto shook his head. "No, Azula did have a statue made. But it's not to show the defeat of Ba Sing Se, it honors the soldiers that we lost. She wants to honor her cousin and the people who served the Fire Nation."

Iroh was silent. "…Very well." He said and told Naruto where Lu Ten was killed.

"Thank you, Iroh." He walked out of the cell.

"Naruto," Iroh called out before he closed the door. "If my niece chooses to betray her country and earn her father's wrath, would you still protect her?"

He stood at the door, his back to Iroh. "I swore to protect her. No matter what it cost me," He answered. He walked out of the cell, closing the door behind him. He walked in the direction of another door. He opened it and walked into a large room where prison bars blocked off half of it. Dai Li agents stood against the wall, ready to move at Naruto's command. In front of the bars was a chair, which Naruto sat in. "So, how's it going, everyone? The effects wear off already?" He asked the Konoha shinobi behind the bars.

"How could you be this unyouthful, Naruto!?" demanded Lee. "How can you imprison your own friends?"

"Hmm, that's funny. Zuko, Azula, Mai and Ty Lee aren't in that cell. Yāo Jing on the other hand…" He muttered to himself.

"What was that?" Shikamaru asked, trying to get every piece of information he could.

"It's none of your business." He told the lazy shinobi curtly.

"Where is the Kazekage, Naruto?" Asuma asked.

"What does it matter to you? Are you thinking about leaving Konoha and joining Suna?"

"Naruto, if you hurt Temari, I will tear your head off!" Shikamaru threatened.

Naruto looked at him for a minute. "…Well, what do you know? You do care."

"How can you do something like this, Naruto?" Kurenai asked him.

"Do what? Could you be a little more specific?"

"How can you serve something like the Fire Nation?" Kiba demanded. "How can you serve someone as horrible as Azula? Can't you see she's a monster!?"

Naruto turned his attention to the Inuzuka, his face now in a scowl. "Be glad, be very glad that you're on the other side of these bars, Inu-teme. I've killed men for lesser insults about Azula."

"But how can you serve her?" Neji asked.

"She saved my life. That's all you need to know."

"No, it's not." Tenten said. "How were you able to take control of Ba Sing Se so easily?"

"What? You mean taking control in a day?" He laughed. "Didn't take control in a day, I took control from Long Feng last autumn. It was quite easy, all things considering."

"All things considering?" repeated Ino. "If you had taken over the city last autumn, why didn't the Fire Nation conquer it then?"

"A: I wasn't that bored. B: Annoying the Fire Lord is a hobby of mine. And C: I was not going to do all that paperwork."

"If you had the city, why didn't you arrest us the moment we came through the Inner Wall." Chōji asked him.

"In case you forgot, I was with you at the time, fat-ass. Besides, I didn't go through all the trouble of those plans to beat the arrowhead for no reason."

"Plans?" asked Shikamaru as his other two teammates calmed down Chōji. "What plans?"

He smirked. "Didn't you realize it? I've been manipulating your every step since Full Moon Bay. If I wanted to, I could've made it so that Aang would have never found Appa."

"What are you talking about?" Hinata asked. "Aang had missing posters of Appa sent around the city."

"And the person who had information was someone he knew." He finished. "And you guys already know that he was captured and brainwashed by the Dai Li. What you don't know is that I was the reason he got caught in the first place."

"What?" Asuma said.

"I lured him into causing a scene with Zuko and Iroh, thereby getting the Dai Li on the scene. And afterwards, he was brainwashed."

"But Jet was brainwashed so he could mislead us." Asuma argued.

"And how did you find out about the brainwashing? Do you think it was a coincidence that his two friends came out of that side street just as soon as you past?"

"That's impossible." Guy stated.

He shrugged. "Not really, a crashed cart here, a sell on meat and vegetables there. Arranging all of that was easy. So was getting Katara to run back to tattle to the Earth King and getting caught by Azula."

"What do you mean?" Kurenai asked.

"Do you think that it was a coincidence that Iroh's teashop was in the perfect spot between the Council of Five and the Royal Palace? The guy who made the offer works for me."

"Works for you?" Hinata repeated.

"Yes. About three-quarters of the city, in some way, work for me and, by proxy, the Fire Nation."

"That explain why the man who was playing Pai Sho with you wasn't surprised about what we said." Shikamaru said.

"Actually, he was a Dai Li agent on his break."

"Why did Long Feng never realize that he was no longer in control?" Shino asked.

"He got overconfident and careless. When he began to treat the city as his own toy, his control of the Dai Li began to slip. When I snuck into the city and met them, it was the state I found them in. Contrary to what you may think of the Dai Li, most of them did felt that it was their duty to protect the city. Not like Long Feng was doing but actually protect it. So when I presented myself to the head Dai Li agent, he agreed with what I wanted to do and so did the others."

"It did not go that easily. You must've had difficulties." Neji protested.

"True. There were Dai Li agents who were actually loyal to Long Feng. We had to be careful. If we killed too many at one time, Long Feng would've noticed. You would not believe how much time it takes to make a Dai Li agent's death look accidental and I had to plan several of them at the same time."

"And so you stayed in Ba Sing Se."

"I only stayed until the start of winter. After that, I kept a **Kage Bunshin** in Ba Sing Se. Every two weeks, new information would be given to the clone. He would make another clone and then dispel himself, allowing me to get the new information."

"So when you walked back in with us, you knew everything that had happen in your absence." Asuma said.

"How did you get past us?" Chōji ask him.

"His control over his chakra grew, remember?" Shikamaru told him.

"But Sokka had Akela, who's met him before." Kiba pointed out. "Even if he used a **Henge**, his scent would still have been the same."

"Ah, but what if I had something that suppressed my scent and had an excuse to use every day?" Naruto asked them.

Ino then realized what he was going on about.

(Flashback)

Katara walked alongside Shù Yè. "Hey, about last night," She began before smelling something in the air. "What is that?"

"Herb ointment," Shù Yè answered curtly. "Helps relieve some of the back pain I get in the morning. The rest disappears after I walk a bit."

(End Flashback)

"I see the pig figured it out." Naruto announced. "Shall I tell them or will you?"

"What's he talking about, Ino?" Tenten asked.

"Shù Yè always smelled like herb ointment. It wasn't strong but it stopped Akela from recognizing him."

"It wasn't strong to humans but to any animal that got close, it was the only thing they could smell." Naruto informed them.

"And so you walked in right with us." Asuma said.

"With the note telling you that I had used the drill to get in before you guys, so that you would think I was already ahead. I'll admit that there had been a few times where the clone and I switched places. For example, when I destroyed the drill or when Sokka attempted to interrogate people for information about Appa. But just to make sure you didn't suspect me, I planted evidence that ensured you thought I was trustworthy. And that came in the form of the Earth King's pet bear."

"Bosco?" asked Chōji.

Shikamaru realized where this was going. "Those memories he has of you are false, aren't they?"

"I thought that would have been obvious."

Kurenai figured out what he did. "You used a **Memori Ishoku** (Memory Implantation)?" She asked.

"Sure did."

"That's an A-ranked Genjutsu!"

"But he said that he couldn't use the higher ranked ones." Neji pointed out.

Naruto shrugged. "I lied." He could, in fact, use higher ranked Genjutsu. But he felt the lower ranked ones suited him just fine.

"Kurenai-sensei, didn't you say the **Memori Ishoku **has a big weakness?" Hinata asked.

Kurenai nodded. "After a period of time, the false memories start to deteriorate. If you try to reinforce the memories, the person will start to lose their sanity."

"On people, yes," Naruto said. "But you've never tried it on animals. Besides, you're assuming that I planted the memories back in the autumn."

"When else could you have done it?" Shikamaru asked.

"How about at a party for said bear, does that work?"

(Flashback)

"Excuse me, sirs." Naruto told the two men in his disguise as a waiter. "But the Earth King wanted the bear near the best food. If you'll excuse me…" He held the food under the bear's nose, getting his attention. Slowly, he forced the bear back to the end of the table where his seat was by using the food's delicious smell. Once the bear was seated, the food was placed in front of him. "Here you are, sir." He told the bear. "The Earth King wants the catering staff to tell you to mind your manners. So please be careful about how you eat. You wouldn't want the Earth King to be mad at you, would you?" His hands, obscured from everyone's view, quickly went through the necessary handseals. **"Genjutsu: Memori Ishoku." **He muttered before touching the bear's fur.

The bear's eyes widened slightly as the jutsu took hold. Seeing that his mission was done, Naruto walked away.

(End Flashback)

"So you gave the bear false memories to ensure your place with the group." Shino said. "And you told them that story so that when you actually met the bear, his reactions would be genuine."

"The story is real as well, in case you're wondering." Naruto told them. "I did actually spend the winter when I was five with a mother bear and her cub. The only difference is that when spring came, a villager killed the mother bear and the cub. When he found me, he decided that it would be a great opportunity to kill the Kyuubi Brat." He said those last words with a self-mocking tone. "Of course, that's when the ANBU arrived. Always showing up when it looked like they were going to fail their job and lose their lives."

"Don't mock those people, Naruto." Kurenai said. "They tried to protect you."

"Sure they did. Sure they did." He replied. "There were probably a few who cared, but the rest? They either didn't care or they shared the public opinion."

"Naruto, you're as human as the rest of us." Neji said. "It doesn't matter what they thought of—"

"You don't know what it's like to be branded with a mark that sets you apart. A mark that can never be wiped away," Naruto said, cutting him off. "Your words, Neji, not mine."

"…I will admit I said those words, but I've changed. I don't believe those words anymore."

"And I'm guessing that after years teasing me, calling me names and making fun of what I could do as a shinobi, you've all come to care for me?" He asked the rest of the Konoha Eleven.

"Of course we have, Naruto." Hinata told him.

He gave a snort of derision. "If that was true, then I wouldn't have left and the village wouldn't have betrayed me."

"The village would've never betrayed you, Naruto!" Lee shouted. "They would never do something so unyouthful!"

"Then why did the Hokage plan to have me exiled? Can you tell me why?"

"Lady Tsunade wasn't going to actually banish you, Naruto." Ino tried to tell him. "She was going to have you smuggled out to Lord Jiraiya before the Fire Daimyo came."

"I know." That single sentence stopped the Konoha shinobi cold.

"You…knew?" Kurenai repeated. "But how could you even…?"

"**Henge **and knowledge of the ventilation system in the Hokage building," He answered. "I was there, listening when they decided to banish me and I was there when the old hag came up with that plan."

"But then you knew that she was trying to protect you." Asuma told him.

"If she wanted to protect me, she should've refused to banish me! She should've told the councils that I was going to stay in the village and nothing they could do would change that! But instead, she decides to come up with this idea to have me smuggled out of the village and only let me back when the village needed me, like I was some kind of weapon. Oh wait, I WAS!"

The room was silent for a couple of minutes. "What are you going to do us?" Shikamaru finally asked. "Are you going to leave us to rot in this prison? We'll escape eventually."

"I know you would, which is why I'm going to give you a choice. Do you see the Dai Li agents against the wall behind me?" He gestured to the agents.

"Of course we can see them." Tenten answered.

"Good to know, because this is what is going to happen: I'm going to leave but the Dai Li will stay. If you are still here after half an hour, they will leave and collapse the room, effectively burying you alive."

"That's no choice at all!" Chōji shouted, bringing his hands to the bars. "You're going to kill us!?"

"There is a choice, Akimichi, Shut up and listen. I know that most of you came here via a seal and I know that you can leave the same way."

"How do you know that?" Neji asked.

He smirked and pointed his finger at Team Asuma. "They told me."

Everyone looked at them. As they did, the members of Team Asuma were cursing themselves. During the month they had spent in Ba Sing Se, Shù Yè had asked them about where they came. They told a few things but nothing about Konoha. She then asked them how they got here, Ino showed her one of the seals and Shikamaru told her how it worked.

"So here's your choice: You can leave here and return to Konoha, which would mean failing the mission and abandoning Sokka and the others. Or you can try to break out of here and escape. But we all know it will take you more than half an hour to come up with a successful plan to get out of the city. You also have to consider the fact that if you do actually get out of the prison, every Dai Li agent will be on the lookout for you and has orders to kill you if sighted." He looked at all of them. "So what will it be, the mission or your friends?"

"That's an impossible choice, Naruto, and you know it!" Shino said; quiet anger evident in his voice.

"And yet, a Konoha shinobi had this problem before. Which is why I'm calling it the Sakumo Hatake Dilemma," He told them before getting up from the chair. "Enjoy yourselves." He started to walk away.

"Is that all you're going to do, Naruto?" Neji asked. "Are you just going to keep running away from us?"

He stopped at the door, his hand reaching for the handle. The words of the man in the swamp came back to him.

_**"No matter how hard you run or fight against it, your past will come back to you. The question is: what will you do when it catches up."**_

"_The past is exactly that, the past." _He thought to himself."…I left the village and you all behind. If I want to keep running, I will. In case you decide to leave, I'll give you all this last warning: you ever come back here; I will kill you and send your head back to the village. Make no mistake." He opened the door and walked out.

He left the door opened as he walked through the corridor. "GO AHEAD, NARUTO! YOU JUST KEEP ON RUNNING! BUT WHEN YOU FINALLY STOP, WE'LL BE THERE. WE'LL ALWAYS BE THERE TO BRING YOU BACK!" Kiba's voice rang out through the open door.

He stopped at the staircase. "No, you won't." He said to himself, before walking up the stairs.

(Location: Lower Ring)

Zuko walked down the street. It was a little subtle, but he could tell the difference in the people. Before, they went along with their lives, like nothing was wrong. But they were all afraid of the Dai Li and the mere mention of the war, afraid that if they spoke out, they would be taken away.

Now, the threat of the Dai Li coming into their lives was gone, but they were still afraid. They were afraid of the Fire Nation and its soldiers. The difference was that where they had hidden their fear of the Dai Li, their fear of the Fire Nation was out in the open. They looked at the soldiers, the tundra tanks, the komodo rhinos with different levels of fear, sadness, anger and hostility.

He couldn't blame them. At least under the reign of Long Feng and the Dai Li, everything was normal and everyone knew what was supposed to happen. But now, they didn't know what would happen and that terrified them.

As he walked, he saw a familiar sight: Pao's teashop, the teashop where he and Iroh first worked at when they came into the city. It was there he met Jin, who asked him out on a date and had gotten a job there, last he heard.

Deciding not to push his luck, he kept on walking. When he reached the end of the street, he heard a woman scream and the sounds of a fight starting. Turning back around, he saw a nearby group of Fire Nation soldiers run into the building. He rushed to the teashop's door and opened it. What he saw was the teashop in ruins, a group of city guards standing in front of a group of Earth Kingdom citizens, two of which he recognized as Jin and Pao, and the same group of Fire Nation soldiers trying to restrain one of their own. All heads turned to look at him as he stood in the doorway.

"What is going on here?" He asked as he walked in.

"Move along, pretty boy." The restrained Fire Nation solider said, his voice slurring, telling Zuko that he was drunk. "This doesn't concern you."

"It does concern me when Fire Nation soldiers are causing a fight." He replied before turning to one of the city guards. "What happened?"

"Why should we tell you? We all know that you're going to let him free." One of the citizens snarled at him.

"I'm trying to help." He turned to his gaze to Pao. "Pao, do you recognize me?"

"…Lee, is that you?" The teashop owner asked, his eyes widening in recognition. When Zuko nodded, he looked at the guards. "Tell him what happened, he can help us."

One of the guards looked at Zuko. "The restrained soldier came in here, demanding food and drink. He was drunk, so a waitress asked him to leave. He slapped her and knocked her to the floor. He then thought it would be okay to force himself on the waitress. I and the other guards got him off the waitress. Enraged, he tried to fight us. It was then the other Fire Nation soldiers came in and restrained the drunken soldier." He reported.

Zuko nodded his thanks to the guard. He turned around and looked at the restrained soldier. He walked over to the side of the shop where the Fire Nation soldiers had restrained the drunken soldier. "Is what he said true?" He asked; his voice even and calm.

"So what if it is?" The soldier demanded, trying to break free of the grip of the other soldiers. "She's nothing but a filthy Earth Kingdom whore. She should've been honored that I wanted to impregnate her. We are the greatest of the Four Nations!"

Zuko just looked at him and then turned his attention to other soldiers. "Release him." He ordered, placing his hand on the hilt of his Dao swords. They were hesitant, but they obeyed. The second the drunken soldier was released, his hands blurred. The Dao swords were whipped out of their sheath and made a bloody slash on the soldier's cheeks. The soldier stumbled back, allowing Zuko to take the advantage. He held one Dao sword at the soldier's throat and the other at his crotch. "I want you to listen and listen well. The Fire Nation may have conquered Ba Sing Se, but that does not mean we will treat the people of this city like trash. They are under our protection now. Anyone who harms them will answer to the law, same as those who would harm a citizen of the Fire Nation."

"How dare you…!" The soldier bellowed, moving to punch Zuko, only to stop when he felt the Dao swords press down.

"If you want to lose both your life and what makes you a man, keep talking." He turned his attention to the other soldiers. "Take this man and place him in jail. I want him to be court-martialed within the week."

The other soldiers looked unsure. "Um…who are you, sir?" One of them finally dared to ask.

"Did you ever hear about the Siege of Akawan?" He asked in return.

The soldiers' eyes (even the drunken one) widened in realization. "O-Of course, my lord." The soldier said, bowing his head. "My apologies, we did not know who you were."

"It does not matter." He replied, taking his Dao swords away from the drunken soldier and sheathing them. "Just make sure this…sorry excuse for a soldier is behind bars."

"Yes, Prince Zuko." The soldiers chained the drunk and led him out of the shop. In the silence that followed, Zuko turned to look at the rest of the people there. The silence stretched out for several minutes before he reached for his belt, took off a bag of money and tossed it at Pao.

"For the damages," He said quietly, before walking out the door.

"Nice job in there." Naruto told him, leaning against the teashop.

"How long were you listening?" He asked.

"Since the guard told you what happened."

"What do you want, Naruto?"

"Nothing really," He looked up at the afternoon sun. "Hey, are you going somewhere or you just wandering around?"

"…I just felt like taking a walk."

He walked up alongside him. "Come on, we should head back to the palace." The two of them started to walk away in the direction of the Royal Palace. "Do you feel any different?"

Zuko gave him a look. "What kind of question is that?" He asked.

"Humor me. You're not in exile anymore. Do you feel any different?"

"I don't know. It still feels like I'm exiled. Feels like I still don't have my honor back."

"I told you before; you've restored your honor back at Akawan."

"What makes you say that?"

"You and Iroh walked straight into the colony in spite of the fact that if you were caught, you would be executed. When the attack came, you didn't take the chance to run. You went straight into the fight and fought alongside the soldiers. You took command of the city and held out for six days, which is impressive for someone who had never been in command before. You then decided to take the offensive to the enemy and successfully defeated him, ending the threat to the colony. I can almost guarantee that once you get back to the Fire Nation, people will ask you why you did all that."

"It was the right thing to do. I may have been a prince in exile, but I was still a prince. They were my people; it was my duty to protect them."

"I recommend you stick to that answer. It'll make your life easier."

They walked on in silence for a few minutes. "Hey, Naruto, I've got a question for you."

"What?"

"How did you deal with Azula?"

His eyes went flat. "You might want to consider rephrasing that question."

"What I mean is how did you change her? She's different from three years ago."

"Oh? What makes you say that?"

"It's the small things. The way she says certain words, how she acts, her decisions. That stuff."

"Zuko, do you remember what I told when Azula tried to capture you?"

He nodded. "You said that I wasn't the only scarred by him."

"Azula has been having the same problems as you, she is conflicted. The only difference is that you had Iroh to help you. She had no one she could actually trust until I became her bodyguard."

"But you still did it."

"It wasn't easy, Zuko. She is different, but I don't know if it will stay." He sighed. "Before we left, she would sometimes spend hours looking at the portrait of your family."

"Why?"

"I asked her once. She told me that when she looked at the painting, she wanted to know if her mother hated her."

Zuko was surprised by that. "Why would she care? Azula never cared about our mother."

"Zuko, all children want to know that their parents love them. You want your father's love; Azula just wants to know if her mother loved her." He stopped walking and watched as a family walked by. "You guys are lucky."

Zuko looked at the same family and then looked at Naruto. "What makes you say that?"

He gave a sad smile. "You know your parents."

He gave a little wince. He had forgotten that Naruto was an orphan from birth. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize; it's not your fault." He watch the family disappear around a street corner. "Let's just go." They walked on in silence until they reached the Royal Palace. They climbed up the steps and saw that a Dai Li agent was waiting for them.

"Sir," The agent greeted Naruto.

"Well?" He asked.

"They disappeared ten minutes after you left, sir."

"Did they escape?"

"No sir."

"Good. What about the others?"

"We have kept them in the room and maintain a watch on them. About two hours ago, we heard someone inside say 'Finally!" loudly. We are unsure of who said it and what they meant."

"That's okay, I have a feeling I know who was talking. Dismissed," He told the agent, who bowed and walked away.

"What was that about?" Zuko asked as they walked through the large doors.

"The first part doesn't concern you, not anymore." He replied. "The second part was about some people I once knew." He stopped walking when they entered a rotunda.

"What is it?"

"We've got company."

Yāo Jing walked out of another corridor. "Hello, little brother, Naruto." She greeted them with fake politeness. "Were you talking about something?"

"Yes, we were talking about the number of men you've been screwing since you were ten." Naruto replied with a straight face. Zuko decided to hold his tongue but he could not keep the brief look of shock and surprise off his face.

Yāo Jing's eyes went flat and her face hard. "You think you're so funny, don't you?"

Naruto gave a big grin. "Oh, I don't think. I know I'm funny. Do you actually need something or are you just off to your next conquest?"

"There will come a day, Naruto, when you aren't protected by your duty to Azula. On that day, I will make you suffer." She snarled.

"Then I'll be sure to disappoint you." He replied, the smile still on his face. Yāo Jing clenched and unclenched her hands, like she wanted to desperately to Bend a fireball at him. She stalked off.

"What were you thinking!?" Zuko asked in a strangled whisper.

"I don't trust that woman. And neither should you." He told him, the smile disappearing from his face.

"I know that already."

"Zuko, I mean it. Watch your back around her."

He looked at Naruto. He'd only heard that tone in his voice once before, when he was and Azula were going to be assassinated and he had saved them. 'Alright, Naruto, I'll be careful."

"Thank you, Zuko." He said. "And now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go talk to some people. Do me a favor and get Azula."

"Alright, I'll go find her." He went off in one corridor while Naruto went off in another. He walked on until he found the door to the room he was looking for.

He turned his attention back to the corridor. "Stand down." He said. "A watch is no longer necessary." He didn't any movement but he knew that the Dai Li agents who were standing watch had left. Turning back to face the door, he took a deep breath and opened the door.

As he walked in, he saw that Kankurō was at a table, making adjustments to what looked like a puppet. Temari was polishing her fan and Gaara was sitting against his gourd, meditating. But they stopped what they were doing and turned to their attention to Naruto as he walked into the room.

"…So you've finally decided to reveal yourself, Naruto." Gaara said as he stood up.

He chuckled. "I should've figured I wouldn't get past you, Gaara. When did you figure it out?"

"When you showed yourself to the Earth King on the Outer Wall," He answered.

"Where are the others, Naruto?" Kankurō asked. "Where is Team Asuma?"

"Why do you care?" He asked back, only to have a kunai at his throat, courtesy of Temari.

"If you've done anything to them, to Shikamaru, I will tear your head off!" She growled.

He didn't move but his eyes showed surprise. "I'll be damned. You do love each other."

"What did you do!?"

"I made them leave and go back to the Elemental Countries. Shikamaru is safe, Temari. He's back at the village."

She felt a hand on her shoulder. "That's enough, Temari." Kankurō told her, his voice calm and controlled. "Lower the kunai." She did as she was told and stepped away from Naruto.

"Thanks, Kankurō." He said. "How's that doll coming?"

"It's a puppet!" He half-shouted at the blonde.

"Kankurō," Gaara said; a warning in his voice.

"Sorry, Gaara," He apologized. "I managed to finish it. There are just a few adjustments that need to be done."

"Well, when you're done, how about you and I spar so you can test it in the field." Naruto offered.

He grinned. "Sounds like a plan."

"Naruto," Gaara spoke again, getting his attention. "On the Outer Wall, you hid it well, but you were surprised when you saw me. Why?"

"I saw you die, Gaara."

"What?" Both Kankurō and Temari exclaimed, clearly surprised.

"How?" asked Gaara. "We haven't seen each other for three years."

"I watched as the Akatsuki extracted Shukaku from you. I saw them leave your dead body on the ground, like it was nothing but garbage." He was quiet for a few seconds. "…That was the only time I wanted to go back to the Elemental Countries."

"But why would you want to do that if you've stay here all this time?" Temari asked.

"Because he is my friend," He answered. "If anything, he's my brother too."

The Sand Siblings were caught off-guard by that. "Naruto, if you saw what had happened; then you know I'm not a Jinchūriki anymore."

"Doesn't matter, you were the same as me. That's what makes us brothers."

Gaara remembered what Pathik had said during his time at the Eastern Air Temple.

"_The greatest illusion of this world is the illusion of separation. Things you think are separate and different are actually one and the same."_

"_Not just the Elemental Countries." _He thought to himself. _"But being a Jinchūriki doesn't mean being alone. Naruto is right. We are like brothers." _"Thank you." He told the blonde.

"Not a problem, buddy." He replied before giving the redhead a bear hug, who, after a moment's hesitation, returned it.

"I hope we're not interrupting anything?" Azula asked from the doorway with a small smirk. Zuko, Mai and Ty Lee stood behind her.

"What? Guys can't hug each other?" Naruto asked as he broke the hug and looked at the Princess.

"You don't see it every day." Mai said in a bored tone.

Deciding to be funny, he turned to look at Kankurō. "Kankurō! Hug me, you beautiful bastard!" He cried, throwing his arms wide.

He could see where he was going with this. "Come here, you amazing asshole!" They pulled each other into a hug and tried to break the other's back.

"Okay, we get the point already!" Temari told the two. "Knock it off!"

"No fun, Temari, no fun." Naruto said as he and Kankurō broke the hug.

"So what can you do, good looking?" Ty Lee asked Gaara as she leapt in front of him.

"Excuse me?" He asked in return.

"Sorry, Gaara," Naruto apologized. "Ty Lee will flirt with anything that walks on two legs and has a penis."

"That's not funny, Naruto!" She huffed at him as she pouted. "I'm not that bad."

"Of which every male in the Fire Nation who has a girlfriend is thankful for."

"Gaara has a girlfriend!" Kankurō and Temari quickly chimed in.

"Oh, sorry then," She apologized.

"It's no problem." He assured.

"Ty Lee, how about you get out of our guest's face?" Azula suggested; a small smirk on her face. Ty Lee flipped away and landed next to Azula.

Naruto looked at Gaara. "You have a girlfriend?" He asked, surprised.

"Of sorts," He replied, his cheeks lightly blushing.

"Way to go, Gaara."

"Naruto, Could we get an introduction?" Azula asked pointedly.

"Of course, Princess," He replied, his tone becoming formal. "May I introduce Gaara no Sabaku, Godaime Kazekage of Sunagakure, his brother, Kankurō and his sister, Temari." He turned to the Sand Siblings. "Gaara, this is the Princess Azula of the Fire Nation, her friends, Mai and Ty Lee, and her brother, Prince Zuko, known to the soldiers as the Scarred Dragon."

They exchanged pleasantries. "So what can you guys do?" Azula asked.

"Gaara can manipulate sand, Temari can use the wind via her fan and Kankurō is a puppeteer." Naruto told her.

Ty Lee tried to stifle a giggle but failed. "You…you play with dolls!" She said, tears of laughter falling from her eyes.

Kankurō said nothing; he shifted his eyes over to his worktable and then to Gaara and Naruto, his eyebrows raised in a question. Gaara nodded once in answer.

"By all means," Naruto told him.

He raised his left hand and flexed his fingers. Ty Lee's mouth clamped shut (not of her own violations, due to the muted sounds coming from her mouth) and her arms snapped to her side. When he moved his right hand, the puppet on the worktable flew over and landed in front of her. A knife popped out of the right wrist and was pointed at her throat.

"Had you met any other members of the Puppeteer Corp, you would be dead for making fun of us." He told her with a smile. "Would you like to continue laughing now?"

"N-No!" She squeaked, the chakra string holding her mouth closed disappearing.

"Good to know." He placed the puppet back on the worktable and let Ty Lee be able to move her arms again.

"You can use the wind?" Zuko asked Temari. "You're an Airbender?"

"No, Zuko." Naruto said. "She uses the wind, not the air."

"What's the difference?"

"With air, you push your opponent away." Temari explained. "Wind, you slice them into pieces."

"That's a…graphic way of saying it."

She shrugged. "Tell it like it is."

"Hey, if he can use sand, doesn't that make him a Sandbender?" Mai asked. "I thought Benders only existed on this side of the planet."

"He's not a Bender, Doom and Gloom." Naruto told her. "But, if we were to use that context, calling him a Bender would be a bit insulting."

"How do you mean?"

"He would not be _a_ Sandbender. He would be _the_ Sandbender."

"…That doesn't make any sense." Ty Lee finally said. Azula, Mai and Zuko nodded in agreement.

He rolled his eyes and turned to the Kazekage. "Gaara, can I borrow a kunai?" He asked.

Gaara handed him a kunai, which he took and, before anyone could stop him, plunged it into Gaara's eye. But the attempt was stopped when sand from Gaara's gourd blocked the kunai.

"See? The sand protects him if someone tries to harm him." He explained. "No Sandbender I know of can do that." He handed the kunai back to Gaara.

"Very impressive," Azula commented.

Ty Lee tried to chi block the Kazekage, who made no attempt to stop her. His sand, however, blocked her every strike. "That's cool!" She exclaimed as she looked at him. "Huh…that's weird."

"What is weird?" He asked.

"You've got two auras but…one of them is like a shadow of an aura. It's like it was there once but now it's…gone and left an imprint."

Gaara was about to say something when Naruto spoke up. "Ty Lee, how can someone have a shadow of an aura?"

"I don't know, this is the first time I ever seen something like this, okay?"

"You're probably imaging things."

Her eyes narrowed. "That's funny; you said something similar when we first met you."

"Anyway," Zuko said, raising his voice to get their attention. "What are we going to do with them? They were helping the Avatar and his friends. Father would probably want to see them in chains."

Naruto snorted. "Not even the Royal Flaming Asshole is stupid enough to place a foreign head of state in jail. Besides, he's on vacation."

"Oh really?" asked Azula, an idea running through her head. "He's on vacation?"

"Yes."

She turned to Gaara. "Lord Kazekage," She began. "How would you like to be able to visit the Fire Nation as a part of your vacation? It would be a privilege to you and your family as our guests."

Gaara realized what she was offering. If they went to the Fire Nation as guests, it would protect them even more from thrown in jail. "It would be our pleasure, Princess Azula." He answered, bowing his head a little.

"That was very smooth, Azula." Naruto complimented her, wearing a proud smile.

"Thank you, Naruto." She replied, a small blush on her cheeks.

"Okay, let's get out of here. It's getting crowded." He said, ushering Zuko, Ty Lee, Mai and Azula out of the room. "Alright, people. Go about your business. Azula, I have something to check on." He told them before walking away.

"U-Uh…Naruto?" Azula called out, blushing harder now.

He stopped and looked back at her. "What?"

"Would you like to…um…go out tonight and…?" She struggled to say the words.

"What?" He repeated, genuinely confused.

"Have dinner together?" She asked, the words rushing out of her mouth.

To say Naruto was caught off guard would've probably been an understatement. "Oh…uh…um…Sure, it would be my pleasure. I'll come by your room in about four hours, okay?"

Azula just nodded, already embarrassed.

Naruto walked away, his face calm. On the inside however, his brain was almost on shut down. _"What just happened?" _He thought to himself in a daze.

"**Congratulations, kit, you just got asked out on a date." **Kyuubi told him, before wiping a fake tear away. **"I am so proud of you."**

"_Oh shut up, furball!" _He yelled at the fox.

(Location: Palace bedroom)

Yāo Jing sat in front of the mirror, brushing her hair. It was something that made her different from her half-siblings. They gave their hair not a lot of thought. But for her, it was her pride and joy. She could (and would) spend hours brushing it.

"Ma'am," A soldier at the door called out.

"Is everything prepared?" She asked.

"Yes Ma'am."

"Good, and know that if there is any evidence, your life is forfeit."

The soldier gulped but said nothing. He left the room, leaving her with her hair.

(Location: Naruto's room)

He looked at the mirror, checking his reflection. "It's weird." He said. "I've killed more men then I would want to count in the three years of war I've been in and I've never flinched. Now a girl that I know has asked me out to dinner and I'm almost freaking out."

"**What do you mean, 'almost'?" **Kyuubi asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Not now, Kyuubi. I'm nervous here."

"**I can tell."**

"I've never be asked out before."

"**No, of course, they usually try to rape you."**

"You're not helping."

"**Relax, you making it sound more horrifying then it is. I have seen this kind of thing more times than I can count, both receiving and asking."**

"Receiving and asking?"

"**My last host got asked out so many times, it was getting old. But the one time she tried to ask someone out herself, she was stammering and stuttering so hard, I was howling with laughter. In the end, she couldn't say it, so the guy asked her out himself."**

"Who was your last host?" He had learned that he was not the first host of Kyuubi back when the fox was training him. He had also learned the Yondaime Hokage, Minato Namikaze, was his father. He had taken it rather well, mainly because he had never known the man and he couldn't blame him for what he did. They had never discussed who the pervious hosts were.

"**Oh…um…My last host was…" **The fox mumbled. **"Ah…I'm going to have to be honest with you, gaki. You've already met her."**

"I have? When did I meet her?" He turned away from the mirror and walked to the door.

"**Do you remember the woman you saw after you got out of the swamp?"**

"Yeah, that was her?"

"**Her name was Kushina Uzumaki and…she was your mother."**

His hand was gripped on the handle when that bombshell was dropped. "She was WHAT?!"

"**I am not repeating myself."**

"Are you telling me I drew a sword the ghost of my mother?"

"**Yes." **He answered with a bored sigh.

"Great, that's just great." He opened the door and walked out of the room.

"**You're taking it well. I thought you would have been yelling at me for holding that back or for letting you draw your sword."**

"How am I supposed to feel, Kyuubi? I never met my mother, so I don't know what she was like."

"…**Do you want me to tell you about her?"**

"No. What's the point, really? Hearing about her from another person doesn't mean I'll be able to meet her."

"**You said the same thing about your father."**

"I was right then and I'm right now." The conversation stopped after that. He walked through the palace in silence, until he reached the door to Azula's room. Raising a hand, he knocked on the door. It opened and he saw Azula.

She had let her hair down from her bun, but also wore a high loose ponytail. She wore the dress that Ty Lee had bought for back at Kouzan. It was a cheongsam, the kind which went all the way down, but had slits in the sides that showed glimpses of her legs (which worked for her). The coloring was of a rose red, but the designs were both gold and crème. The design that was crème was that of a lotus flower blossoming at the bottom of the dress. The other design was a golden phoenix spreading its wings, ready to fly. The phoenix was placed on the upper side of the dress, off to the side, the wings encircling her bust. The two designs were connected by several threads that would gradually change from gold to crème and would also flow around the dress. The two were separated by a belt around her waist that held two sheathed daggers.

Naruto just looked at her. _"Whoa." _He thought to himself.

"Well?" Azula ask, blushing hard.

"Congratulations, Azula." He finally managed to speak. "You have just redefined the phrase 'lady in the killer dress'." She gave a smirk, which her way of enjoying the compliment. "What are the daggers for?"

"So I don't have to Firebend while we're out."

"Atta girl."

While they had this conversation, Azula was looking at Naruto. His attire was black. He wore a formal shirt that was fully buttoned up and tucked in but had the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, leaving his forearms bare, save for a small tattoo on his wrist that was the kanji for sword. On his left pants leg was the symbol of the Fire Nation but the color was not red, it was silver.

They looked at each other for a few seconds, creating an almost awkward air between them. "Shall we go?" Naruto finally asked, offering his arm. She nodded, took the offered arm and the two of them walked away.

Down the corridor, Zuko, Mai and Ty Lee were watching from a corner. "Why are we doing this?" Mai asked.

"Oh, come on." Ty Lee said. "You're not interested in how things go?"

"I really don't want to be fried to a crisp."

"What about you, Zuko?"

"Just leave them alone, Ty Lee." He told her. "You wouldn't want anyone watching you on your date, right?"

"You guys are no fun." She said with a pout.

(Location: Old Badgermole)

"Welcome back to the Old Badgermole, Master Naruto." The waiter at the entrance greeted them. "If you will follow me, I will take you to your table." He walked away and they followed.

"He seems to know you quite well." Azula whispered.

"That's what happens when you come often and tip well." He whispered back.

"Here you are, sir and madam." The waiter announced as they arrived at the table. "May I assume you wish to have the usual order?"

He nodded. "And make it two orders." He gestured to Azula.

"Very good, sir," The waiter said before bowing and walking away.

They sat down at the table. "So, who put you up to it, Mai or Ty Lee?"

She scowled at him but also lightly blushed. "Ty Lee, at first, then Mai joined in."

He chuckled. "They mean well. They wouldn't be your friends anyway else." She didn't say anything, she just looked at him. "Azula, what's the matter?"

"Who are you?"

He was confused. "What do you mean?"

"Who are you?"

"I'm Naruto, your bodyguard."

"Maybe, but who are you?"

"What is this all about? You know who I am."

"No, I don't. Those people who were with the Avatar know you better than I do. Why won't you tell me who you are?"

He looked away. "…I came here for a new start, to turn over a new leaf." He turned his head back to her. "I came to these lands so I could leave my past behind me."

"But why do you have to hide things from me?"

"Because there are things I don't want you to know."

"Like the fact you thought you were a demon when you were a child?"

"How did you…?" He was shocked that she knew that.

"Back in the swamp, I saw a vision of you as a child. You were so scared of me." She looked straight into his eyes. "What happened to you?"

"It was a long time ago."

"Please, Naruto." She kept her gaze on him.

He was silent for a minute. "There was an incident when I was born. As a result, the village lost its leader and many lives. Because I was born on the same day, they took it out on me."

"You were beaten, weren't you?"

"More times then you could count. I couldn't go to the hospital either; they would just kick me out." He gave a cynical laugh. "You learned how to set a broken arm and leg quickly when you go through that."

It was then the waiter came back. "Your meal, sir," He said before placing two dishes in front of them. Naruto nodded his thanks and tipped the waiter with five gold pieces. The waiter bowed again and walked away.

They were silent for a few seconds. "…I'm sorry I kept things from you, Azula." He said. "But I didn't want you to know about them."

"You don't trust me?"

"I want to protect you; it's my job after all."

"Protect me from what?"

"Do you remember Itachi Uchiha and his partner?" She nodded.

"Yes."

"I was trying to protect you from them."

"But why were they after you?"

"…I can't answer that. But one of the main reasons I came here was to avoid them."

Azula gave her bodyguard a long look. "…Are you ever going to tell me your secrets?"

His hand was reaching for a pair of chopsticks when she asked the question. "Maybe…one day, but for now, let's enjoy this food." He picked up the chopsticks and began to eat his meal.

Azula followed his example. "This is quite good." She said after taking a bite.

He smiled. "The head cook will please to know the Princess of the Fire Nation enjoyed his food. He takes it very personally when someone doesn't like it or doesn't eat it. It's a popular theory that he's actually a Metalbender."

"That's nonsense."

"That's what I thought, until the day I saw a frying pan come flying out of the kitchen and nail someone who had insulted his food right on his head."

"Did you ever think that maybe the chief has good aim?"

"Azula, the time that passed between the head chef in the kitchen hearing the insult and the frying pan hitting the customer was about five seconds. Also add in the fact that you would have to make two turns to get to the kitchen from the main dining area."

The look on her face was one of disbelief. "You have got to be kidding."

"Trust me, it happened. I was having lunch with the guy who insulted the food."

(Location: Royal Palace)

Zuko tried to meditate but couldn't concentrate. He finally gave it up when he heard knocking on the door. "What is it?" He called out as he stood up.

"There's someone here to see you, sir." The soldier outside said. "She says that she knows you."

"Let her in." The door opened and Jin walked in.

"Hello…Lee." She said.

"Jin? What are you doing here?"

"I came to tell you something." She gave him a look. "…Are you really Prince Zuko?"

He sighed. "Yeah, I am. I'm sorry for lying."

"It doesn't matter now. You don't have a lot of time."

"What do you mean?"

"Before the incident today, there were a group of people who were talking about taking care of the problem the city has. I didn't think anything of it, but later today, the same group was there at the teashop. They said that they were ready to kill the royal whore and her guard dog."

"Azula and Naruto," He said, realizing what was going to happen. "They left without any guards!" He reached for the Dao swords hanging off the wall next to the bed. "Guards!"

"Yes sir!" The guards barked out as the two of them came into the room.

"I want you to escort this woman back to her home. Then I want you to go to the nearest Fire Nation base and rouse as many soldiers as you can. If anyone questions your orders, tell them Prince Zuko ordered it. I want you to take them out into the Agrarian Zone." He ordered them. "Is that understood?"

"Yes sir!"

He ran out the door and bolted down the corridor. He first went to the room that Mai and Ty Lee shared and banged on the door. "Zuko?" asked Ty Lee as she opened the door. "What do you want?"

"Grab Mai and meet me at the front of the Royal Palace!" He told her before running away again, leaving a confused acrobatic. He ran down to the Sand Siblings room and banged on the door too.

"What is the matter with you!?" Kankurō asked as he opened the door. "You couldn't have waited another minute? I was winning here!"

"Listen, the three of you have to come with me right now! No arguments, we have to go now!" He said when he saw that Kankurō was about to protest. He ran for the front of the palace where he saw that Mai and Ty Lee were already there.

"What is going on, Zuko?" Mai asked.

"That's something I would like to know too." Temari said as she and her brothers joined them.

"Naruto and Azula are going to be ambushed. They're going to be attacked in the Agrarian Zone." He finally told them. "We have to go!"

"Why were they going to the Agrarian Zone?" Gaara asked as they raced down the stairs.

"Azula wanted to go see a family member."

(Location: Agrarian Zone)

The two walked in silence in the Agrarian Zone. After finishing dinner, they took a carriage to the Inner Wall and then out to the Agrarian Zone. After coming to the general vicinity they wanted, they left the carriage and walked.

They soon came upon the hill where Lu Ten was buried. They walked up and looked at the single tree at the top.

Azula looked at the tree in silence. "…It's strange." She said. "When I first heard that Lu Ten had died, I only cared about if my uncle had continued the siege. But now…now it seems like I can't walk through Ba Sing Se without seeing something that reminds me of him."

"I never met him." Naruto told her. "What was he like?"

"Much like Uncle, easy-going and cheerful," She smiled sadly. "He was carefree but when he had to, he could show that he was the son of the Dragon of the West. He probably would've made a very good Fire Lord."

They stood in silence for another minute. "Come on." Naruto said. "Let's walk for a bit." She nodded. They walked down the hill and through the fields. After a while, they stopped and looked up at the moon. "It's full." He stated.

"I wonder what tipped you off about it." She replied, some of the old sarcasm coming back into her voice.

He looked at her and then smiled. "There it is. I was getting a little concerned."

She tried to scowl at him but she couldn't hold it and began to laugh. He joined her and they spent a few minutes laughing. "Hey, Naruto," Azula said after they stopped laughing. "Have you ever heard the legend of Moon Fire?"

"No, I think I missed that one." He answered. "But then again, I'm surprised that the Fire Nation would even have a legend about the moon."

"It's not really spoken out loud anymore, not since my great-grandfather started this war. I learned about it at the Royal Fire Academy for Girls from the older students."

"What's it about?"

She took a step closer to him. "Legend has it that the Moon Fire is a gift given to women Firebenders by the Moon Spirit. Moon Fire was something that could only be used under the gaze of the moon. It was also not something that was to be used on the battlefield."

"Then what was it used for?"

She smirked and took another step towards him. "It was used to seduce men. When a woman used Moon Fire, she could make men walking by stop and watch her. And if she used it on the man she loved, he would not be able to take his eyes off of her."

He smiled at her. "Princess Azula, if I didn't know any better, I would say you were trying to use Moon Fire on me."

She smirked and took another step towards him. "No. Supposedly, if you wanted to use Moon Fire, there was a dance you had to do. Besides, I don't think I need Moon Fire. Do you?"

His breath hitched. Standing underneath the light of the moon, Azula was gorgeous. Her golden eyes seemed to twinkle in the dark. Her pale skin glowed like alabaster and her black hair framed her face perfectly. Before he could answer, she took another step forward and kissed him full on the lips.

He was caught off guard by it. Azula was not the one to just kiss you without warning (she wasn't the one to kiss you, period). He was reluctant for a few seconds, but then he surrendered and returned the kiss. They stood there, under the moonlight, with their eyes closed, sharing a kiss.

Azula was the first to break the kiss. She took a step back and looked at her bodyguard, a faint blush on her cheeks.

Naruto just looked at her. "…No, I don't think you do." He finally said. She smiled at his answer. "Get down!" He suddenly cried, grabbing her arm and pulling her down to the ground. A large rock sailed harmlessly over their heads. Bringing their heads up, they saw that they were surrounded by a large group of Earth Kingdom citizens and guards. "…I think they want to lodge a complaint." He said.

"Kill the whore and her dog!" One of the citizens screamed out.

Naruto's eyes went flat and hard when he heard him. "Do you want me to gut that one?" He asked.

"We're being ambushed here, Naruto." She replied, her hands going for the daggers at her waist.

"I know." And when the ambush party actually tried to attack them, he touched the tattoo on his wrist, muttered a quick **"Kai!" **and a small cloud of smoke appeared. When the smoke dissipated, his jian was in his hands. He sidestepped a war hammer strike and buried his fist in the wielder's stomach.

Azula drew out the daggers, parried a sword strike with one and sliced opened the person's stomach, spilling his guts. Standing up, she stabbed another in the chest. Meanwhile, Naruto placed himself in an Airbending stance and kept moving around his opponent, getting around to their backs and stabbing them.

"Azula," He said as he dodged a rock spike. "We don't have time to be polite, flambé their asses!"

"My hands are kinda full here!" She shouted back.

"Then use your feet! You have two of them!"

She ducked under a swing of an axe and retaliated by plunging her daggers into her attacker's neck. Thinking that she was open, another charged at her, his sword held high. Azula noticed what was coming, raised her foot and bent a stream of fire from it, roasting the attacker.

More of the ambush party joined the fight, which forced Naruto and Azula to move around, that way they wouldn't be blocked in. Naruto moved through the attackers using Airbending and Waterbending. He dodged, sidestepped, deflected, blocked and when the attacker was surprised for a brief moment; that was when he went for the kill.

Azula moved through them using flips, cartwheels and high jumps (apparently, you learn a few things when you're friends with Ty Lee). While she did this, she used both her daggers and her Firebending to full use. Her hands danced with the daggers, slicing and stabbing the enemy, while her legs and feet sent streams of fire as well as fireballs out as well, burning her attackers. As the ambush went on, her movements got more and more acrobatic.

"_Whoa." _Naruto thought as he watched Azula bend backwards into a handstand in order to stab an opponent in the feet and then do the splits, bending two streams of fire, setting two different attackers ablaze. _"I didn't know she could do that. When did she get that flexible?"_

"**Kit, get your mind out of the gutter and back into the fight!" **Kyuubi chastise him. **"She does have a nice** **ass to look at though, I'll admit that."**

"_Hey! If I can't ogle her, then you can't either!" _He shouted at the fox before returning to the fight.

"_Agni." _Azula thought as she took a look at Naruto. _"He looks like he belongs on the battlefield. It's almost…intoxicating to watch him." _She shook her head hard. _"Not the time for that, Azula! Pay attention!" _

On the outskirts of the battle, everyone saw a fireball go up. But it wasn't the blue fire Azula wielded, it was an ordinary flame. While everyone's attention was on that, sand burst out of the ground and cleared a lane in the circle surrounding the two.

"Are we interrupting?" Gaara asked as he, his siblings, Zuko, Mai and Ty Lee joined them.

"When did you get a sense of humor?" Naruto asked lightly.

"Now is not the time." Kankurō told him as he revealed his new puppet, **Sasori **(Scorpion).

"Are you two okay?" Zuko asked Azula and Naruto.

"We're fine, ZuZu." Azula told him.

"You sound aggravated." Mai noted.

"These rock-heads couldn't have waited five more minutes before ambushing us!?"

"Ooooh, details later." Ty Lee said.

"Ladies!" shouted Temari. "Focus please!" She readied her fan. Mai readied her knives and Zuko drew his swords. They turned the tables on the ambush. The Sand Siblings worked in tandem, Kankurō used his new puppet to disable, Temari used her fan to send them flying and Gaara used his sand to crush them. Mai would throw her knives and Zuko would attack when the knives hit. Azula and Ty Lee worked together using their acrobatics to disable, kill and flambé. Naruto worked alone in the fight, but that was because if he needed help, all he had to do was create a **Kage Bunshin**.

Soon enough, the ambush was over, but not in the ambushers' favor.

"That was boring." Mai stated as she put her knives away.

"But it's still over." Ty Lee said with cheerfulness.

"Damn, not enough time to fully test Sasori." Kankurō muttered.

"Oh relax; you still have that spar with Naruto." Temari told him as she folded her fan.

Naruto looked at the bodies of either dead or unconscious ambushers. "…This was too easy." He said.

"What do you mean?" Azula asked him.

"This ambush, there were only civilians who only had a basic knowledge of weaponry or Earthbending and low ranking guards. Why would they try to ambush us if they knew we could beat them with time? Not unless…" His eyes went wide. "Not unless they were nothing but fodder! This wasn't the ambush!"

Holes in the ground popped open and out flew more people. However, the difference was that these people were of high ranks in the military and of the nobility and that they were prepared for this.

"I will admit." The man in the front (a low ranking general, judging by his armor) said. "We weren't expecting the others to show up. But it showed us what they could do. And now, we will destroy you. KILL THEM!"

They charged, but unlike the last one (which charged like a stampede), this charge was coordinated. Those wielding pole weapons went for Ty Lee, Azula and the Sand Siblings. The ones wielding hammers and axes went for Kankurō, Mai and Zuko. The ones that wielded swords went for Naruto, Temari, Ty Lee, Azula and Zuko. And the Earthbenders separated them doing what they did best.

For Naruto and his group, things got both worse and complicated. They knew how to fight against the ones that came at them but they were many. They also had to deal with salvos of rocks, earth columns and stone spikes from the Earthbenders, who were controlled and precise. Every time they tried to regroup, the Earthbenders would separate by bending rock lines at them, forcing them back.

They started to work against those who fought them. Gaara started to use his sand to break the shafts of the pole weapons. While Azula went after them with fireballs and dagger strikes, Ty Lee got in close and blocked their chi, disabling them.

Kankurō made sure that both he and Sasori stayed out of reach of the hammer and axe swings while Zuko and Mai got in close and took them out. Zuko also dealt with the swordsmen, as did Temari. He used his Dao swords and she used her fan. When they were dazed, Naruto moved in and killed them. But despite what they tried to, they were tiring.

"Kami take it!" Kankurō swore as he ducked under an axe swing. "This is going nowhere. We're outnumbered here!"

"Not a problem." Naruto replied. He brought his hands into a handseal. But before he could do anything, the leader shouted out "Now! Do it!"

The Earthbenders banded together and, as one, bent a wall of stone up from the earth, separating Azula from the others. It towered over them, too tall for the shinobi (and ex-shinobi) to climb over quickly.

"Bind her!" A voice on the other side of the wall ordered. They heard the sounds of Firebending, weapons clashing and then the sound of something knocking someone out.

"Zuko, make a hole!" Naruto ordered as he tried to fight his way to the wall. Zuko steadied himself and projected an image of himself in his mind. Thankfully, during his time in Ba Sing Se, he hadn't slacked on this training. He was able to split himself into his younger self and the Blue Spirit, imaging every little detail about them. He then brought them back together, reforming them into himself.

"Naruto, get down!" He yelled. As Naruto fell to the ground, he took a deep breath and then breathed lightning. It tore through both the attackers and the wall, blasting a good chunk out of it (while the wall was tall, it wasn't really thick). The end result was a hole in the wall that you could easily step through. That was when they saw an unconscious Azula, her hands cuffed together by rocks, by the edge of a cliff that was not there before. The Earthbenders had bent a large crack in the earth; it was so deep that you could not see the bottom of it.

The Earth Kingdom noble who was holding Azula turned to see Naruto standing at the hole in the wall. He smirk, turned back around and, borrowing strength from the earth, hurled the unconscious princess off the cliff.

"AZULA!" screamed Naruto, getting the attention of the others. He ran towards the edge and threw himself after her.

"What an idiot." One of the men said with a snort. He was suddenly killed when sand covered his entire head and crushed it.

"Gaara, can you reach him?!" Temari asked as she joined her brother at the edge while the others came through the hole and attacked.

"They're falling too fast! My sand won't reach them!" He answered. He and everyone else turned their attention back to the enemy and attacked with fury. Even Ty Lee went for the kill, using her chi blocking abilities to stop the heart.

While they tried to rip those who ambushed them to shreds, Naruto was falling down after Azula. He angled his body so he could fall faster and reached her sooner. _"I have her!"_ He thought in triumph as he grabbed hold of her and pulled her into a hug-like embrace.

"**Great going, kit," **Kyuubi said. **"NOW WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO?!"**

He looked at the cliff walls. Despite gaining better control over his chakra, he knew that he would not be able to land safely on the walls. If he tried to do that, there was a very good chance of losing his grip on Azula. Also, if that didn't happened, the added weight would slow him down when he tried to run up the wall.

"_I only have one option!" _He said as he bit his thumb.

"**You realize that if you do that, they'll be able to find you, right?"**

"_We really don't have a choice here. It's either them or splatting. And I don't feel like splatting, do you?" _He went through the handseals. It had been more than three years since he had used this jutsu, but he could still remember what to do. **"Kuchiyose no Jutsu **(Summoning Technique)**!" **He cried out, holding his hand out in front of him. Chakra poured out from his hand and created a large cloud of smoke. Readjusting so that his feet were downwards instead of his head, he fell through the smoke and landed on a familiar head.

"What in the name of the Great Toad Sage is this!?" Gamabunta, chief of the toads of Mount Myōboku, roared as he held onto the cliff sides. "Jiraiya, where are you? Is this your idea of a joke!?"

"Long time no see, Chief Toad." Naruto said, holding the unconscious Azula in his arms like a bride.

Gamabunta froze; he hadn't heard that voice in three years. "Naruto, is that you?"

"Who else would summon you while falling to a death not wanted?" He looked up. "Listen, since you're here, can you help me? I need to stop a fight before my friends get killed."

The giant toad was silent for a few seconds. "Very well, but you and I are going to have a talk later. What exactly did you have in mind?"

Naruto smirked. "Shock and awe," He answered.

The chief of the toads smirked as well. Shifting his weight, he launched himself upwards.

Meanwhile, the fight was not going well for Zuko and the others. Despite aiming to kill, they were tiring. Sasori had taken a beating and was moving sluggishly, due to the fact that a pike managed to nick Kankurō's left arm, making it painful to move and leaving only his right arm to operate the puppet. Mai was on her last two knives, which she kept in hand. Ty Lee was slowing down; she couldn't keep doing her acrobatic moves. Zuko's Dao swords had been destroyed when a hammer strike knocked them out of his hands and a stone spike shattered them. Temari's fan had some holes in it, so she was forced to fold it up and use it like a club. The only one who didn't look tired was Gaara; as he kept using his sand defend the others.

"I don't think we're going to last much longer." Kankurō said.

"Thanks for stating the obvious." Mai said as she plunged a dagger into her opponent's head.

"Focus, Mai." Zuko told her as he bent fireball after fireball at the enemy.

It was then a large shadow fell over them, blocking out the moon. "What is that!?" Ty Lee screamed, near hysterics.

"That is a toad." Gaara said. "We'll be fine."

"How are we fine? That thing is huge!"

"I know that particular toad."

Gamabunta landed on the wall, demolishing it (it was big, he was bigger) and squashing those who were still on the other side. The battle completely stopped as they stared at the giant toad. "Well kid, what do you want to do with them?" Gamabunta asked.

"First things first," Naruto said. He pointed to one of the nobles. "That one threw Azula off the cliff. Extend him the same courtesy, please."

The toad opened his mouth and shot his long tongue at the noble, who tried to run and failed. He caught him and lifted him off of the ground. He struggled to get out of the tongue's grip, but couldn't even move. "You can't do this to me! Do you not realize who I am?!" He demanded.

Neither Naruto nor Gamabunta said anything. Gamabunta just let go of the noble, letting him fall like a stone and nowhere close to either cliff side. His screams grew more distant the further he fell until they could no longer hear him.

"Anyone else want to follow him!?" Gamabunta demanded, glaring down at the rest of the ambush party. They responded by dropping any weapons they had and bowing to the giant toad. "I thought not."

"Oh look, the cavalry." Naruto said as he looked from atop Gamabunta's head. Reinforcements were indeed coming but they were late, very late. He leapt down to the ground and landed in front of Zuko. "Zuko, get her back to the Royal Palace. I'll send word to the Dai Li to have a protection detail waiting for you." He made a clone, which sprinted towards the Inner Wall.

"Where are you going?" He asked.

"To have a talk with him," He answered, pointing to the giant toad behind him. He leapt back on top of Gamabunta's head, who then hopped away.

"Prince Zuko, sir." The two guards who were at his door greeted him with salutes.

"You're late." He simply said.

"Our apologies, sir, but there were delays when we reached the base." The first guard explained.

Zuko simply nodded. "I want these people to be thrown into jail. Their fate will be decided later." He gestured the Earth Kingdom citizens. The soldiers saluted and went to work. Zuko and the others started to walk back to the Inner Wall, a small detachment of soldiers following them.

(Location: Naruto)

They had finally stopped near the mountains in the Agrarian Zone.

"So? What did you want to talk about?" Naruto asked as he stood on the toad's nose, looking him in the eyes.

"You know damn well what I want to talk about." Gamabunta all but growled.

"Fine, then I'll get right to the point. I'm not going back."

"Kid, you're in danger. Konoha is the safest place for you."

"I've been in danger for the last three years and yet I survived. Besides, I want nothing to do with Konoha. It was a prison then and it would still be a prison now."

"There are people who miss you, Naruto!"

He barked out a harsh laugh. "Now I know you're lying. No one would miss me. If anything, I'd think that they would glad I left."

"That's enough! There are people who care for you! Do you know how long Jiraiya searched for you after you escaped? How many times Tsunade sent out teams of shinobi to look for you? How many times the Konoha Eleven—"

"SHUT UP!" Naruto unexpectedly roared. "IF JIRAIYA CARED ABOUT ME, HE WOULD'VE BEEN THERE FOR ME WHEN I WAS LITTLE AND SCARED! IF TSUNADE CARED ABOUT ME, SHE NEVER WOULD'VE MADE THAT RIDICULOUS PLAN! IF THE KONOHA ELEVEN ACTUALLY CARED ABOUT ME, THEY WOULD'VE NEVER DOUBTED ME AND CALLED ME A JOKE! THEY NEVER CARED ABOUT ME!"

"YES THEY DID!" Gamabunta roared back. "THEY HAVE ALWAYS CARED ABOUT YOU!"

"STOP LYING TO ME! JUST STOP IT!"

The two of them were silent for a couple of minutes. "You're still in danger here, kid." Gamabunta finally said. "Jiraiya got word that the Akatsuki had started hunting you again."

"Itachi and Kisame found me already. I gave them a warning not to come after me."

"What?"

"Don't give me that, Gamabunta. I know for a fact that the old hag would send any information she had on me to the pervert and I also know that he would pass that information onto you. That way you would be prepared in case I ever summoned you. It's just the way they would operate. So you know that if I wanted to, I would be able to use the power and experience of the Shodaime Hokage."

Gamabunta said nothing; he just grunted and blew smoke. "That was a pretty girl you were holding. Is she your girlfriend?" He finally asked.

"She's the Princess of the Fire Nation. You know that and you also know that I'm her bodyguard."

"You still didn't answer my question." He replied with a smirk.

"…Well, we were on a date tonight." He admitted. "That was before we were ambushed."

"Way to go, kid. How many have you gone on?"

"Only one," He answered. "Usually any girl I meet tries to jump my bones, screaming that they want my children."

"You have Fangirls?" He asked before bellowing out with laughter. "Oh that is rich! Who would have ever thought that the dead-last would get Fangirls?"

"…You're proving my point."

The laughter died. "You're adamant about this, aren't you?"

"I'm not a kid anymore, Gamabunta. I can take care of myself. I have a life here. I have friends here. Hell, I have enemies here. Do you realize how refreshing it is to have enemies that aren't related in anyway shape or form to the village and are completely your own?"

"…Yeah, yeah I can."

"I'm not going to let the village ruin what I have here."

"And yet, you're okay with being with the Kazekage and his family."

"He's a friend. Besides, he's on vacation."

"…How did you find out about the Block?"

"How do you think I found out?" He looked the toad straight in the eye. "Gamabunta, I want your oath that both you and the Toad Clan will leave me alone from now on."

"Kid—"

"I want your oath, Gamabunta, if you don't and you try to Reverse-Summon me, I will burn your home to the ground and I will kill everyone there."

"You wouldn't dare! Not even you would kill Gamakichi or Gamatatsu."

"Everyone there," He repeated, completely serious.

"…Very well. You have my oath."

"Thank you." He jumped off the toad's head and onto the ground.

"You know, you're right, kid." Gamabunta said. "You have changed." He disappeared in a huge cloud of smoke. Naruto simply looked at the quickly dissipating smoke and walked away.

(Location: Lower Ring)

"Well, that was interesting to watch." Kisame remarked as they walked down the street. "I don't think I ever seen a date go bad that spectacularly."

"You're forgetting that one time in Iwa." Itachi replied.

"Oh for Kami's sake, not this again." He groaned. "I've told you before; I had never known that woman. She was drunk and almost incoherent. Besides, she was flirting with you."

"We ended up in a massive fight with all the men of that town because of that woman. Then we had to run away from the women of the town in our underwear."

"Don't remind me, please."

After informing their leader about Naruto, Itachi's and Kisame's orders were to stay back and observe him. They had lost track of him in the Si Wong desert, so they decided to follow the Avatar's group. While they dealt with the drill, the two snuck into the city. They kept their distance but still kept an eye out on them. They were surprised when they saw the Kazekage was still alive, but what was even more surprising was when they watched the fight in the Crystal Catacombs and saw that Shù Yè was indeed Naruto.

"You have to admit, the kid has gotten very good." Kisame noted.

"Indeed, but he is still learning." Itachi said. "He never saw that lightning strike coming nor did he notice our presence in the Catacombs."

"_Report,"_ The voice of Akatsuki's leader rang in their minds. They kept walking, making their way back to the inn they were staying at. When they reached their rooms, they started to concentrate, closing their eyes. When they reopened them, the image of the Akatsuki's leader stood before them. "Report," He repeated.

They quickly told him everything they had seen after tracking the Avatar's group. "It was quite something to see, really." Kisame told him. "He's quite the little trickster."

The leader said nothing; he just stared at the two. "…What of the Konoha shinobi?" He finally asked.

"We are uncertain about what happened to them after they were taken away." Itachi said. "But we have debated and have come to the conclusion that Naruto will have imprisoned them and then manipulate them into leaving. As far as we can tell, he will be heading back to the Fire Nation soon. Are we to follow?"

"No." He answered. "If you follow him, eventually he will notice you. You are to return to the Elemental Countries via seal."

"So we're just going to leave the kid here?" Kisame asked, confused about the leader's decision.

"Do not worry, Kisame. Sooner or later, whether of his own violation or not, the Kyuubi will come to us." They couldn't exactly say but it seemed the ghostly image of the Akatsuki's leader was smirking.

(Location: Royal Palace)

When Azula awoke, she lunged forward with fire in her hands.

"Take it easy, Azula." Zuko told her, standing at the edge of her bed.

"What happened?" She asked, dispelling the fire. "The last thing I remember was…a sense of falling."

"You were thrown off the edge of the cliff and…Naruto saved you." He said, deciding to omit the part of the giant toad. "He's standing guard outside, in case you're wondering.

"Well, that is his job." She looked at her silent brother. "What's the matter, little ZuZu?"

"We need to talk, Azula." He said, completely serious. "Somebody set up that ambush. Who do you think arranged it?"

"Oh, I have an idea." She all but snarled.

"Yāo Jing," He said.

"Yeah," She agreed. "How did you figure it out?"

"Those reinforcements I had sent for arrived later then they should have been. The guards told me that they were delayed. The officers said they had to double check their story. That should never have happened. If any soldier comes in with orders from the Royal Family, they're to be carried out immediately. The only reason I can think of being stonewalled like that was Yāo Jing got to the officers first, which means she didn't come up with this idea on the spot."

"She's probably been waiting for this chance." The two siblings remembered what she had said in the throne room.

"_I saw a chance and took it."_

Both Zuko and Azula realized that she wasn't exactly talking about the Avatar and that she was still seeing chances.

"Azula," Zuko began. "We both know that you and I disagree on a lot of things, but one of the things we can agree on is that Yāo Jing would be very happy to see us dead. So from now on, when it concerns her, we watch each other's back." He held out his hand. "What you do say?"

Azula looked at her brother. "Agreed," She said, taking his hand. As their hands clasped, they bent fire over them, the heat caressing their skin. They made it a Dragon's Pact.

(Location: Konoha)

Tsunade sat at her desk, looking out through the window.

"Lady Tsunade." Shizune said, coming through. "The teams from the Bending Countries are back."

She turned back to her desk. "Send them in." She ordered.

Shizune nodded and walked out the door again. A few seconds later, Guy, Asuma and Kurenai came in with their teams behind them. They wore an expression of defeat on their faces.

Tsunade looked at them in silence. "…What happened?" She finally asked.

Asuma stepped forward. "The mission…has failed, Lady Tsunade. The Avatar has been killed and the Earth Kingdom has fallen." He said.

"And what of the Kazekage?"

Guy walked forward. "This was found in my headband." He said, putting a piece of paper in front of her.

She picked up the piece of paper and read it:

To the old hag

Gaara is fine. He will not be a prisoner. In fact, I think it's safe to say that he and his brother and sister will become guests of the Fire Nation. After all, he's on vacation.

Naruto

She read the paper once more before crumpling it up. "I want a full report from each and every one of you." She said, dismissing them. They nodded and left, leaving the Hokage alone.

(Location: Prison Cell)

Iroh sat in his cell. It had been over a day since Naruto had visited him. He could that it was afternoon due to the amount of light shining from the window. The door opened and two Dai Li agents stepped inside.

"What is it? Did my niece already call for my death?" Iroh asked with a little humor.

The agents said nothing. One of them came forward and placed a bundle of clothing next to him. "Put this on. Knock on the door when you are done." He said. The two agents walked out of the cell and closed the door.

Iroh took the bundle and opened it, revealing white clothes, mourning clothes. He wasn't quite sure where this was going but he put on the clothes. When he was done, he knocked on the cell door. It opened.

"Follow us." The agent said. They escorted Iroh out of the dungeons and out of the palace. They walked him down the steps and into a carriage. The carriage took him to the Inner Wall and then out to the Agrarian Zone. When it finally came to a stop, the view outside the window was familiar. The door opened and Iroh stepped out to see Azula, Ty Lee and Mai, Zuko and Naruto as well as a small contingent of soldiers. The soldiers wore formal armor while the others wore mourning clothes (Naruto wore black instead of white).

"Welcome, Uncle." Azula greeted him.

"What is this all about, Azula?" He asked her.

"Take a look." He looked at where she pointed. At the top of the hill, at the base of the tree, was a statue of Lu Ten in a meditative position. His eyes were closed and he had a content smile on his face

They all walked up the hill. As they stood in front of the statue, Zuko spoke. "The Fire Nation has done what no one has thought possible, conquered Ba Sing Se. But instead of celebrating our victory over the Earth Kingdom, we are here to remember and honor those who've fallen in battle during the Siege of Ba Sing Se, especially my cousin, Lu Ten. It is both my sister's and my wish that whenever people will see this statue, they will not remember the victory but the soldiers we lost to achieve victory."

"Uncle," Azula said; a surprisingly gentle tone in her voice. "Will you ignite the flame?"

Iroh said nothing; he just walked forward, bending a small orb of fire in his hand. He placed the orb in the statue's cupped hands. It took hold and turned into a small fire, not something that was used for destruction and war, but to provide light and warmth.

"We remember and thank those who have served the Fire Nation." Naruto said.

"We remember and thank." The soldiers repeated, bowing their heads to the statue.

A sorrowful tune began to play, it was a tune that every soldier knew and they sung along with it. "Leaves from the vine, falling so slow. Like fragile, tiny shells, drifting in the foam. Little soldier boy, come marching home." They sang in a slow voice.

"Brave soldier boy, comes marching home." Iroh finished, tears falling freely from his eyes.

(Location: Royal Palace, bedroom)

Night had fallen. After the small ceremony, Iroh was brought back to the prison. They had spent the rest of the day going about their business and finally retiring to sleep.

Naruto slept lightly, he had chosen the room next to Azula so he knew she would be safe. When he heard the door to his room, he was awake and slowly reaching for the knife he had strapped behind the bedframe.

"Naruto?" called out Azula.

He relaxed, bringing his hand away from the knife. "Can't sleep?" He asked, raising his head to look at her. She nodded. He lifted the covers slightly. She walked over and got in, laying her head against his chest. "Sleep well, Azula." He said, his arms looping around her and holding her closer.

She lay there in content, listening to his heartbeat. While she was frustrated that he kept secrets from her and wouldn't tell her about his past, she was glad that what she felt for the blonde was more than a crush and now, she knew it for a fact.

She loved him. She loved her bodyguard. She loved Naruto Uzumaki.

**End**

**Author's Note: **Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

As of this chapter, the poll regarding Zanpakutō is now closed. I will go forward with the idea of original Zanpakutō. Release incantations, Shikai and Bankai abilities as well as Shikai and Bankai designs have already been figured out. Thank you for voting.

Yes, both the Konoha teams and the Akatsuki are gone. I had to bring in the Akatsuki briefly before sending them back; otherwise readers would start wondering about how they got back to the Elemental Countries. Also, the way I figure it, even an organization like the Akatsuki has those days that you just don't want to remember.

For those of you who are going to say that Naruto couldn't summon Gamabunta because he seal the ability away, I want you to go back to chapter 4 and read the part in the Hokage's office carefully. Also for those of you who are going to complain that Naruto wouldn't kill Gamakichi or Gamatatsu, I want you to remember that he left his past behind and doesn't want it coming back. If he has to kill every toad to get his point across, he would do it.

As for Bosco, not exactly what you were expecting, huh? The one who got closest to what I was thinking was the reviewer Dragonskyt. Yes, the **Memori Ishoku **is an original jutsu (of which, I'm kinda proud of).

So it's back to the Fire Nation, but Zuko's meeting with the Royal Flaming Asshole (he is one and we all know it) will go a little differently. There will also be something new as well.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	20. Hiding and Home

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 20: Hiding and Home

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Unknown)

Aang opened his eyes with a small groan. He got up from the bed and sat on its edge. The process made him groggy. He shook his head to clear away the grogginess and placed his hand on his bandaged chest (he also vaguely noticed that his chest wasn't the only thing that was bandaged). "What happened?" He asked himself. Noticing something out of the corner of his eye, he saw that the banners in the room were of a deep red color. Turning his gaze back to the bed, he saw the flag of the Fire Nation looming over him. "Oh no!" He cried. Realizing that he had to escape, he grabbed his gilder staff, opened the door and made his way into the corridor.

It was difficult for him to walk down the corridor. He had to use his gilder staff as a third leg and the wall for support. He came to a corner when he heard someone say "You hear something?" He looked around the corner and saw two people dressed in Fire Nation armor. Using his gilder, he bent a blast of air at the two of them and started running (or in this case, hobbling).

"He's awake!" The soldier cried. They went after him, which only made him increase his hobbling. "Stop! Wait!" The solider called after him.

Aang didn't pay any attention. He tried to climb a staircase out to the deck, but tripped on the last step. He fell to the ground. His gilder slid across the deck to where two Fire Nation soldiers were feeding a familiar lemur. "Momo?" He asked, confused. The lemur gave a screech of delight, ran over to him, jumped on his shoulder and licked his face.

"Twinkle Toes!" cried Toph, who had been standing at the rail with Katara. "That's got to be you!"

"Aang, you're awake!" Katara said as everyone crowded around him.

"Are you sure? I feel like I'm dreaming." He replied, rubbing his eyes.

"You're not dreaming. You're finally awake." She said, giving him a hug which made Momo fly away.

"Aang, good to see you back with them living, buddy!" said a familiar voice inside a Fire Nation uniform. Standing next to him was a white wolf.

"Sokka? Akela?" asked Aang. He began to get woozy.

"Uh-oh, somebody catch him, he's going to —" Toph began to say as Katara tried to grab him. She just missed as he fainted and collapsed to the ground.

Katara held him as they all looked at him, Appa joining in.

(Location: Royal Barge)

Zuko stood on the deck, looking at the moon in its full glory.

"Aren't you cold?" Mai asked as she joined him at the railing.

"I got a lot on my mind." He told her. "It's been so long, over three years since I was home. I wonder what's changed. I wonder how I've changed." He said to himself.

She gave a yawn. "I just asked if you were cold. I didn't ask for your whole life story." When he looked away, she gave a small laugh, walked up behind him and turned his head to face her. "Stop worry." The two of them shared a brief kiss before she walked away, leaving him to look at the moon again.

Unbeknownst to him, Naruto sat on top of the tower, watching the moon as well. Hearing the sound of someone landing on the tiles next to him, he looked over. "Do you always come up here when you want to be alone?" Gaara asked as he stood next to him.

"You got something on your mind?" He asked, looking up at his friend.

He sat down next to him. "Why do you hate the Konoha shinobi?"

He was silent. That was a question that he didn't even want to talk about, let alone answer. "I don't hate them. I want them to leave me alone." He finally answered, hoping that was all he needed to say.

"They still care for you, you know that."

"Kami take it, not you too." He said with a groan, pinching the bridge of his nose with his fingers.

"Why do you insist on pushing them away?" He asked. He was intent on finding the actual answer to why the blonde had left their side of the world.

He took his fingers away from his nose and looked his friend straight in the eye. "Gaara, look at me. I'm not the same person I was three years ago. They just can't seem to grasp that. This is my life now and I want them to leave me alone. They didn't comply, so I made them."

Things fell quiet between them as they sat on the roof. "…Naruto, you've never asked me about how I was resurrected." Gaara finally said.

"Does it matter?" He asked. "You're alive."

"I was rescued by Chiyo, an elder of my village, and a team from Konoha."

His face became neutral. "I see."

"Are you not going to ask which team was sent?"

"Quite frankly, Gaara, I don't care. You're alive and a bunch of shinobi from Konoha helped. That's all there is to it."

"…It was Team Kakashi."

He groaned, putting his face in his hands. "You just had to say it."

"When they saw me dead, Sakura and Sasuke fell to their knees and cried. They were mourning the fact that they had lost another of their friends, like they had lost you."

"I don't want to hear this." He said, his voice muffled due to his face being in his hands.

"You should be proud of them. They're quite well known in the world of Shinobi. They're known as the Konoha no Sakura Hō-ō and Kurojishi no Sharingan."

"Enough, Gaara, I don't want to hear about them. I'm not interested about what they did or what they're known as. Change the subject." He ordered as he brought his face back up from his hands.

He sighed. "Very well, why were you up here anyway?"

"I had an idea, so I'm mulling it over."

"What's the idea?"

"I was thinking of writing a book. Something along the lines of what I did in Ba Sing Se."

"You mean like a spy novel?"

"Yeah, but I'm having trouble coming up with a name for the main character. Right now, all I have for a last name is Ryū. I can't think of a first name."

He looked up at the moon. "Does Shiro sound good to you?" He asked.

Naruto thought it over. "Hmm…Yeah, I like it. It works. Thanks, Gaara." He cleared his voice. "The name's Ryū. Shiro Ryū." He intoned, looking completely serious, before breaking out into a huge grin. "Oh yeah, that works. I also know about how he acts now. I gotta go write this stuff down before I forget!" He leapt off the tower, landed on the deck and ran below deck.

Gaara just watched him run off. He stayed there for a few minutes before also jumped off the tower, using his sand to cushion his landing. He then quietly walked back down below deck.

(Location: Team Avatar ship)

"Why are we on a Fire Nation ship?" Aang asked as one of the crew put a robe over his shoulders. "Why is everyone dressed this way? And why am I the only one who's completely out of it?"

"You need to take it easy, okay? You got hurt pretty bad." Katara told him. "…I like your hair." She said, trying to be a little less awkward.

"I have hair?!" Aang asked, freaking out as he felt the top of his head. Sure enough, there was hair growing there. "How long was I out?" He demanded.

"A few weeks," She answered.

"Everything okay?" asked Hakoda as he walked over.

"We're fine, Dad." Katara told him curtly.

"I'm Hakoda, Katara and Sokka's father." He introduced himself.

"He knows who you are. I just called you 'Dad'." She snapped at him.

"…I guess you're right." He conceded.

"Nice to officially meet you, Chief Hakoda," Aang greeted him, holding out his hand.

"It's an honor to meet you." He replied, clasping his arm.

"Great, now you guys have finally met. So would you mind giving a little privacy?" Katara asked her dad rudely.

"…Of course." He said before walking away.

"Are you mad at your dad or something?" Aang asked her as she scowled at her father's back.

"What, not at all. Why would you say that?" She asked, confused. He shrugged but the motion made him clutch his side in pain. "Maybe we should go upstairs. You need a healing session."

She took him back inside, into the bedroom. After having him sit down, she bent water out of two nearby jars and placed her hands on his back, over the red scar he now had. "Tell me where the pain feels most intense." She told him, her hands covered with glowing water and touching his back.

Aang gave a small grunt of pain. "A little higher," He told her. As she moved higher, he got a flashback of him rising out of the crystal cocoon in the Avatar State. "Wow, you're definitely in the right area there."

"I'm can feel a lot of energy twisted up around there. Let me see if I can…" She bent the water away from his back, but when she did, he arched his back in pain. He remembered going into the Avatar State a second time, before getting hit in the back by a bolt of lightning.

"I went down!" He said as he came out of the memory. "I didn't just get hurt, did I? It was worse than that. I was gone. But you brought me back."

"I just used the spirit water from the North Pole. I don't know what I did exactly." She told him truthfully, looking down at the floor.

He turned around to face her. "You saved me."

"You need to rest." She told him, placing a hand on his face. He couldn't help but agree with her.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

The old twins, Li and Lo, stood on a balcony addressing a crowd below while Azula and Zuko waited in the tower behind them. "Your Princess Azula, clever and beautiful, disguised herself as the enemy and entered the Earth Kingdom's capital." Li said.

"In Ba Sing Se, she found her brother Zuko," Lo said. "And together they faced the Avatar…"

"And the Avatar fell!" The twin spoke as one. "And the Earth Kingdom fell!"

"Azula's agents quickly overtook the entire city." Li announced. "They went to Ba Sing Se's great walls…"

"And brought them down!" The twins spoke as one again. In the building behind them, Azula and Zuko shared a small smile. Naruto had groused about the fact that despite having large, perfectly functional gates, they just had to go and make a hole in the walls.

"The armies of the Fire Nation surged through the city through the walls and swarmed over Ba Sing Se, securing our victory!"

"Now the heroes have returned home!" The twins spoke in unison.

"Your princess, Azula…" Lo announced. Azula knew that was her cue and walked onto the balcony. The crowd cheered as they saw the Princess of the Fire Nation.

"And after three long years, your prince has returned." Li said.

"It was he who led the Dragon's Fangs in the Siege of Akawan, defending it from the Earth Kingdom. He challenged the Earth Kingdom general to single combat and won and earned the title of the Scarred Dragon for setting free the dragon that was held captive!"

"Zuko!" shouted the twins. Zuko walked onto the balcony, garbed in formal armor and with his hair done up into a top knot. The people cheered louder for him then they did for Azula. Some of them began to chant "Akawan! Akawan! Akawan!" He knew that they were chanting his victory, cheering him for being there at the right time. But somehow, the chanting felt hollow. All he could feel was the faint warmth of the giant fire behind him as well as its shadow covering him.

(Location: Team Avatar ship)

Everyone had gathered for breakfast. Since everyone was there, Sokka decided to tell Aang what was going on. "After what happened in Ba Sing Se, we had to get you to safety." He explained as he sat on a crate. Akela lay next to him on the deck. "We flew back to Chameleon Bay, where we found my father and the other Water Tribe men. The Earth King decided he wanted to travel the world in disguise, so he set off alone. Well, not completely alone."

"Bosco?" asked Aang.

"Yep. Soon the bay was overrun by Fire Nation ships. Rather than fight them all, we captured a single ship and made it our disguise. Since then we've been travelling west." He pointed to the map he now held. "We crossed through the Serpent's Pass a few days ago. We've seen a few Fire Nation ships, but none have bothered us."

"But what exactly happened in Ba Sing Se? I thought the Dai Li obeyed you." He still wasn't sure of what exactly happened during the takeover. All he really knew was that Shù Yè wasn't who she said she was and nobody realized it until she revealed it herself and betrayed them.

Sokka's expression fell, changing into a small scowl. "…I didn't think that Naruto left that book on purpose. I had gotten cocky. I never thought that he could use the law about the Dai Li as well. I should have figured that he would've had control over the Dai Li as well."

Everyone was silent for a minute. "…So what now?" Aang finally asked.

"We've been working on a modified version of the invasion plan." Hakoda told him.

"It's Sokka's invasion plan." Katara said pointedly.

"…Yes, Sokka's plan," He agreed. "We won't be able to mount a massive invasion without the Earth Kingdom's armies, but the solar eclipse will still leave the Fire Nation vulnerable."

"So we're planning a smaller invasion." Sokka continued. "It's just a ragtag team of our friends and allies from around the Earth Kingdom. We already ran into Pipsqueak and The Duke."

"Good to see you again, Aang." Pipsqueak said, while The Duke ate from atop his head.

"And the best part is, the eclipse isn't even our biggest advantage. We have you!" He declared, looking straight at the Airbender.

"Me?" Aang asked, confused.

"Yep, because the whole world thinks you're dead."

To say the Avatar was stunned might have been an understatement.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital, Royal Palace)

Zuko walked down the corridor, before stopping at a door. He reached for the door and opened it, walking into his own room. It had been three years since he had been in his own room, and yet it looked like it hadn't changed at all. Everything was exactly the way he left it. _"I wondered when father ordered it to be cleaned." _Zuko thought to himself with a little cynicism. Then he noticed something on a nearby table. Walking over to it, he noticed it was a sheath for Dao swords, with said swords lying next to it. He just stared at them. _"I'd thought he would have them thrown away." _He thought. In his exile, he used the standard issue of Dao swords and he had also stolen a pair when he and Iroh were on the run. But the ones in front of him…they were _his_. He had forged them after his training with Piandao.

It was funny, looking at them for the first time in three years made his left palm twinge. He could still remember when he had begun the process of forging the swords. He had cut his palm on a block of metal, almost covering it in his blood. Despite of that, the block of metal seemed to be the right one for him and he gave to Piandao. The one thing that had always struck Zuko as odd was that he had smelted the block of metal while it still had his blood on it.

He reached for the swords, picking them up and feeling their weight again. As he held them, he felt like he was finding a lost part of himself. He thought he had heard a faint voice say **"Where the hell have you been?" **in the back of his head, sounding very annoyed. As he saw went through a few basic motions to get the feel for them again, he saw the familiar inscription on the two blades.

(Flashback)

"Sifu, what do these inscriptions mean?" Zuko asked as he showed the inscriptions to Piandao.

"It is something that my sifu had taught me. While the language is ancient, he told me what they say."

"What's that?"

"The inscriptions say this: Abandon your fear. Don't give an inch. Advance and never stop. If you retreat you will age. Be afraid and you'll die."

(End Flashback)

"Um…Prince Zuko?" said a voice behind him. He swung around and pointed a Dao sword at a middle-aged man in servant's garb. The man gave a cry of surprise and flinched away.

"Who are you?" Zuko demanded.

"M-my name's Há!" The servant yelped. "I was ordered to be your personal servant."

He withdrew the sword from Há's neck. "Next time, don't sneak up on me. I might've killed you." He warned.

"My apologies, sir, I will remember that." He said, bowing low in apology.

"Good. Leave me be for now."

Há bowed again. "Yes, Prince Zuko." He left the room, leaving Zuko alone in the room.

(Location: Team Avatar ship)

"The world thinks I'm dead?" Aang asked as he stood at the rail "How is that good news!? That's terrible!"

"It means the Fire Nation won't be hunting us anymore. And even better, they won't be expecting you on the Day of Black Sun." Sokka tried to explain to him.

"No, no, no, no, no. You have no idea. This is so messed up!" They heard the horn of another ship. Turning their gaze to the sound, they saw that it was another Fire Nation ship. "I'll handle this." Aang declared, grabbing his glider staff. "The Avatar is back." He opened up the gilder, but it hurt him. He tried to ready himself for takeoff when he felt something holding the gilder down. Looking down, he saw that Akela held the staff in his teeth.

"Aang, wait!" Katara said. "Remember, they don't know we're not Fire Nation." Sweating, he gently tugged the gilder away from Akela and folded it.

"Everyone just stay calm." Hakoda told them. "Bato and I will take care of this." The two Water Tribe men finished their disguise by putting on their helmets. Meanwhile, Pipsqueak and The Duke used a large bundle of cloth to hide Appa, Momo and Akela.

"I hate not being able to do anything." Aang whispered as he and the others hid in the staircase.

"Hopefully, you won't need to." Toph replied.

The two ships got closer to each other. As they sat side-by-side, a ramp was lowered so the Fire Nation captain could walk across. "Commander, why are you off course?" He asked as Hakoda saluted. "All Western Fleet ships are supposed to be moving towards Ba Sing Se to support the occupation!"

"Actually, we're from the Eastern Fleet." Hakoda lied as he and Bato shared a look with each other. "We have orders to deliver some cargo."

"Ah…Eastern Fleet," The captain mused. "Well, nice of Admiral Chan to let us know he was sending one of his ships our way."

"I'm sure Admiral Chan meant no disrespect, sir." Bato assured him.

"I mean, how hard is it to write a quick note and send a hawk our way?" He asked.

"Next time, we'll send two hawks to make sure you get the message." Hakoda told him. They saluted and the disguised Fire Nation soldiers turned around and walked away.

"Sir…Admiral Chan has been on leave for two months at Ember Island." One of the soldiers that accompanied the captain whispered to him.

"What? Why doesn't anyone tell me anything? Something's not right, they should've known that. I think this is a captured ship." They started to walk back across the ramp. "Just stay quiet until we're safely across the ramp. Then we'll sink this ship." The captain whispered.

Unfortunately for him, Toph heard the entire thing. "They know!" She yelled. Slamming her hand onto the deck, she bent the metal ramp to fall into the water, taking the captain and the two soldiers with it.

Katara then bent the ocean to rise up and push the other ship away from them. They took that advantage and started to sail away. Meanwhile a ladder was thrown down for the men in the water, so they could get back on board their own ship.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital, Royal Palace)

Zuko sat in the garden, throwing bread pieces at the turtle-ducks. Hearing movement to his side, he looked and saw Azula sitting down next to him. A brief look behind him confirmed that Naruto was up in the tree. "Funny, last time I checked, the turtle-ducks were afraid of you." He commented as he kept throwing pieces into the pond.

"Naruto covered me in breadcrumbs and then threw me into the water when he saw how I treated them." She replied, a small smile on her face. "The little ones are quite the nibblers." She placed a hand in the pond. The baby turtle-ducks came and started rubbing their heads against it. "By the way…congratulations," She said.

"…For what?" He asked, confused.

"For earning the title of Dragon," She explained. "I realized that I had never actually congratulated you."

"I never expected you to congratulate me. I kinda expected you to insult me about it." He told her with complete honesty.

"I can't be proud of my older brother?" She asked, sounding a little offended. Before he could answer, they heard the sound of a sword hitting the ground. Turning around, they saw Naruto's jian sticking out of the ground.

"Sorry, just making sure gravity was still working." He told them as he jump down from the tree and pulled the jian out from the ground.

"Was that really necessary?" Azula asked, pulling her hand from the water.

"I had to check and I didn't have a coin handy."

"What exactly are the three of you doing?" Yāo Jing asked as she approached them. Her voice made the turtle-ducks swim away.

"Do you really want to know?" Azula asked in return.

"Why do you look so down, little brother?" She asked Zuko, ignoring Azula.

"I haven't seen Dad yet. I haven't seen him in three years, since I was banished." He told her.

"So?"

"So, I didn't capture the Avatar."

"Who cares? The Avatar is dead." She caught the look he had as he looked away. "…Unless you think he somehow miraculously survived."

Katara's words went through his head again.

"_This is water from the Spirit Oasis at the North Pole. It has special properties, so I've been saving it for something important."_

He turned his attention back to his half-sister. "No, there's no way he could've survived." They glared at each other, almost daring the other to make a move.

"Well, then I'm sure the two of you have nothing to worry about." She said before walking away.

"She's done something." Naruto said after she had left the garden. "The two of you keep your guard up."

Both Azula and Zuko nodded in agreement. They had caught what Yāo Jing had said. If they weren't careful, it would not be good for them.

(Location: Team Avatar ship)

The enemy ship was chasing them and also firing flaming rocks at them.

"Load the Toph!" Toph commanded as she took an Earthbending stance. Pipsqueak placed a large slab of rock in front of her. Using her Earthbending, she lifted the rock and throw at the enemy ship, crushing one of their catapults. She fired off another one to intercept another incoming missile.

Sokka, Akela and Aang stayed inside. When Aang tried to go out and help, Sokka stopped him. Aang just banged his head on his gilder staff. _"I am completely useless!"_ He mentally yelled at himself.

The enemy ship aimed a harpoon down into the water and fired. It flew into the water and breached the hull, letting water to flow in. After being pulled out, it left a bigger hole and more water flowed in. Katara, however, was already on top of it. She quickly froze the water around the hole, sealing it off. "I'm gonna give us some cover!" She told the others. She bent the ocean to turn into vapor, giving them a fog screen. But it didn't really work, as the next missile destroyed the supply of rock slabs they had.

"I can't just stand by and do nothing!" Aang declared. He tried to run and join the fight, but Akela had grabbed the hem of his robe and held him place.

"You're still hurt, Aang." Sokka told him as he brought him back inside. "And you have to stay secret. Just let us handle this."

"Fine," He said curtly.

"Akela, make sure he stays inside," Sokka ordered the wolf before running out onto the deck as another missile almost slammed into the deck.

The two ships sailed out of the fog, giving the enemy clear vision again. They fired another missile, which slammed into the deck and caused a fire. Katara quickly doused the fire with water from the ocean.

"How are we doing?" Toph asked Sokka.

"Things couldn't get much worse." Sokka told her. It was at that point, the Serpent from the Serpent's Pass burst out of the water with a roar. "The universe just loves proving me wrong, doesn't it?" He asked to no in particular.

"You make it too easy." She told him.

The Serpent was about to attack them when it was hit by missile. Turning its attention to the other ship, it dove into the water and wrapped itself around it, letting them get away.

"Thank you, the universe!" Sokka cheered.

"**You're very welcome." **Sifu's voice whispered in his ear. **"Be glad I know how to nudge these creatures in the right direction."**

"You sent him after that ship?" He asked underneath his breath, so no one would hear him.

"**Nope, the ship did that on its own. I just had the Serpent come here."**

* * *

Hours later, they docked the ship at a town. Aang was in his room again, trying to rest. The door opened, letting Sokka, Toph, Katara and Akela walk in.

"Hey Aang!" said Toph. "We're going into town to find some dinner." They were hoping to make it like it was before, just them and no one else.

"Well, I am pretty hungry." Aang said, his stomach agreeing with the statement. "Maybe dinner's a good idea."

Sokka took out a headband from a pouch. "Here, tie this around your head. It'll cover your arrow." He told him, offering the headband to him.

He looked insulted at the mere prospect of wearing the thing. "I'm not going out if I can't wear my arrow proudly!" He snapped before turning away from them.

"Aang come on, be practical."

He turned his head to glare at him "Oh yeah, sure, be practical! Like how you were practical about the Dai Li. I guess you're not as smart as you think you are!" He said rudely.

Everyone was silent for what seemed to be a long time. They had never known Aang to insult someone and yet, he just did. "If you're going to act like this every time you're beaten, I can see why the Paragons keep watch over the Avatar." Sokka told him in a controlled voice before turning around and walking out the door, Akela behind him.

Katara motioned Toph to follow him, leaving her and Aang alone in the room. "I think I understand why being a secret bothers you so much." She said, placing a hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort him. "You don't want people to think you failed."

"You're right, I don't." He replied. "But the problem is, I did fail!"

"Aang, that's not true."

He sat up "It is true." He told her as he got up from the bed. "I was in Ba Sing Se. I was there! But I lost. And now the Earth Kingdom has fallen for good."

"It's not for good." She stood up as well. "Remember, there's still a plan, the invasion!"

"And I hate the invasion plan too!" He half-shouted at her. He grabbed hold of the flag that stood above the bed, tore it off and threw it to the ground. "I don't want you or anyone else risking your lives to fix my mistakes! I've always know that I would have to face the Fire Lord. But now I know I need to do it alone."

"Aang," She walked around the bed, her arms already out for a hug. She desperately wanted to hold him and make it all okay, like nothing was wrong.

"Katara, please!" He said, making her stop. "Just go…please."

She turned around and walked back to the door. "Is there anything you need?" She asked, stopping at the door.

"I need to redeem myself. I need my honor back."

She stayed at the door for a second. "You know if Asuma and the others were still here. One of them would've probably whacked over the head for what you said." She said before leaving.

"Well, they aren't here, are they?" He muttered to himself, looking down at his staff. "It's just more people who would've risked their lives for me. It's better that they're gone."

(Location: Fire Nation Capital, Royal Palace)

Zuko walked down the corridor. He stopped at a curtained entrance. The last time he stood before this entrance, it was before that fateful meeting. Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he pushed past the curtain and walked into the throne room. He saw his father, sitting on the throne, his face obscured by the shadow cast by the fire. He walked forward and when he was close enough, he got to his knees and bowed low.

"You have been away for a long time." Ozai said, looking down at his son. "I see the weight of your travels has changed you. You have redeemed yourself, my son." He stood up and walked down the steps. Zuko raised his head and saw the face of his father, a face he hadn't seen for three years. "Welcome home."

(Location: Team Avatar ship)

Katara walked back to Aang's room, carrying a tray of food. "I brought you some food." She said as she came through the door. But the room was empty. "Oh no…" She whispered, dropping the tray and running down the hallway.

(Location: Aang)

Sure enough, Aang was flying over the ocean, intent on waging a one man war against the Fire Nation. However, he was still injured. As he held his side in pain, he fell towards the water. He managed to recover before hitting the water itself and flew on.

(Location: Team Avatar ship)

Katara ran out onto the command tower deck, where Hakoda and Bato were. "I'll leave you two alone." Bato said after he noticed the tears in her eyes.

"What's wrong, Katara?" Hakoda asked.

"He left." She told him.

"What?"

"Aang," She answered. "He just took his gilder and disappeared. He has this ridiculous notion that he has to save the world alone. That it's all his responsibility."

"Maybe that's his way of being brave."

"It's not brave, it's selfish and stupid! We could be helping him and I know the world needs him, but doesn't he know how much we need him too? How could he just leave us behind?" She demanded.

"…You're talking about me too, aren't you?" He asked quietly in return.

"How could you leave us, Dad?" Tears fell from her eyes but she tried to wipe them away. "I mean, I know we had Gran-Gran and she loved us, but we were so lost without you."

"I'm so sorry, Katara."

She gave him a hard hug. "I understand why you left. I really do, and I know you had to go, so why do I still feel this way? I am so sad and angry and hurt!"

"I love you more than anything. You and your brother are my entire world. I thought about you every day I was gone and every night when I went to sleep, I would lie awake missing you so much it would ache."

(Location: Fire Nation Palace, Throne Room)

"I will admit that I was outraged when I first learned that you decided to walk right into Akawan. But that rage has now turned into pride." Ozai said as he walked around Zuko. "I am proud of you, Prince Zuko. I am proud because you and your sisters conquered Ba Sing Se. I am proud because when your loyalty was tested by your treacherous uncle, you did the right thing and captured the traitor. And I am proudest of all of your most legendary accomplishment: You and Azula slayed the Avatar."

"What did you hear?" Zuko asked. He was shocked at what he heard. The last time he had checked, the Avatar had been sprinted away from them.

"Yāo Jing told me everything. She said she was amazed and impressed at the power and ferocity the two of you possessed at the moment of truth."

While he knew that was not the case, he decided to go with it for the moment. "My older sister flatters us. We did what we had to do, no more, no less."

Ozai walked back to the throne. "You may leave. There will be a party later to celebrate you and your sister return." Zuko stood up, bowed to his father once more and turned around to leave the throne room.

(Location: Aang)

He kept flying, but as he did, he kept getting closer and closer to the water's surface. When he looked ahead, he saw something he had forgotten about. "The blockade," He said to himself. But he wasn't going to stop by that. Using Airbending to help him, he took a deep breath and closed the gilder.

He dived into the sea and used Waterbending to push himself past the ships. Once he was a safe enough distance, he broke the water's surface. Using his gilder to hold himself, he gasped for breath. He saw a log drifting by and swam towards it. After resting on it, he had an idea. Using his gilder as a sail, he used the log as a surfboard.

But his good luck ended as a storm came through and the waves got choppier. He eventually slammed into a wave and lost hold on his gilder.

(Location: Fire Nation Palace)

Zuko walked away from the throne room, his mind racing a mile a minute as he walked through the halls. As he turned at a corner in the corridor, he ran into Azula and Naruto. "Good, I was looking for you two." He said.

"What's the matter, Zuko?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, what is the matter, little brother?" Yāo Jing asked from behind them.

Zuko turned to face her. "Why did you tell Father that Azula and I killed the Avatar?" He asked. Behind him, Azula's eyes widen slightly, while Naruto's just went flat.

"You seemed so worried about how Father would treat you because you hadn't captured the Avatar. I figured if I gave you and Azula the credit, you would have nothing to worry about and Father would see that the two of you were working together."

"But why?" asked Azula. Yāo Jing never did something like that out of the simple goodness of her heart, she didn't have any to begin with.

"That's funny; I thought it would be a good idea to make it look like you two were working well together in Father's eyes."

"Nothing that's simple." Zuko said, "Not with you. You've got another motive."

She chuckled darkly. "Really Zuko, what other motive could I have? What could I possibly gain by letting you two get all the glory for defeating the Avatar?" She asked. "…Unless, somehow, the Avatar was actually alive," She smirked. "All that glory would suddenly turn to shame and foolishness. But you said it yourself, that was impossible."

"You illegitimate bitch," Naruto said, realizing what she had done.

"Now, now, Naruto, that's not nice." She replied, waving her finger at him, like he was a child who had misbehaved.

"Let me guess, if the two of us were shamed, you would finally have you always wanted?" Zuko asked.

"It's a possibility."

Azula barked a curt laugh. "It'll only happen if the two of us are dead in the eyes of Father. You're a mistake, Yāo Jing. You always have been. Even Father thinks so."

She started to walk forward, until she was almost face to face with her half-siblings. "If Father thought I was a mistake, then I would be dead. Apparently, I'm good for something." She turned around and walked away. She stopped and looked back at the two of them. "Make no mistake, Zuko, Azula. I will get what I want." Her gaze turned to the third person. "And when that day comes, I will enjoy breaking you, Naruto."

He scoffed. "Lady, people have been trying to break me since I was born. I haven't broken yet. And you don't scare me."

She said nothing; she just continued to walk away.

(Location: Aang)

He held onto the log for dear life as the storm howled around him. He saw his gilder floating in the water but he knew that if he tried to get it, the ocean would sallow him whole. He let out a scream as a tidal wave sent him under, but he was able to recover and swim back up to the surface with the log.

"I'm not going to make it." He whispered to himself as he once again held onto the log. "I failed." As if to answer, lightning roared and flashed briefly in the sky. When it was the spirit of a man long dead floated above the water. "Roku?"

"**You haven't failed, Aang." **The spirit of the previous Avatar said.

"But everyone thinks I'm dead again. They think I've abandoned them and I'm losing this war. I'm letting this side of the world down."

"**If anyone is to blame for this, it is me. I should have seen this war coming and prevented it. You inherited my problems and my mistakes. But I believe you are destined to redeem and save this side of the planet."**

"I don't know."

A pool of light shined down on him. **"You already saved the world." **The voice of Princess Yue told him. He looked up and saw the moon breaking the clouds apart. The storm died down as the vision of Yue, garbed in white, descended towards him.** "And you'll save the world again, but you can't give up."**

Aang looked up at her. She was a reminder of what he could've done better. But she was also a reminder of all the people he had tried to save and did. "…You're right. I won't give up." He declared with conviction. He bent the sea to push him forward on a tidal wave while he used the log as a surfboard. Yue raised her hands and made the wave bigger, pushing him farther, before ascending back up to the moon.

When the wave had finally died, Aang had washed up on Crescent Island, which was still erupting due to his actions.

(Location: Royal Palace)

Zuko tried to keep his breath calm as he stood outside the door.

"Nervous, sir?" asked a soldier.

"The people I've usually talked to for three years were soldiers. If I snap to attention and say sir, we know I belong in the military."

"With all due respect sir, I think you're already in the military."

"Yeah, I was at Akawan." The joke made the soldiers and him chuckle, loosening the tension.

"Are you ready, sir?"

He took a deep breath. "Might as well."

They opened the door and marched into the party. "Ladies and gentlemen, the Scarred Dragon, Prince Zuko," The lead soldier announced. The nobles there politely clapped for as he descended the staircase.

"Hey, Zuko, how have you been?" Another teenager came up to him and asked. Before he was exiled, Zuko thought of him as a close friend. Now, he was just another face in the crowd.

"I've been well." He replied curtly, before walking on.

"C'mon man, don't be a stranger." The guy replied, trying to catch up.

Zuko stopped and glared at him. "You are a stranger. Don't bother me." He told him before walking away again, leaving a stunned teenager.

"He's seems to be doing well." Naruto noted. He and Azula as well as Ty Lee, Mai and the Sand Siblings watched Zuko's progress.

"This is his first time back in court in over three years." Azula replied. "It would be impressive if he didn't make a fool of himself."

"He just blew off a potential bootlicker in the first two minutes." Kankurō said. "I think he'll do okay."

"But that's just bootlickers." Temari countered. "He still has to deal with the actual nobles and military leaders that are here tonight."

"You're forgetting one thing, Temari." Naruto said.

"What?"

"Fangirls," Gaara answered.

Both Kankurō and Temari were surprised by that. "You have got to be kidding." Temari declared.

"No, trust me. Zuko has Fangirls." Naruto assured them.

"It's true, we saw them in Kouzan." Azula supported.

"Um…Guys?" Ty Lee said. "Could we stop talking about Zuko's Fangirls? Mai's aura is getting darker." They looked at Mai. While they couldn't see her aura, they could the growing expression of murder on her face and the small twitching of her hands, like they were demanding to throw something.

"Azula!" cried a familiar voice. They turned to see who spoke. They got their answer when the speaker came up to them and gave Azula a hug.

"Kori?" asked Naruto. But as he asked, in his head he was thinking _"Thank you Kami."_

"Oh, hey Naruto," She greeted, breaking the hug with Azula.

"You say hi to her first, then me? I'm hurt." He said with a hurt expression that everyone knew was a fake.

"Oh don't worry; you're still my big brother."

"Well, that's a relief." He said as the hurt expression evaporated from his face.

"Kori, what are you doing here?" Azula asked.

"You don't remember your last letter?"

"Oh, my apologies, I had completely forgotten about that."

"Hold on a minute." Naruto interrupted. "What do you mean, letter?" He asked, looking back and forth between the two girls.

"While you were off conning the Avatar, I was trading letters with Kori. My last letter offered her the chance to stay with us for a part of the summer."

"And I took her up on that offer." Kori finished.

"Well, there's nothing I can do about it now." Naruto conceded. "But, Kori, I want to you do two things while you're here."

"What?"

"One: don't Earthbend. Two: Never be alone with her." He pointed to Yāo Jing, who stood by Ozai in a servant uniform.

"Why should I stay away from her?"

"She's dangerous and she doesn't like me, Azula or Zuko. She will try to use you against us."

"…You're not kidding, are you?"

He gave a grim smile. "Welcome to politics." He heard a small noise, like someone clearing their throat, beside him. "Oops, sorry," He apologized to the Sand Siblings. He turned back to Kori. "Kori, this is Gaara no Sabaku and his brother and sister, Kankurō and Temari. Guys, this is Kori Morishita, daughter of Yu Dao's mayor."

"Hello." She greeted them, which they returned.

"So, you any good with a weapon?" asked Temari.

"I've trained with a meteor hammer."

"I should know." Naruto said. "You've tried to put me on the receiving end of the thing many a time."

"I will beat you one day, Naruto. Make no mistake." She promised him.

"And I will always look forward to that day."

"You trained her?" Gaara asked.

"Yes I did. It was my first posting when I joined the military. The mayor put me in charge of his daughter, so I trained her." He ruffled her hair.

"Naruto, would you stop doing that?!" She demanded.

"They grow up so fast." He asked, wiping a fake tear from his eye.

Gaara just smiled. "Still changing people's view I see."

"Hey, I just do what I do." He looked over at Zuko, who was now talking to a group of nobles. "Now would probably be a good time to lend some support for your brother, Azula. Show the nobility that you are actually brother and sister, not two people who fight over who gets the throne." He told her quietly.

She nodded in agreement and the two of them walked over to where Zuko stood, Naruto hung back a little so that Azula could look like she didn't have a babysitter.

"The thing that astounds me is that even though you could have been killed once it was all over, you still led the defense. Why would you do that?" One of the nobles, a middle-aged man with a gut, asked Zuko.

"It was my duty as a prince of the Fire Nation." Zuko answered evenly.

"But you were banished." The noble's wife pointed out.

"Even if he was a banished prince, he was still a prince." Azula said, stepping into the group and into the conversation. "My brother did the right thing when he led the defense at Akawan."

"Oh, Princess Azula," The nobleman greeted her. "So you approve of your brother's actions?"

"Of course I do. I would have done the same thing. Although, I don't think I would have been able to fight on the front lines and come up with those spontaneous decisions. I think that Zuko has a knack for this kind of thing"

Zuko shrugged. "I spent three years on a ship surrounded by military personnel. You tend to pick up a few things."

"Will you be taking an active part in this war?" A third noble asked.

"I hadn't thought about it. I mean, I have no official ranking. The soldiers I led just called me Commander."

"Ah, yes, the famous Dragon's Fangs. From what I've heard, the Earth Kingdom armies are afraid to go anywhere near Akawan because of them." He slapped Zuko on the back. "You've done a fine job with them, lad."

"I just did what I had to do." He answered.

"Um…Prince Zuko?" said a small voice.

He looked around. "Yes?" He asked, not sure where the voice was coming from.

"Forgive me, Prince Zuko. My daughter is terrible shy." The first nobleman apologized. He moved to the left a little, revealing his daughter. "Now come on dear, ask Prince Zuko your question."

The daughter, who looked to be about ten years old, looked at Zuko and buried her face in her father's side. "I-I'm sorry!" She squeaked.

Zuko knelt down so that he was at eye level with the girl. "Is it my scar?" He asked gently. She nodded once. "Very well…now try looking." She did and saw that he covered his left eye and ear with his hand, masking the scar. "What is your question?"

"I…I was just wondering how you were able to breath lightning."

He smiled. "When I was exiled, my Uncle decided to try and teach me how to generate lightning. I couldn't do it, so he decided to teach me how to redirect it instead. Once I had gotten the movements down, I wanted to try it with actual lightning but he refused. So I went to look for my own."

"You really did?"

"Yes. I ended on a mountaintop in the middle of a storm. It was in that storm I met someone, someone I never would have expected to meet."

"Who did you meet?"

"I met the King of the Dragons, Bahamut."

"Really?" asked the girl. "You met the Dragon King? What did you do?"

"I insulted him straight to his face. In return, he threw lightning at me, which I redirected back at him." He said with a straight face

"What…what did he do?" She asked, almost afraid to find out.

"Laughed it off and told me it had been a long time since anyone had done that to him. He came to visit me in my sleep when I was at Akawan and show me the path to breathing lightning."

"Can I learn how to do it?"

"Are you a Firebender?" She nodded enthusiastically. "Then you'll have to discover the secret for yourself. If I told you how to do it, it would only make it harder for you."

"Okay! I'll be sure to discover the secret!"

"The kid's got spunk." Naruto noted as they walked away from the group. "She'll make a good Firebender."

"Yes she will." Azula agreed.

"How are you doing, Zuko?" Ty Lee asked as she and Mai joined them.

"I'm not having the impact that's expected."

"You seem to be doing fine to me" Kori said.

"Zuko, this is Kori Morishita, from Yu Dao." Naruto quickly introduced her.

"Hello, Kori." He greeted. "Despite my words and what I'm trying to say, they don't believe in me."

"Well, what do you have to do to get them over to your side?" Temari asked.

"I don't know. I've been away for three years and Uncle didn't teach me court politics."

"Then you must win them over another way." Gaara told him.

"Got any ideas?"

"One," Naruto said. "It has its downsides and if it works, odds are we'll be hiding for the rest of the night." The others looked at him once he had said that.

"What exactly are you planning, Naruto?" Mai asked him suspiciously.

"HEY, OZAI!" He shouted, making the entire hall silent as they watched him walked towards the throne.

"Yes?" Ozai replied, his face showing only the slightest traces of annoyance.

"Everyone's pretty bored here. Why don't you let me and Zuko give them a bit of entertainment?"

"What did you have in mind?"

"Simple, he and I go at each other."

Only the people who were nearest to the throne could see the small smirk Ozai wore. "Interesting," He finally said. He stood up from the throne. "The fight shall be held in the Agni Kai chamber. We will allow Lord Naruto and Prince Zuko a half hour to prepare." He walked down the steps, Yāo Jing behind him, and out a door. The rest of the noblemen and servants followed his idea.

(Location: Agni Kai chamber)

Zuko stood on one side of the chamber while Naruto stood on the other. They had changed from the heavy, formal robes to simple training shirts and pants. "Hey, Zuko!" yelled out Naruto. "You're giving me an advantage with your top knot."

He understood what Naruto meant. He reached up and undid the hair piece, letting his hair fall down. Judging by the whispers the teenage daughters were whispering, they approved of his decision. "How do you want to do this?" He asked.

He shrugged. "Just show them what you got."

"Paragon Naruto, are you ready?" Ozai called out as the servants holding their swords walked towards them.

"Let's get this started." He answered, drawing his jian from its sheath. The servant walked away with the sheath.

"Prince Zuko, are you ready?"

He nodded once, drawing his Dao swords. Há walked away with the Dao swords' sheath as well.

"Then begin." The gong rang.

They charged each other, swinging their swords with the intent to kill. The Dao swords and the jian clanged together as they made contact. They held them there, trying to force the other one back with strength. The hold was broken when Naruto tried to sweep Zuko's legs from underneath him, forcing him to backflip away.

They stared the opponent down, slowly circling each other. They exchanged a few strikes, testing the other's reaction time and speed. "Is this a dance or a fight?" Naruto asked, swinging his jian at Zuko's shoulder.

"It is a dance, Naruto, just with swords." He parried the jian with one blade and tried to swipe at Naruto's midsection with the other. However, the jian swatted the blade away and struck his shoulder, cutting through the shirt.

"I guess so." The room was silent as the sleeve fell off his arm and fell to the floor. "Are we done warming up?"

He looked at his arm, then at his opponent. "Yeah, we're done." He spun into a roundhouse kick and bent a fireball at Naruto, making him duck. He pressed his advantage, swinging rapidly. His advantage didn't last long, as Naruto quickly recovered.

The swords strikes swung so fast, it almost looked like there was more one of them (two in case of the Dao swords). The spectators lost count of how many times one of the swords was inches away from drawing blood.

They swung at each other at the same time, which sent both the jian and the Dao swords flying into opposite sides of the arena walls. They only shared one look with each other before running to different sides of the arena floor and leaping into the crowds for their swords, making the people scatter when they landed. They grabbed their blades, turned back around and leapt back into the arena floor, allowing the people to sit back in their seats. Using the edge of his sword, Zuko bent a thin slice of fire at Naruto, who disperse it with a swing of his jian.

They faced each, panting lightly. Then they looked at themselves. Zuko's shirt was shredded because of the cuts the jian made. Naruto's shirt was shredded as well but had also caught on fire (not a big one, mind you, just a slow burning on the edges). Noticing that their shirts were barely more than scraps, they tore off the remnants, showing their bare chest to everyone.

"Oh sweet Agni," Kori muttered as she looked at the two of them. A blush grew on her cheeks.

"Enjoying the view?" Ty Lee asked.

"Oh yes."

"Naruto is something to look at, I'll admit to that."

"Um…I wasn't just looking at Naruto."

Azula had a look of slight disgust. "Kori, that's my brother!" She may not get along with him well, but it was still disturbing.

"I can't help it! He's right there. How am I supposed to ignore something like that?"

"I don't know; count the cracks in the wall or something!"

The two fighters shared a smile of acknowledgement with each other before charging again. This time, Zuko brought in Firebending. Since his hands were occupied, he used his feet. Every time he did a kick, fire was used as well. Sometimes it would hit Naruto, singeing his skin but it would heal in a matter of seconds. The rest of time, he dodged the fire.

"Well, Naruto has certainly improved from three years ago." Temari commented as she watched the two.

"Is our big sister interested in him?" Kankurō asked with a slight teasing tone in his voice.

"That's not even funny, Kankurō."

"Enough." Gaara said.

The fight raged on, the fighters getting fiercer and fiercer. Naruto also began to bring in punches and kicks, although Zuko did a fairly impressive job blocking them. Sometimes, one would flip over the other, trying to strike the head. But the other would block and spin in the direction they landed. _"He deserves his reputation as a master of Dao swords." _Naruto thought as they once again circled each other.

"**Yes he does, kit." **Kyuubi agreed as he watched the fight from inside his cage. **"Be careful, one misstep, one mistake and it'll be over for you." **

"_He may not be a master of the jian, but his ability to improvise makes up for that." _Zuko noted. _"There were more than a few close calls when he kept changing his sword hand." _He looked at himself and at Naruto. Both of them were now panting, slowing tiring. The pants they wore had seen some damage. They had gone long sleeved pants to ragged shorts, which also displayed their legs to the single female members of the audience.

"Shall we wrap this up, Zuko?" Naruto asked. Zuko's response was to bend whips of fire off the edges of his Dao swords and swing them at him. He danced around, through and over the whips. Zuko then bent the whips to form into a circle of flame, trapping him. He leapt easily out of the fire but that was what Zuko wanted. As Naruto was airborne, he was breaking himself into his Yin and his Yang energies, and then bringing them back into one. As his opponent landed, he breathed lightning. It flew towards at Naruto, but as it turns out, he was ready. He took the stance that Zuko knew was the one for redirecting lightning. It struck his sword arm and traveled down into his stomach. He brought back up into his other arm and threw the lightning back at Zuko.

He was surprised, but he was able to recover. He took the same stance, let the lightning hit one arm and let it travel down into his stomach before bringing into his other arm and throwing it at Naruto again.

This time, he did something different. He took an Earthbending stance and took the lightning in his sword arm again. But once it came to his other arm, he didn't direct it at Zuko again. Instead, he slammed his hand onto the ground and discharged the lightning into the arena floor. The ground shook, causing cracks to appear in the arena floor and shooting up dust. It caused a smoke screen so no one could see what was going on. When the dust finally cleared, Naruto was kneeling on the floor with Zuko standing over him, the Dao swords resting their points on his neck and heart. However, Naruto's jian was also resting its point on Zuko's stomach.

The gong ranged again and Ozai stood up his chair. "This fight is a draw. Both combatants have proved themselves capable in the art of fighting. I applaud Prince Zuko for his use of Firebending and am also pleased to have seen the breath of lightning myself."

The crowd erupted into applause. Naruto and Zuko withdrew their swords. "Good fight, Zuko." Naruto said as Há and the other servant approached them with the sheaths. He handed his jian off to the servant, who took it without any hesitation and sheathed it. He bowed and walked away.

"Yes, it was." Zuko replied as he handed his Dao swords to Há, who sheathed them, bowed and walked away. "When did you learn how to redirect lightning?'

"I saw you practice the movements back in Ba Sing Se. Didn't realize what it was for until you breathed lightning at the ambush. I figured it out afterwards and also came up the variation you saw."

"What was that, by the way? I know it had something to do with Earthbending, given the stance, but that's it."

"Instead of redirecting the lightning at the opponent, I redirected it into the floor. I held my ground and grounded the lightning."

"You're going to have to show me how to do that later."

"Not a problem." He looked around the chamber and his face sprouted a look of panic. "Uh…Zuko, we should probably leave now."

"Why?" He asked, confused.

"We're hot, we're sweating, we're not wearing shirts, our pants are now ragged shorts, we've just finished a spectacular fight and every woman in the audience who is single are looking at us like we're the last two men on this planet and they want to pollenate like nobody's business."

Zuko looked at the crowd and understood immediately. Naruto's definition pretty much hit the nail on the head. All the single girls (teenagers and young women alike) were crowding the front of the stands, pure lust shining in their eyes. He turned back to Naruto. "Shall we run for our lives?" He asked in a calm, pleasant voice.

"Oh yes, let's." Naruto answered in the same voice.

The two of them ran out of the Agni Kai chamber with both frantic speed and energy. The ladies who were single chased after them. Eventually, they barricaded themselves inside Azula's private bathing room and didn't come out for the rest of the night.

(Location: Crescent Island)

Aang woke up and saw that it was morning. He also saw that Momo was licking his face. Sitting up, he saw Appa standing in the water and that Katara, Sokka, Toph and Akela were running towards him.

"You're okay!" Katara cried as she hugged him. The others soon joined, making it a group hug (even Appa and Akela joined in).

"I have so much to do." Aang said as they broke the hug.

"I know, but you'll have our help." She reassured him.

"You didn't think you couldn't get out of training just by coming to the Fire Nation, did you?" Toph asked jokingly.

"What about the invasion?" Aang asked.

"We'll join up with my dad and the invasion force on the day of the eclipse." Sokka told him. "And we also have to do something else."

"What's that?"

"Stand up, Aang." He did so and Sokka did as well. Then, to the surprise of everyone (except Akela), he rammed his fist into Aang's stomach, making him to collapse to the ground.

"Why did you do that?" He asked, trying to get his breath back.

"Because that was probably one of the most boneheaded things you have ever done! And because Kiba and the others weren't here to do it." He answered. "Don't give me that look, Katara. You know as well as I do that he deserved it." He said after seeing the glare on Katara's face.

"He's right, Katara. I shouldn't have done that. Sorry."

"Hey, what's…?" Toph began to say as she picked something out of the water. "Oh, it's your gilder." It was indeed Aang's gilder, ruined beyond repair.

Aang stood up again and took the gilder from her. "That's okay." He said as the others stood up as well. "If someone saw it, it would give away my identity. It's better for now that no one knows I'm alive." He flew up to a small ledge that stood over the flow of lava. He raised the staff, gave a last couple of spins before stabbing it into a small trail of lave.

He flew away to rejoin the others. Had he stayed a few seconds longer, he would have seen the staff catch fire and begin to burn. It was a small monument, one that said to the world that the Avatar was dead.

**End**

**Author's note: **Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

Yes, it wasn't Azula who trapped Zuko; it was Yāo Jing who trapped Zuko and Azula. This would only enforce the idea that they have to watch each other's backs.

Kori will be joining us for a little bit. Did you think that after Yu Dao I was going to leave her there until the whole colony crisis? Try again. Also, for those of you who think she is, Kori is not an OC. She is from the comic _The Promise_. I just brought her in a little earlier.

This is not the last time you're going to hear of Shiro Ryū. And yes, I know I used the James Bond quote, I did that on purpose. I plan to make him the Naruto world version of James Bond. Don't expect a lot of details right now. Remember, Naruto's still developing both him and the story.

The fight was partly inspired by the fight scene in _The Final Flight of the Osiris_, just not so erotically. And if anyone can figure out where the last lines that Naruto and Zuko said before running away came from, I'll give you a cyber-cookie.

As Aang getting punched, face it, he had that coming. There is no person in the world that abandons his friends to do something stupid and gets off with a group hug when they finally catch up with him. If anything, he would've beaten black-and-blue with no hug, whatsoever.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	21. Culture Clash and Visits

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 21: Culture Clash and Visits

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Royal Palace)

Zuko tossed and turned, trying to sleep. Realizing he couldn't sleep, he got out of the bed and grabbed a heavy cloak. He walked out of his room and down the hall, making sure that no one saw him. He left both the palace and the city, climbing over the rim. He made his way to the entrance of the prison.

He stopped and looked up at the prison itself. A guard walking on the balcony saw him. "Who's there?" He called, he only saw a cloaked person who walked away. Taking a last glance at the person, he resumed his watch.

(Location: Team Avatar)

A cloud flew through the air, flying over a couple of islands. "I think I see a cave below." Aang's voice came from within the cloud as it descended to the largest island there.

"Sssh! Keep quiet!" Sokka's voice ordered. The cloud floated down next to the cave and then dispersed, revealing Appa and his passengers. Sokka leapt down from the saddle, Akela alongside him. The wolf raised his head and sniffed the air. He did that for a few seconds before shaking his head at Sokka. He looked at the others. "Great job with the cloud disguise, but next time, let's disguise as the kind of cloud that knows how to keep its mouth shut."

"Yeah, we wouldn't want a bird to hear us chattering there and turn us in." Toph remarked.

"We're in enemy territory, Toph. If we're not careful, someone will take notice of us."

"Sokka, would you stop being paranoid?" Katara asked with slight exasperation.

He looked her straight in the eye. "The last time you told me to stop being paranoid, I did and we let the Fire Nation walk into Ba Sing Se and take it right under our noses." Both Katara and Aang flinched, as if Sokka's words had smacked them in the face.

"…Maybe we should get into the cave." Toph suggested.

They walked into the cave. "Well, this is it." Sokka announced. "We're going to be living like this for a while, just going from one cave to the next."

"We don't need to become cave people." Katara pointed out. "What we need is some new clothes."

"Yeah, blending in is better than hiding out." Aang agreed. "If we get Fire Nation disguises, we'll be just as safe as we would be hiding in a cave."

"Plus, they have real food out there." Toph pointed out from where she sat. "Does anyone want to sit in the dirt and eat cave hoppers?" She slammed her hand against the wall, making cave hoppers jump out of the wall. Momo snatched one and ate it before looking at the others. Akela looked at the lemur with slight disgust.

"Alright, let's get some new clothes." Sokka declared.

They eventually found clothes that were hanging out to dry outside a house. "I don't know about this." Aang said as they crouched behind a rock wall. "These clothes belong to somebody."

"I call the silk robe!" Katara shouted before jumping over the wall and running towards the clothes.

Both Sokka and Akela groaned at the same time. "By the Spirits, my sister is an idiot sometimes." Sokka swore.

"But if it's essential to our survival…then I call the suit." Aang finally said, keeping his voice down after Akela threw him a look and slightly bared his teeth.

They all hoped over the wall and ran between the hanging clothes, grabbing different articles of clothing. They all hid behind a different rock wall and started to redress themselves.

"Ta-da!" declared Aang after he tied a headband around his head, finishing his disguise. "I'm a normal kid."

Toph was already dressed but was looking down at her feet. "Hmm…I should probably wear shoes. But then I won't be able to see as well." She sat down and began to pull on the shoe. She forced her foot through the sole, sending flying (it would've hit Sokka, had he not ducked). "Sorry, shoes." She said. "Finally, a stylish shoe for the blind Earthbender."

"How do I look?" Katara asked them, coming back from changing. She had let her hair out of her braid and dressed in a red dress.

Aang scratched the back of his head, blushing. He then noticed something. "Uh…Your mom's necklace," He pointed.

"Oh…oh yeah," She saw what his was talking about and took it off. "I guess it's pretty obviously Water Tribe, isn't it?"

"Hey, Katara," Sokka said. "What part of 'we're in enemy territory' did you decide to ignore. You could've woken the person sleeping with your shouting. And don't even think about telling me to stop being paranoid." He told her as she was about to open her mouth.

"Hey, guys, let's calm down." Aang played peacemaker. "Let's just go into town and get our supplies."

"Alright," Sokka turned to look at Akela. "You're going to have stay with Appa while we're in town." Akela gave him a look that said "You cannot be serious." "I am perfectly serious. You're a white wolf, I think it's going to be pretty obvious where you're from if you come with us."

Akela looked at him and then looked back at the house. Before anyone could stop him, he trotted back over to the house. He stopped at a big pile of soot and jumped into it. After rolling over in the soot for a couple of minutes, he got out and trotted back to them. His pure white fur had turned into sooty black.

Sokka just looked at the wolf. "…I am buying you the biggest, juiciest bone I can find in town." He declared. Judging by the wolfish grin Akela had on and the speed his tail was wagging at, he approved.

(Location: Royal Palace, Training Yard)

"That was a good workout, Kori." Azula complimented as she sheathed her daggers.

"Thanks, Azula. I wasn't sure if I would be able to hold my own against you." Kori replied.

"I'm not a master with daggers, so you had an advantage."

"It wasn't much of an advantage." She looked around the training yard. "Funny, I thought that half-sister of yours would've been here before us."

"What? You mean Yāo Jing?"

"You did say she was a Firebender. Don't all Firebenders practice their Bending as the sun rises?"

"Most of us do. While Yāo Jing is a competent Firebender, she would rather fuss with her hair then practice."

"Hey, Azula!" called out Ty Lee as she and Mai joined them. "Where Naruto and those Sand people go?"

"Naruto had to visit one of the military bases on the outer islands, so he decided to take the Sand Siblings with him."

"Do we know when he'll be back?"

"He'll probably be back in a couple of days."

"…And you're not irritated that he's gone?"

"He doesn't have to be at my side all the time, Ty Lee!" She snapped.

"Oh come on, Azula. We know you 'like' him." She placed emphasis on the word "like".

She blushed. Feeling, a hand on her shoulder, she turned around and Kori standing behind her. "I approve." She said.

"Huh?" Azula asked; confusion evident in her voice.

"You have my approval to date Naruto."

"Who said anything about dating?" She half-shouted as her blush got redder. "Wait a minute, why do I need your approval to date him in the first place?"

"He is my big brother. I have to keep an eye out for him."

"He was never actually adopted by your parents." Mai pointed out.

"That doesn't matter. He's still my big brother."

"I don't need your approval, he's my bodyguard." Azula told her.

"Also add the fact you've already slept with him." Ty Lee added fuel to the fire.

"You what!?" shouted Kori.

"Not like that!" Azula tried to defend herself.

"She's literally slept with him, that's it." Mai said in a deadpan voice. "We know this because every time we find them, it's hard to wake her up. She'll usually tighten her grip and burrow her head into his chest."

Azula swung her head to look at her. "You walked in on us in Ba Sing Se!?"

"Yeah, we did."

"Okay, that's it! Come here, you two!" She lunged for Mai and Ty Lee.

"Where do you think you're going?" Kori demanded, leaping after her.

"Free-for-all!" cheered Ty Lee.

Mai just readied a knife.

(Location: Team Avatar)

They had gone into town and bought a few necessary accessories. Katara got a new necklace, Toph got a new headpiece and Sokka had gotten a top-knot piece. Aang hid Momo inside his shirt. "I used to visit my friend Kuzon here a hundred years ago." He told the rest of the group. "So, everyone just follow my lead and stay cool. Or, as they say in the Fire Nation, stay flamin'." He started to walk out onto the street.

"I've got a better idea." Sokka said, grabbing Aang by his arm. "How about we act like normal citizens and not sound like we're from a hundred years ago."

"Seconded," Toph agreed.

"It would probably be better." Katara said, outvoting Aang.

"Fine, let's go." He grumbled. They walked out onto the street and acted normal. Eventually, they stopped in front of a restaurant. "Oh, we're going to a meat place?"

"Everyone here eats meat, Aang. Even the meat," Sokka pointed to a hippo-cow eating meat.

"You guys go ahead. I'll just get some lettuce out of the garbage." He said after making a disgusted sound. They walked into the restaurant, leaving him alone in the street. He would've greeted everyone who passed by as hotman, except he could've sworn Akela was somehow watching his every move.

After a few minutes, he saw a couple of guards coming his way. "It's over." The lead guard said. "We caught you."

"Who, me?" He asked.

"It couldn't be more obvious that you don't belong here. The next time you play hooky, you might wanna take off your school uniform."

He looked down at his clothes before giving a nervous chuckle. The guard grabbed hold of him and took him away. They led him to a school and then shoved him into a classroom. As he regained his balance, he saw that every kid in the class was looking at him.

"Oh, is this a new mind ready for molding?" The teacher asked.

"That's right. Let the molding begin." Aang answered, knocking his head.

"Wait a minute." The guards who were leaving had stopped when they heard the teacher's voice. "Ah, you're not from the Fire Nation." She walked around him. "Clearly you're from the colonies."

"Yeah, the colonies, of course, the Fire Nation colonies in the Earth Kingdom," He quickly agreed.

"Your etiquette is terrible." She chastised him as the guards left. "In the homeland, we bow to our elders." She walked back to her desk. "Like this." She showed how to salute.

"Sorry, ma'am," He apologized before attempting a salute. He did it wrong and the teacher caught him on it. He glanced at one of the students, who quickly showed him how to do it correctly. He then saluted the teacher correctly.

"And we don't wear head coverings indoors." She pointed her stick at his headband.

"Um…I have a scar. It's really embarrassing."

"Very well, what is your name? Or should we just call you 'Mannerless Colony Slob'?"

He chuckled. "Just slob is fine. Or, uh, Kuzon," He said the last part like he was introducing himself to the class.

(Location: Military Base)

"Thank you for taking the time to visit our base, Lord Naruto." The commander of the base said, saluting him.

"Not a problem. I had to give a seminar and I got the excuse to show my friends around." Naruto replied. "I trust you'll be able to handle the troops now?"

"Yes sir."

"Then we'll be off." He and the Sand Siblings walked away from the base.

"Nice seminar there, Naruto." Kankurō told him. "I wasn't exactly expecting those practical demonstrations, though."

"If you want to convince a rookie soldier that he is not invincible, you have to deflate his ego and his pride."

"And so, you decided in the middle of the seminar to have eighteen of the rookie soldiers try to attack you at the same time." Temari said.

"It knocked them off their high horses, which was the point of the entire thing."

"What do you plan to do now?" Gaara asked.

"Well, we have a couple of days left before we have to go back to the capital. Why don't we just hang around the island?"

"You mean like a vacation from a vacation?" Temari asked.

"That sounds about right."

Kankurō shrugged. "We don't have anything else to do."

(Location: Fire Nation school)

The bell rang, signaling the end of the day. Kids walked out of their classes and into the courtyard.

Aang walked through the courtyard. "We made it through the day, Momo." He told the lemur hiding in his shirt. "And it was pretty fun."

"Don't let the headmaster catch you with that monkey." The girl who helped him said as she stood behind him.

He quickly hid Momo and turned around. "What monkey?"

"Don't worry, I'm not a tattletale. My name's On Ji. I like your headband by the way."

Before he could reply, an older student shoved past him. "On Ji, you don't have to babysit the new kid." He said, placing an arm over her shoulder.

"Wow, you must be one of those popular kids I've been hearing about." Aang said, after giving a quick salute.

"That's right. Now listen, 'friend'. I know you're from the colonies, so I'll say this slowly. On Ji is my girlfriend. Don't forget it." He poked Aang on the chest to emphasize his point. The shirt moved but Aang pushed the moving object down before giving an apologetic smile. Both On Ji and her supposed boyfriend walked away, but not before the boyfriend made an "I'm watching you" gesture.

"It was nice meeting you." Aang said, raising his hand in farewell.

Another boy ran up to him. "I don't believe it, he didn't beat you up. Not even a little." He said in wonder.

"I guess I'm just lucky."

"We were on our way to play hide and explode. You wanna come?" He offered.

"I'd loved to." He answered. He followed the group and spent the afternoon playing hide and explode (which is probably not good for your health in the long-term). Once night had fallen, he made his way back to the cave.

"Where have you been?" Katara demanded as he walked into the cave. "We've been worried sick."

"I got invited to play with some kids after school." He told her as he undid the headband. Momo leapt off his shoulder and landed next to Akela, who was chewing on a bone.

Sokka sprang up. "After what?!"

"I enrolled in a Fire Nation school, and I'm going back tomorrow."

"Enrolled in what?!" Sokka repeated before sitting down again. "He's an idiot, I swear, he's an idiot." He muttered to himself. Akela heard him and nodded in agreement.

(Location: Royal Prison)

The guard stood outside the cell. Hearing footsteps behind him, he turned around and leveled his spear. "You again?" He said as the same cloaked person he saw the previous night walked towards him. "Stop where you are!" The cloaked person raised his head, allowing the guard to see his face. "Prince Zuko…?"

Zuko grabbed the guard by the shirt and slammed him into the wall, making him drop his spear. "I'm going in for a visit. You're going to stand guard here, and no one is going to know about this." He released his grip on the guard and then walked into the cell. "Uncle, it's me." He announced, lowering the hood.

Iroh said nothing; he just turned his back to look away.

(Location: Cave)

"Aang, I'm trying to be mature and not immediately shoot down your idea, but it sounds…really terrible." Sokka stated bluntly.

"Yeah, we got our outfits. Why do you need to go to school for?" asked Toph, a slight disgust emphasized on the word "school".

"Every minute I'm in that classroom, I'm learning new things about the Fire Nation." Aang told them. "I already have a picture of Fire Lord Ozai." He held up a painting of the Fire Lord. "And here's one I made out of noodles!" He held up a second picture.

"While that is impressive, it's still too dangerous for you to go there." Sokka told him.

"I guess we'll never find out about the secret river then. It goes right to the Fire Lord's palace. We were supposed to learn about it in class tomorrow." He said, trying to be sly.

Sokka just look at Akela. "Could you bite him, please?" The wolf stood and lunged for Aang's arm, which he pulled out of the way with a yelp. "Don't try and fool me, Aang. If there was a secret river, why would they tell kids its location?"

"C'mon, Sokka, just a few more days, please?" He pleaded.

He gave a small groan. "Fine, but if we get noticed, we're leaving."

"Flamey-o, hotman!" cheered Aang before he ran out of the cave.

"Flamey-o?" repeated Sokka as he looked at Katara. She just shrugged.

(Location: Royal Prison)

Zuko stared at his uncle's back. "You brought this on yourself you know." He said. "We could've returned together. You could have been a hero!"

Iroh said nothing; he just shifted his weight and stared at the wall.

"You have no right to judge me, Uncle. I did what I had to do in Ba Sing Se, and you're a fool for not joining me." Iroh still just sat there. "You're not going to say anything?" When he didn't get a reply, Zuko destroyed a stool with a fire-enhanced punch in anger. "You're a crazy old man! You're crazy! And if you weren't in jail, you'd be sleeping in a gutter!" He stormed out of the cell, slamming the door behind him.

(Location: Fire Nation school)

The teacher walked into the classroom and the students stood up (one particular student stood up slower than the rest). "Good morning, class." The teacher said as she sat down in front of her desk. "Recite the Fire Nation oath."

The students turned to the back of the room where a painting of Ozai hung on the wall. They bowed their heads and saluted. "My life I give to my country, with my hands I fight for Fire Lord Ozai and our forefathers before him. With my mind, I seek ways to better my country, and with my feet may our March of Civilization continue."

Aang tried to follow the oath, but failed due to the fact he didn't know it. His attempt made the other students giggle and caught the attention of the teacher. "Since it's obviously hilarious to mock our national oath, we'll begin with a pop quiz on our great March of Civilization." She announced as the students sat back down. The students groaned but grabbed their paper and pens. "Question one: what year did Fire Lord Sozin battle the Air Nation armies?" Seeing Aang's raised hand, she looked at him. "Kuzon?"

"Is that a trick question?" He asked standing. The other students looked at him. "The Air Nomads didn't have a formal military. Sozin defeated them by ambush." His statement made the students look at him like he had grown a second head.

"Well, I don't know how you could possibly know more than our national history book. Not unless you were there a hundred years ago."

"I'll just write down my best guess." He quickly sat back down wrote down his answers. The class continued on and once they were down, they went to the music hall. He was given the tsungi horn. When the music started, he took a deep breath and began to play very loudly and badly, all-the-while doing a tap dance with his feet. The other people playing stopped and watched him.

"Kuzon?" asked the music teacher.

He stopped playing and saw that everyone was looking at him. "I know, I'm a terrible tsungi horn player."

"No child. About that hullabaloo going on with your feet, is that a nervous disorder?"

He looked at his feet and then back at the teacher. "I was just dancing. You do dances here in the homeland, right?"

"Not really, no." One of the students told him.

"Dancing is not conducive to a proper learning environment." The music teacher told him. "Young people must have rigid discipline and order."

"But what about expressing yourself?"

"I know sometimes we're so ruled by our love for our nation that we can't control our own bodies. If you must, you may march in place quietly next time the urge hits you." He waved his conducting stick and the others started playing again. Aang played a few notes while quietly marching before stopping completely, feeling somewhat dejected.

After the music class, they were let outside for break. As he walked outside, Aang could hear the other kids whispering about what he did. He stopped walking before he crashed into On Ji. "Hi, Kuzon," She greeted him. "I really liked that crazy dance you were doing."

"Thanks, On Ji. I could show it to you again if you like." He offered. A burst fire hit his books and surprised him.

"What'd you say, colony trash?" Hide demanded. "You're going to show her something?"

"Just some dance movements."

"Nobody shows my On Ji anything, especially movements!" He tried to attack Aang but he kept missing because the disguised Avatar kept dodging. The end result almost looked like a dance (key word: almost).

Hide tried to hit Aang with a haymaker, only to have his fist incased in sand. "That is enough." Everyone turned to look at who had spoken. Aang had a look of shock and surprise when he saw that it was Gaara.

"Who are you?" Hide demanded, glaring at him. "You're another one from the colonies, aren't you? Protecting your fellow trash, I see. Maybe I should teach you how to respect your betters."

"It would not be wise of you to attack me." Gaara replied.

"I don't want to hear it, trash!" He charged, swinging wildly. His efforts to hit Gaara were futile, as his opponent would lean to the side to avoid the punch, tilt his head or use his sand to block. Eventually, he had enough and used his sand to push Hide away, knocking him to the ground.

That was when the headmaster decided to make his appearance. "What is going on here?" He demanded as he helped Hide stand up.

"The new kid attacked Hide and then that stranger joined in!" One of Hide's flunkies cried, pointing at Aang and then at Gaara.

The headmaster looked at Aang. "Picking fights on your second day?" He asked rhetorically. "We need to have a conference to discuss your punishment. Bring your parents to my office after school."

"Parents?" repeated Aang. "But—"

"Don't be late!" He turned his attention to Gaara. "And you. You are going to be in a lot of trouble for attacking my star pupil!"

"That's funny." Naruto's voice rang as he joined them, Kankurō and Temari right behind them. "From what I saw, your 'star pupil' attacked a foreign head of state and a close friend of mine."

While Aang was having a panic attack, Hide sneered at Naruto. "Who in Agni's name are you?"

Naruto didn't even spare him a glance; he just looked straight at the headmaster. "And here I thought your school taught children how to respect their betters."

The headmaster bowed in apology. "I am sorry, my lord."

"You don't have to bow to him, sir." Hide said aloud. "He's a piece of trash."

"Quiet, Hide!" The headmaster barked. "You will be respectful. This is Lord Naruto, Paragon of the Fire Nation and bodyguard to Princess Azula!" Hide's sneer was replaced with a mixture of horror and shock.

"And this is Gaara no Sabaku, the Godaime Kazekage of Sunagakure, and his brother and sister, Kankurō and Temari." Naruto introduced them, before looking at Hide. "If he is going to be a part of the future of the Fire Nation, then the Fire Nation is doomed."

"What?!" yelled Hide, the look he wore turned from horror and shock to outrage.

"Kid, I can tell what your entire military career is going to be like just from your actions."

"Oh yeah, what's it going to be like?"

He just looked at the arrogant student. "Dead. Within a week. Killed by your own soldiers."

"You will keep quiet, Hide." The headmaster ordered as the student was about to open his mouth.

"So what actually happened here?" He asked aloud.

"Kuzon here offered to show me some dancing moves." On Ji said, pointing at Aang. "Hide overheard us and tried to attack him."

"Did Kuzan fight back?"

"No, my lord, he just avoided the punches."

"And your name is…?"

"On Ji, my lord," She introduced herself, bowing.

"Okay, number one: don't call me lord; it makes me sound like I have a stick up my ass." Giggling ensured around the courtyard. "Number two: is all that happened?"

She shook her head. "No sir. When…um…uh…" She looked uncertainly at Gaara.

"Just call him Gaara, kid. If you're feeling formal, call him the Kazekage."

"Oh, okay. When the Kazekage stopped Hide from attacking Kuzon, he tried to attack him."

"Yeah, we saw that part." He turned his attention to Aang. "When were you planning to show On Ji these dances moves?"

"What?" Aang squeaked out, feeling very nervous.

"You heard me, when were you going to show her the dancing moves?"

"A-after school, I swear!"

"Alright then," He turned to face the headmaster. "I assume that your 'star pupil' will be properly punished?"

The headmaster had a look of defeat as he bowed. "Yes sir."

"Why am I being punished!?" demanded Hide. "He was the one who was going to teach her dancing movements."

"He was going to do it after school." Naruto told him. "I can't fiddle with the rules of the education system; the Royal Flaming Asshole gets prissy if I try to do that. But if Kuzon was going to teach her the dance moves outside of school, then there is nothing the school can do." He looked the courtyard. "Now that's done and since I'm here, I've got a question for the kids here."

"What's that, sir?" On Ji asked.

He gave a goofy grin that made him looker younger. "Anybody up for a game of tag?"

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

"Orange is such an awful color." Mai stated as she and Zuko watched the sun setting.

He couldn't help but snicker. "You're so beautiful when you hate the world."

"I don't hate you." She told him.

"I don't hate you too." They kissed, but that was when they were interrupted when Azula cleared her throat.

"Zuko, could I have a word with you?" She asked.

"Can't you see we're busy?" He asked in reply.

"Please."

Mai stood up. "I'll leave you two alone." She walked away.

"So, you've been visiting Uncle in the prison tower."

He stood up. "Who told you?"

"You did, just now."

He sighed and sat back down. "Okay, you caught me."

"You need to be more careful. If people find out you've been to see Uncle, they'll think you're plotting with him."

"And then Yāo Jing will whip those people into a frenzy which she'll use to get me killed."

"Exactly, and it will take her one more step closer to the throne."

(Location: Cave)

"Okay, that's it. We're leaving!" Sokka declared after Aang told him what happened at the school.

"I'm not ready to leave yet." Aang protested. "I'm having fun for once, just being a normal kid. You don't know what it's like, Sokka. You get to be normal all the time."

"Ha, ha," Toph laughed. Sokka ignored her.

"Listen guys, those kids at school are the future of the Fire Nation. If we want to change this place for the better, we need to show them a little taste of freedom."

"What could you possibly do for them?" Sokka asked.

"I'm gonna throw them a secret dance party!" He did a little tap dance. The others just stared at him. Finally, Sokka walked up to him and smacked him across the back of the head. "OW! What was that for?!"

"I was making sure your brain was actually working."

"Sokka, I'm serious here."

"You were almost caught today, Aang! If Naruto had recognized you, we would've had the entire Fire Nation army coming after us!"

"But he didn't come after me. And it's not like he'll be there if we hold the party. Besides, we know that Gaara, Kankurō and Temari are alive."

"But now they're with him now." Toph pointed out.

"Asuma and the others told us that Gaara considers Naruto to be one of his closest friends." Katara said.

"And besides, Naruto seemed a little different." Aang said. He remembered the game of tag they played. Naruto didn't look like the person who had been after them. He looked like someone who was having fun.

"What do you mean?"

"I think there are things about the Fire Nation he doesn't like. He looked a little disgusted when he looked at Hide and the headmaster. And the way he talked about the Fire Lord, it sounded like he didn't hold him in high esteem. Maybe we can…"

"Maybe we can what?" Sokka asked.

"Maybe we can convince him to join us."

"…I'm sorry; I think I just heard something stupid. Could you repeat yourself?"

"You heard me, Sokka. If we can get convince Naruto to join us, Gaara, Kankurō and Temari would join us as well."

"Aang, have the past couple of months taught you nothing about Naruto?!"

"We can still try!" He replied stubbornly.

"Hey, back on the subject of the secret dance party." Toph said. "Are we still doing it?"

"Yes, we are." That ended the argument and they got to work. They light the cave up with a lot of candles. Toph bent the earth up into a stage.

"It seems so silly to have a dance party." Sokka said.

"Don't think of it as a dance party." Aang told him as he put on his headband. "But as a cultural event celebrating the art of fancy footwork," He did a little dance to emphasize his point.

Toph felt vibrations coming from her feet. "They're coming!" She announced. "Everybody stop bending."

Aang walked over to Appa. "Sorry, buddy. You should probably wait out back." The sky bison grumbled as it walked out the back door. "I know. You've got fancier feet then anybody, and six of 'em!"

Sokka looked at Akela. "You're going too. We're not risking someone petting you and finding the soot." He told the wolf. Akela just padded after Appa.

Aang noticed that the students had arrived, so he put on a smile. The student musicians took their places on the stage and started a tune. "Ladies and gentlemen, the Flamey-O's!" He announced in a loud voice. "This is ought to get everyone dancing." He said to himself, before turning around. Not one of the students was even moving.

"Now what do we do?" One of the students asked.

"This is when you start dancing." Aang told him, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"I don't think my parents want me dancing in a cave." A somewhat chubby boy said.

"Yeah, what if someone finds out!?" asked another student before running back into the crowd.

"Oh boy," Aang muttered, rubbing the back of his head. "Listen guys, dancing isn't something you think about. It's a form of self-expression that no one can ever take away from you."

"Maybe it was different in the colonies, Kuzon, but we don't do that here." The first student told him.

"Sure you do, you have for generations! It just so happens that I know several classic Fire Nation dances. A hundred years ago, this was known as the 'Phoenix Flight'." He got down low and started doing the movement, earning the kids' attention. "And this is the 'Camelephant Strut'." He went off into a different dance, which got a couple of girls to giggle. The boys were awed by his moves.

"Who knew Twinkle Toes could dance?" Toph asked Katara as they sat at a table.

Katara just smiled at his actions.

(Location: Royal Prison)

Zuko knelt in front of Iroh's cell, a basket of food in front of him. "I brought you some komodo chicken." He said as he pushed the basket into the cell. "I know you don't care for it but I figure it beats prison food." There was silence for a few minutes. "I admit it, I have everything I always wanted, but it's not at all how I thought it would be. The truth is, I need your advice." He gripped the bars. "I think the Avatar is still alive. I know he's out there. I'm losing my mind. Please, Uncle, I'm so confused. I need your help." Iroh remained silent. "Forget it, I'll solve this myself! Waste away in here for all I care!" He walked away from the cell. He opened the door and glanced back before leaving.

Iroh still said nothing. The only thing he did was shed a single tear.

(Location: Cave)

Aang did a front flip through the air and landed on his feet, getting applause from the audience. He grabbed On Ji and pulled her out onto the dance floor. "And this is how they do it in the ballrooms of Ba Sing Se." He started another dance, which On Ji soon joined in.

"They looked pretty good together." Sokka commented.

"Eh, if that's what you like." Katara muttered, looking away. However, she snuck a glance at them.

More kids started to join the two of them on the dance floor. "Yeah, that's it! That's the sound of happy feet." Aang said. Even more kids joined in. "Alright, go with that. Everybody freestyle!" And freestyle they did. Soon, some of the shyer kids joined in the dancing.

Katara just sat at one of the tables. Aang appeared in front of her and held out his hand, surprising her. "I don't know, Aang." She said, looking away nervously. "These shoes aren't really right for dancing, and I-I'm not sure I know how to—"

"Take my hand." He told her.

"Okay." She took his hand and he pulled her onto the dance floor. He whispered something in her ear. They bowed to each other, cross arms and began to circle one another. "Aang, everyone's watching." She told as the others had stopped dancing and were watching them.

"Don't worry about them. It's just you and me right now." His reply made her blush. They began to dance. While it was a dance, it also looked like a fight between Benders. There were quite a few spins, kicks, flips and twists in it. The audience watched in stunned amazement as they danced. When they stopped, they clapped and cheered.

Outside of the cave, the headmaster of the school arrived with guards. He heard the noise coming from inside the cave. "It _is_ a dancing party." He said. "You did the right thing by telling me, Hide."

"Anytime, Headmastersir," Hide replied with a salute.

In the cave, the dancing was going strong. "This is incredible!" The chubby student said as he danced. "It's like my inhibitions just disappear!" Then he and the rest of the students saw the headmaster and the guards. "Okay, they're back again."

The music stopped. "He's the one we want! The boy with the headband!" shouted the headmaster as he pointed at Aang. The guards charged forward, intent on grabbing him.

"Uh-oh!" yelped Aang before he ran into the crowd. The music started up again, faster. The guards plunged into the crowd of students. One of them reached for what he thought was Aang. "Gotcha!" He said, grabbing the student's arm.

"Looking for me?" The student asked, turning around. He had taken the school belt and wore it as a headband to fool him. The guard got confused and looked back at the headmaster.

"That's not the one." The headmaster said. "He's here somewhere. Don't let him leave the cave!"

The guards kept trying to find him, but they kept grabbing students who put on the headbands. Even the headmaster tried to find him. In the end, both he and the guards were surrounded by the students, all wearing headbands.

In the back, Team Avatar was leaving. Aang was the last to leave. Seeing a student wink at him, he returned it with a salute. He escaped through the back entrance and closed it with Earthbending, missing the student's stunned expression.

The headmaster and the guards had been trapped in the middle. "Stop that!" He ordered one of the guards as he started dancing to the music. "Stop that!" He ordered another guard as she tapped her foot to the beat.

"Oh relax; even guards need to enjoy themselves." Naruto's voice said. The music died as everyone stared at who was standing at the cave entrance. "But more importantly, what are you doing here?"

"Hide informed me that there was a dancing party that students of the school were attending. As you know, Lord Naruto, something like this is illegal."

"…You've never really read the rules about the education system, have you?" He asked, making the Sand Siblings smirk in unison.

"Excuse me?"

"A dancing party is illegal, that is true." The faces of the students fell. "But only on _school grounds_. And as far as I can tell, this is not school grounds. So you're out of line." The headmaster tried to come up with a reply, but could only splutter. "Just leave and take your snitch with you." He pointed to Hide. The headmaster scowled at him and marched out of the cave, the guards and Hide following him. Turning his gaze back onto the students, he saw that they were all looking at him. "What?"

"Are you going to tell us to go home now?" A student asked.

"Are you kidding? I just pulled your rear ends out of the fire." He looked up to the stage. "Mind if I come up there and play for a bit?"

The Flamey-O's got off the stage. "Do you need any help, my lord?" One of the musicians asked.

"Nah, I'm kinda of a one man band." He reached into a pocket and pulled put a scroll. "Knew this would come in handy one day," He said to himself.

"You can play music? When did that happen?" Kankurō asked; disbelief evident in his voice.

"I was bored one week. I figured that since I had the scroll and I knew how to use the **Kage Bunshin**, I might as well do something I always wanted to try."

"Wanted to try?" Gaara repeated.

"I always loved listening to music when I was little. It would make it seem that for a few minutes, there was nothing wrong with the world. After I graduated from the Academy, I spent most of my mission money buying second-hand instruments and fixed them. After I realized that my apartment was going to get crowded, I figured out how to create a Storage Seal and I put the instruments in it. But I never had the time to actually learn how to play."

"And so you took the scroll with you when you left?" Temari asked. He nodded and walked to the stage. Once he stood on it, he flashed a quick handseal. **"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."** He muttered. After the smoke had dissipated and he was surrounded by clones, he opened the scroll, rolling it out. **"Kai." **He said. Once again, the stage was covered in smoke. But this time, when the smoke cleared, the clones held instruments that, to the students, looked vaguely familiar but also very alien. The clones had taken an instrument and their own spot on the stage. "Let's begin."

(Start Naruto OST 1: Naruto Main Theme)

The song began to play. The kids didn't understand it at first, but as the song played and grew, they began to move with it. It was different from what they heard before. It had a different beat, a different flow. It was faster paced and louder. But that didn't stop them. If anything, it encouraged them to dance faster and faster. When the final chord was struck, they all cheered.

(End Naruto OST 1: Naruto Main Theme)

"Well, that wasn't too bad, was it?" Naruto asked the crowd. Their only response was to cheer louder.

"Play another one! Another one!" yelled out of the students.

"Are you sure?"

"YES!" They shouted in unison.

"Alright then," He signaled the clones. "Let's go a little slower this time."

(Start Path ~ to you all)

The song was slower and gentler. The students were surprised but began to enjoy it, especially when Naruto started singing.

_Kimi no kokoro e  
Kimi no kokoro e  
Todoke, todoke, todoke  
Boku no kokoro ga  
Kimi no kokoro e  
Toduku you ni  
Utayou…  
Daitai itsumo doori ni  
Sono kado wo magareba  
Hitonami ni magire komi  
Tokete kiete iku_

_Boku wa michi wo nakushi_  
_Kotoba suranaku shite shimau_

_Dakedo hitotsu dake wa_  
_Nokotteta nokotteta kimi no koe ga_

_Warau kao mo okoru kao mo subete_  
_Boku wo arukaseru_  
_Kumo ga kireta saki wo mitara kitto_  
_Nee wakaru desho?_  
_Nee wakaru desho?_  
_Aimai ni ikiteite mo_  
_Kokoro ga mijyuku demo_  
_Sore de ii hora soko ni wa_  
_Daiji na hito ga iru_  
_Kimi ga mayou no nara_  
_Boku ga michishirube ni narou_  
_Ato ha shinjireba ii_  
_Tashikameru sube wa motta_  
_Osore nai de_  
_Hikari atsume sora ni hanatte iru_  
_Kimi ni wakaru you ni_  
_Soshite ayumu michi wo_  
_Motto tera sou_  
_Doko made mo…_  
_Doko made mo…_  
_Doko made mo…_  
_Doko made mo…_  
_Kami koe kuchi yubisaki he todoke_  
_Ima dake demo ii_  
_Ima dake demo ii_

(End Path ~ to you all)

The song ended. When Naruto looked at the students, they were looking at him with varying levels of awe and wonder. "Was I really that bad?" He asked with mock worry. "Maybe I should get off the stage…?"

"NO!" The students shouted. "ONE MORE SONG! ONE MORE SONG!"

He laughed. "Alright, alright, I'll do one more song. Hey Kankurō, Gaara, get up here. I'm gonna need your help on this one." He called out as he made another clone. The two got up onto the stage and shared a quick, hushed conversation with Naruto. Then the clones started up again.

(Start Hero's Come Back!)

The song began to play. Much like the first song, it had a fast tempo and a fast beat. To the students, it sounded like it was encouraging them to dance, to express themselves. They decided to obey the song's wish. Then Naruto began to sing. At some points, Gaara, Kankurō and the clone would repeat a word or join in with the singing. They moved around some, so they could keep with the pace of the song and the energy of it.

_Tooku de kikoeru koe wo hitori  
Hitori mata hitori de chi agaru toushi  
Kurikaesu dake no fudan doori  
Itsu ga iku jumbi ii are you ready?_

_Karadajuu fuu no wa shinzou ni_  
_Hageshiku chi narase yo stomping_  
_Taeru tsuki wo ukasu call me_  
_Kawarisugiru ga nuki ka story_

_EVERYBODY STAND UP!_  
_Agero! Kyou ichiban no jikan da_  
_Me ni mo tomoranu SPEED HUNTER_  
_Daremo ga mina toriko kanban YEAH (COME ON!)_  
_EVERYBODY HANDS UP!_  
_Mata shita na HERO'S COME BACK!_  
_Zujou kazoe yubi oriru COUNTDOWN_  
_Iku ze 3-2-1 MAKE SOME NOISE!_

Kankurō then took the lead.

_HEY YO WHAT YOU GONNA DO? WHAT YOU GONNA DO?  
Taemanaku narihibiki kizamu  
DEJA VU yori mo gotsui shougeki ga  
Zenshin wo hashiri risan BREAK IT DOWN  
TURN IT UP (TURN IT UP) Hey kikoekka?  
Sakenda kino made no koto ga  
Kawaru darou madaminu asu he  
Koborete afureta omoi no bun made_

Gaara took over the lead.

_Machi ni matta SHOW TIME  
saitechiru shukumei  
Dochira ni katamuku shouhai no yukue  
Agura kaite Ryakon ni mo tsubureru  
Nagashita chito ase onore de nukue  
Negai mo PRIDE mo fukume subete wo seotta tagai no haigo  
Nasake wo kaketerya dame ni naru ze  
Tamote POTENTIAL MENTAL men_

Then the clone took the lead, but his voice was a different pitch then the original.

_Neko mo shakushi mo matte you na HERO  
Hitoban dake no goran, ROMAN hikou  
O-! ii ne sonnanjane- sa  
KICK ON THE CORNER mada tari nee ka?  
Itsumo to chikau hijou na jinkaku mamoru no sasubete  
LIKE A TERMINATOR  
4 kai, 5 kai de tatsu HIGHLIGHT (FLY HIGH, YEAH!)  
Issou kono bade tsutaetaruzo_

Then the four sang as one.

_EVERYBODY STAND UP!  
Agero! Kyou ichiban no jikan da  
Me ni mo tomoranu SPEED HUNTER  
Daremo ga mina toriko kanban YEAH (COME ON!)  
EVERYBODY HANDS UP!  
Mata shita na HERO'S COME BACK!  
Zujou kazoe yubi oriru COUNTDOWN  
Iku ze 3-2-1 MAKE SOME NOISE!_

Kankurō took the lead again

_Mou tashou no RISK wa kakugo desho  
Nankai korondatte tatsu (GET IT ON)  
Nareai ja nai ze kamihitoe no SESSION  
Irikunda kanjou kizukiagete kesshou  
MADE IN HUMAN no DRAMA no enchou  
Marude moesakaru yoshiwara no enjou  
ENDLESS saki mo korogaru nichijou  
Warau hodo baka ni narerutte koto_

Naruto took the lead again.

_Resseifuku mukaikaze nimo maken  
Makikomu nandomo dekuwashite kita ze  
Ikudotonaku tatsu konoba no BATTLE  
Tatakai kata nara kono mi ga satoru  
Ichiya niya no tsukeyakiba ja  
Mamoru mon ga chigau na shirohata wo buri na  
Hi no me akogareru hikage wo shiru  
Iiwake wa kikan sorekoso ga REAL_

The clone took the lead again.

_FIGHTO maido I'M PROUD  
Nani kara nani ma de mada ushinaccha nai zo  
YES ka NO janai itsuka kou warau  
Hanakara PATTO kimeru ikuze aibou_

Gaara took the lead again.

_Wakiagaru kansei ga yuuki to naru  
Tachiagareba ima ijou kurushimi tomonau  
Soredemo saigo wa kitto warau  
Subete sarau shouri to kansei_

And they sang as one again.

_EVERYBODY STAND UP!  
Agero! Kyou ichiban no jikan da  
Me ni mo tomoranu SPEED HUNTER  
Daremo ga mina toriko kanban YEAH (COME ON!)  
EVERYBODY HANDS UP!  
Mata shita na HERO'S COME BACK!  
Zujou kazoe yubi oriru COUNTDOWN  
Iku ze 3-2-1 MAKE SOME NOISE!_

_EVERYBODY STAND UP!_  
_Agero! Kyou ichiban no jikan da_  
_Me ni mo tomoranu SPEED HUNTER_  
_Daremo ga mina toriko kanban YEAH (COME ON!)_  
_EVERYBODY HANDS UP!_  
_Mata shita na HERO'S COME BACK!_  
_Zujou kazoe yubi oriru COUNTDOWN_  
_Iku ze 3-2-1 MAKE SOME NOISE!_

(End Hero's Come Back!)

When the song finally ended, the cheers and the applause they got were almost deafening. "Thanks guys!" Naruto told Gaara and Kankurō. "That was exactly what I needed." The four of them bowed to the students. "Okay, that's it for us. This is your party, so you kids play and have fun! That's an order!" He told them as he resealed the instruments and dispelling the clones.

"Yes sir!" The students replied, giving him a salute with mock formality. He got off the stage and the Flamey-O's got back on. They started up again and did their best to get the crowd back to that same level of freedom.

Naruto and the Sand Siblings just stayed in the back and played crowd control for the rest of the party.

(Location: Team Avatar)

Appa flew out of the back of the cave and into the night. "We're safe." Katara announced.

"Hold on." Sokka said as he over the edge.

"What?" Aang asked.

"I just Naruto and the Sand Siblings go into the cave. We might want to go a little faster." Appa had seemed to have heard him because he picked up the pace.

"Way to go, dancey pants." Toph congratulated Aang. "I think you really did help those kids, you taught them to be free."

"I don't know, it was just a dance party, that's all." He replied.

"Well, that was some dance party Aang." Katara told him, kissing him on the cheek and making him blush.

"Hey, Sokka, what's the matter?" He asked as he saw Sokka still looking over the side of the saddle.

"We got lucky back there." He simply stated.

"Don't worry Sokka. Naruto should able to see what we're trying to do if we talk to him."

"Don't get your hopes up; otherwise you might be getting a big disappointment." He replied as they flew through the night.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

Zuko walked down the street in the harbor. Night had fallen and the darkness cast shadows everywhere, making it look like the place you wouldn't go visit after dark. Not without a purpose. He arrived at the spot, lowered the hood of his heavy robe and waited. Soon, he heard a heavy foot and the clank of metal. Turning around, he saw the man he was looking for. "You sure you weren't followed?" He asked the man, who stayed silent. "I've heard about you. They say you're good at what you do and even better at keeping secrets. The Avatar is alive. I want you to find him and end him."

The assassin didn't say anything, he didn't have to. His metal leg, metal arm and his tattoo of a red eye said enough.

**End**

**Author's note: **Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

Yes, Aang seems to think that if he talks to Naruto, he'll come over to their side. This is why that boy would never last in an actual school. He would be eaten alive within five minutes. Don't worry, that will be taken care of later.

Now before you get all prissy about what I did at the dancing party, I never exactly said what instruments were being used. If you got a problem about what I did, just shut up and go with it.

About Naruto liking music, the way I figure it is he must've done something other than pranking people, especially when he was alone. Music has a way of making you forget what's going. It's just you and the song, nothing else matters.

Now, I'm going to say this one more so I can my point across. Only original Zanpakutō will be used. There will be no using Zanpakutō from the Bleach series itself. Those of you who want me to give them ones from the series like Ichigo's Zanpakutō or Renji's Zanpakutō or even Aizen's Zanpakutō, my answer is this: no, no and HELL NO! STOP BUGGING ME ABOUT IT, IT'S NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!

If anyone can tell me where I got the idea for Akela and the soot, I'll give you a cyber-cake. Here's a hint: Disney.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	22. Purge and Save

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 22: Purge and Save

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Avatar)

Appa swam down the course of a river that was infested with brown sludge. While Sokka, Katara, Toph and Akela were on Appa, Aang and Momo were playing in the water (once again, he proves that he's an idiot). "Momo!" He called out, popping out of the water. As the lemur flew towards him, he went under the water again. "Oh Momo!" He called out again from a different spot. He went under and popped out of the water a third time, but this time Momo landed on his head. "You found me, buddy!" He said, laughing. He leapt out of the water and back into the saddle. "Hey guys, I think this river's polluted."

"What tipped you off?" Sokka asked as he looked at the sludge-covered Avatar. Aang was about to Airbend the sludge off when he said "Hey! Turn around and do that!" Aang turned around to face the river and bent the air to send the sludge back into the river.

"It looks we'll need to go somewhere else to get food." Katara noted as she looked at the river.

"That's fine, so long as we don't take too long doing it." He noted as he looked at a local map and his journal, which held the amount of days left until the invasion.

"Hey, maybe we can get food there!" Aang said, pointing forward. Up ahead was a village, sitting in the river.

(Location: Royal Palace)

"Is there anything that must be done today?" Azula asked as she readied herself for the day.

"Nope, you're free to go see them." Naruto told her as he stood at the doorway.

"Truth be told, I feel bad for not going to see them earlier."

"But now you are going to see them. They'll be happy to see their big sister, of that I'm sure." The two of them walked out of the room.

"Azula!" called out Ty Lee. "Where are you going?" She asked as she, Mai, Kori and Zuko caught up with them.

"I'm going down to see a few people." She answered.

"When do you go to see people?' Mai asked, completely deadpan.

"It happens!"

"She's going to the orphanage." Naruto told them.

"You mean the one that has the kid who tried to steal from you?" Ty Lee asked.

"You mean Spunk? Yeah, I am."

"Why is he named Spunk?" Kori asked.

"The boy has lots of it." Naruto answered. "You guys gonna come?"

Mai shrugged. "I'm bored."

"You're always bored, Doom and Gloom."

"Don't make me eviscerate you."

"We've had that talk already. You've tried and failed."

"What about Gaara and the others?" Kori asked.

"They're sleeping off last night."

"What happened last night?" Zuko had to ask.

"They decided to gamble a bit and also decided to drink as well."

"Wait, weren't you there last night as well?"

"Yeah, I was."

"Then why aren't you sleeping off last night?"

"I was just watching and occasionally played referee."

"Played what?" Azula repeated; a look of confusion on her face.

"It's kinda hard to explain."

"Weren't we going somewhere?" Mai asked pointedly.

"Then let's go!" Ty Lee said with a big grin. They walked out of the Royal Palace and down to the city. They walked onto the street where the orphanage was and saw something that they didn't expect.

"What in the name of Agni is going on?" Azula asked aloud as they looked on.

(Location: Team Avatar)

"Now you look like a little hill with horns." Aang said after he covered Appa with moss. "Bye, buddy!"

"Akela, you're staying too." Sokka told the wolf. "We're not risking it." Akela just nodded in agreement, padded underneath the ledge and sat down. Aang, Katara, Sokka and Toph left the animals (two covered and one keeping watch) and walked away.

"I don't feel anything." Toph said as they stood on a ledge overlooking the river. "Where is the village?"

"It's in the middle of the river." Sokka told her.

"Sure is!" A voice below them announced. They looked down and saw an old man standing on a ferry. "My name's Dock. Mind if I ask who you are?"

"We're…um…from the Earth Kingdom colonies." Katara answered after she shared a look with the others.

"Wow…colonials. Hop on; I'll give a ride into town." They boarded the ferry and Dock used his pole to push the ferry across the water.

"Why do you guys live on the river?" Katara asked.

"Because we're a fishing town," Dock answered. "At least that's how it was before the factory moved in." He gestured over to the factory, which was belching out black smoke and dispersing the sludge into the water. "Army makes their metal there. Moved in a few years ago and started gunking up our river. And now our little village is struggling to survive." Aang and Katara shared a look of worry as the ferry came into the village.

"Thanks for the ride." Aang told Dock as they walked off.

"Look at this place. It's so sad." Katara stated as she looked at the village and its inhabitants. "We have to do something to help."

"There you go again." Sokka muttered.

Unfortunately for him, Katara heard him. "What was that?"

"We have a bigger mission we need to stay focused on. These people are on their own." He turned around and started to walk away.

She grabbed him by the shoulder. "These people are starving! But you'd turn your back on them? How can you be so cold and heartless?" She demanded.

"I'm being realistic. We can't go around helping every rinky-dink town we wonder into. We'll be helping them all by taking out the Fire Lord."

"Hey, loud mouths!" shouted Toph, covering Sokka's mouth with her hand. "Maybe we should be a little quieter when we're talking about 'taking out the Fire Lord'." She took her hand off his mouth.

"Come on, Katara, be reasonable about this." Sokka told his sister. "You know our mission has to come first."

"I guess so." She finally admitted.

"Let's just get what we need and go." Aang said. They all agreed and kept walking. They came across a market vendor.

"Hey Dock. You work here too?" Sokka asked after ringing the bell and seeing the vendor.

"I'm not Dock. I'm Xu!" The Dock look-alike introduced himself, a different hat on his head. "Dock's my brother."

"But we just saw you. You're even wearing the same clothes. The only difference is your hat." Aang pointed out.

"Dock works on the docks. That's why we call him 'Dock', and I work in the shop, that's why they call me 'Xu'!"

"…I don't get it."

"Me neither!" He dropped beneath the counter and brought up a box. "What can I getcha?" He asked. The box was full of fish and clams. But they were grey and looked like they would kill you as soon as you took a bite. "Hey, I'll give you a special deal. If you pay three fish, I'll throw in a clam for free."

Sokka touched one of the clams and drew his hand back after seeing brown sludge come out. "We'll just take the fish." He said, grabbing three fishes. "Mind telling your brother we need a ride back to shore?"

Xu took the fish, wrapped them in packaging and gave them to Katara. He then dropped below the counter and popped back up wearing Dock's hat. "Hey colonials, my brother says you need a lift." He jumped over the counter and began to walk off. They followed him when a child ran up to Katara and grabbed her arm.

"Can you spare some food?" He asked her.

She looked at him with sadness in her eyes. Taking a fish out of the package, she gave it to the child. "I wish I could help more." She told him. He gave a quick bow and ran off with the fish. She watched him go back to his mother before walking away.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

The orphanage was in the midst of being torn down. "What is this?" Naruto demanded in a quiet, dangerous voice.

"Hey! You kids can't be here." One of the construction workers said when he saw them. "You need to leave."

"I want to speak to the foreman. Bring him here now." Azula ordered.

"Look lady…" The worker started to say when he heard the sound of Naruto slowly pulling his jian out. "Alright, alright, I'll go get him." He walked off.

"Um…I'm guessing that this isn't what it was last time?" Ty Lee asked.

"What tipped you off?" Azula snarled.

The foreman came back. "Prince Zuko, Princess Azula, may I ask why you're here?" He asked them as he bowed.

"What is going on here?" Azula demanded.

"What do you mean, Princess?"

"Why is that orphanage being torn down?" She pointed at the building.

"It's being torn down so that a spa may be built."

"Who ordered that? The orphanage was funded by the Royal Family."

"Lady Yāo Jing," He answered.

"_Of course," _Azula, Zuko and Naruto thought. "Where are the orphans who were living here?" Naruto asked the foreman.

"I'm not sure, truth be told."

"Well then go find them!" Azula yelled at him.

"There's no need for that, sis. We're right here." A boy's voice said behind them.

"That you, Spunk?" asked Naruto as they turned around to see the orphans.

"No, it's the Avatar." Spunk replied with obvious sarcasm.

He smiled. "As usual, you live up to your name."

"Why have you guys been living?" Azula asked, walking over to them.

"Where do you think?"

"Watch it, Spunk. You took them onto to the street?" She gestured to the other three.

"I had to." He replied. "That foreman kicked us out before they started construction."

"What happened to the new owner?"

"He never came." One of the orphans, a girl with a rag tied around her eyes, said as she clung to Spunk's side. "We kept getting messages saying that something had come up and that the owner will be there soon."

"What happened to the other orphans, Doll?" Naruto asked her gently.

The other two (twins, a boy and a girl) snorted in unison. "Some got lucky and got adopted." The boy said.

"The others ran off into the streets and joined up with any gang that would take them." The girl said. "Those cowards left us."

"Skid, enough." Spunk told her. "You and Slide need to stop being angry at them. They made their choice."

"Well, what are we going to do now, Spunk? He's already half-destroyed our home!" Slide pointed at the foreman.

"Please stop fighting." Doll pleaded.

They all stopped and looked at the blind girl. "Sorry, Doll." Skid apologized.

Azula looked at the foreman. "You will stop your work until me, my brother or the Fire Lord says otherwise. Is that understood?" The look on her face told the foreman to agree unless he wanted a lightning bolt where the sun doesn't shine.

"Perfectly clear, Princess," He replied with a slight fear in his voice. He turned around, walked back to the construction crew and began barking orders.

"As for you four," She said, turning back to face the orphans. "You're coming with us."

"What?" Spunk said, surprised.

"You will be staying with us until we can sort this all out." Naruto told him.

(Location: Team Avatar)

They had set up camp for the night. Aang and Toph stood over a barrel of sludge water. Aang bent the water out of the jar and Toph bent out the sludge. He then bent the water over to Katara, who bent it into a cauldron that had a fire going underneath it.

"Okay, we've lost a day in the village." Sokka said as he dipped a bowl into the cauldron and filled it with water. "But thankfully, we're still on schedule."

"Oh goody," Toph said with dry sarcasm.

Katara took a bowl of water for herself and sat down. "Hey, Sokka…" She began to say.

"No." He cut her off.

"But—"

"No."

"You're not—"

"No."

"You don't even know what I'm going to say!"

He looked at her. "You want us to stay an extra couple of days so we can help out the town, right?" She didn't say a word. "Katara, we're on a schedule. Granted I may not have written it out to exact detail, but it's still a schedule. We're leaving first thing tomorrow morning, no complaints." Katara's face turned downcast when she heard those words.

They all ate their food and went to sleep. The next day, Aang woke up to see Appa on his side, groaning. "What's the matter, Katara?" He asked the Waterbender as he jumped down from where he had been sleeping.

"I think Appa's sick." She replied, standing in front of the sky bison.

"You've got to be kidding." Sokka announced as he got out of the saddle. "How can he possibly get sick?"

"Probably from the polluted water," Toph suggested.

"He doesn't look sick." Aang noted. "You okay, buddy?" Appa just groaned. "His tongue is purple, that can't be good." He announced after pulling out said tongue. "Katara, can you heal him?"

She looked at the tongue. "It looks like he needs some medicine. Maybe we can find the right herbs in town." They all agreed and headed back into town.

"Is it just me, or does this place seem different?" Toph asked.

"Yeah, are the people…happier?" Aang asked. The villagers did seem to be more joyful. Kids were running around, playing games. They walked up to Xu's stall.

"Hey, Xu, what's going on with everyone today?" Sokka asked him.

"Something amazing happened last night." Xu replied. "Food was delivered to our village by a mysterious and wonderful person…the Painted Lady."

"The Painted who now?" asked Katara, confused.

"The Painted Lady," He repeated, showing them a statue of the person. "She's a part of our town's lore. They say she's a river spirit who watches over our town in times of need. I always thought she was just a legend, until now."

"See, we don't need to help these people." Sokka told his sister as they watch the villagers. "They already have someone to help them." He turned to look at Xu. "All we need is medicine for our sick friend."

"Medicine?" repeated Xu. "Sorry, all the medicine we have goes to the factory. That's why there are so many sick people in our village."

"Looks like we need to stay another night so Appa can rest," Katara said.

"I guess you're right." Sokka said, sighing. "You got any more food to sell?" He asked Xu.

"Would you like the one headed fish or the two headed fish?" He held up the two fish.

"One headed, less gross that way." He took the fish.

(Location: Royal Palace)

"Father, I must talk to you!" Azula announced, barging into the throne room, Naruto behind her.

"What is it, Azula?" Ozai asked.

"Why did you allow Yāo Jing to order the orphanage that I had backed demolished?"

"Your sister pointed out the fact that the land the orphanage sat on could be used for something better."

"A SPA is something better!?"

He frowned. "She failed to mention that part."

"_I wonder why."_ Naruto sarcastically thought to himself.

"**You could that woman hostage by her hair." **Kyuubi noted.

"_I hear that."_ He looked at the Fire Lord. "So you're just going to let Yāo Jing demolish an orphanage, making the orphans who were living there try to survive on the streets, just so she can spend even _more _hours on her hair?"

Ozai scowled at him. "Do you have a better idea for the building?"

"Last time I checked, that wasn't in my job description."

The room was silent. "…The orphanage will be destroyed, and unless a better idea is given, Yāo Jing will have her spa." The Fire Lord stated. "You have until the end of the week. That is all." Azula bowed and left the throne room with Naruto on her tail. They walked out into the corridor and saw Yāo Jing standing against the wall. When she saw her, Azula all but snarled at her.

"Temper, temper, little Azula," She said mockingly. "What's wrong? You didn't get what you wanted?"

"You knew that orphanage had my backing. _You knew_ and you still went and had it destroyed. Do you not realize how many kids you put out on the streets?"

She gave a harsh laugh. "It doesn't matter. Who cares about them? They're nothing but little street rats."

"I'd be careful about your words, Yāo Jing." Naruto said. "If the Fire Lord hadn't taken you in, _you_ would've been a street rat." She snarled at him and drew back her hand to punch him. "Temper, temper, Yāo Jing," He told her in the exact same mocking tone she used. "If you try to attack me, I'll kill you and say it was self-defense."

"No one would ever believe you."

"Are you sure? I think people would be more inclined to believe Princess Azula's bodyguard, who has also distinguished himself in battle and is also the Fire Nation Paragon, rather than the illegitimate daughter of the Fire Lord, especially when his _legitimate_ daughter will back me up."

She looked over at Azula, who showed nothing on her face. "One day, Naruto, one day you will bow in submission to me." She lowered her fist.

"I bow only to my Princess, no one else. Get lost." He ordered her. She walked away with angry steps. Both Naruto and Azula did the same, just in the opposite direction. They soon came back to the room where the Sand Siblings were using. The orphans were also in the room.

"Well?" Spunk asked.

"I'm sorry; the orphanage is going to be destroyed." Azula told them. "The only thing we can do is make sure that it doesn't become a spa."

"It's better than nothing, I guess."

"What's going to happen to us now, big sister?" Doll asked, worry in her voice.

"Right now, you're staying as my guests." Azula said.

"Yeah, that's going to work." Skid retorted.

"It might." Slide argued.

"Come on, four orphans living as the Princess's guests? We'll be kicked out in two weeks, if we're lucky."

"That's provided you don't steal anything, of course."

"I'm sorry; I wasn't the one who tried to steal from that baker two days ago!"

"No, you were the one who tried to steal money off that one noble and had the guards come after us. We lost almost all the money we made because of that!"

"ENOUGH!" Both Spunk and Naruto thundered at the same time. The twins fell silent as they looked at the two of them. They shared a look and Naruto gestured for him to speak.

"Look, it doesn't matter what's going to happen to us. Let's just be thankful we've got a roof over our heads." Spunk told them.

"But Spunk, you know what we were going to use that money for!" Slide protested.

"I said enough, Slide. We lost the money. That just means we'll have to start over."

"What was the money for?" Gaara asked, bringing everyone's attention to him.

"That's none of your business." Skid told him curtly.

"Skid, please." Doll said.

She looked at the blind girl. "Doll, that money was for you."

"He just wants to know what we were going to do, that's all."

"Skid has a point." Naruto said. "It's their money. We have no business asking what it's for." He looked at the orphans. "For now, let's make sure they get some food in their bellies." All four of them brighten up at the prospect of food.

(Location: Team Avatar)

A mist floated over the water towards the village. Riding on top of the mist was a woman dressed in robes and a veil covered hat. She reached the edge of the town and stepped onto the wooden platform. She entered the house and saw the sick people sleeping there. She began to heal them, one by one. The last one she healed was a woman. Her son slept next to her. He awoke to see the woman heal his mother and walk away. He got out of the bed and went after her. "Thank you, Painted Lady." He told her as she walked to the edge of the bridge. She gave a brief nod and then leapt onto the water. The boy tried to look for her, but she has disappeared into the mist.

The next day, Aang, Sokka, Katara and Toph walked back into the village and towards Xu's stand. "Hi, Dock." Sokka greeted him. "Is Xu around?"

"Let me check." He said. He walked around the back of the stand, whistling merrily. When he ducked down, Xu came up. "Hey there! Back again, are ya?" He asked, coming back into the stand.

"We need more food." Toph told him, pushing Sokka out of the way. "Our friend is still sick and we can't leave without him."

"Oh, well, that's too bad." He took the money and handed them a bowl of clams. "Maybe if you guys are lucky, the Painted Lady will visit you in the night and heal your friend."

"And maybe she'll cook us a midnight snack and we'll all have a sing-along." Sokka said sarcastically.

"Yeah, maybe," He replied, completely missing the sarcasm. "You know, last night she visited us again. Healed most of our sick folks."

"Is that why this place seems so festive?" Aang asked, looking out at the town. Kids were running around, having a good time, while some of the other villagers were putting up a statue of the Painted Lady.

"Yep, it's all because of the Painted Lady."

"Can you believe how much an entire village can be affected by one lady?" Katara asked. "I mean…spirit?"

"Well, I hope she returns every night." Sokka said. "Otherwise this place would go right back to the way it was."

"Why would you say that?" She asked him. "Look how much better off these people are."

"Yeah, now, but without her they wouldn't be able to fend for themselves. If she really wanted to help, she would use her spirit magic to blow up that factory."

"Yeah, she could do that!" Aang chimed in before making silly noises and imitating the factory blowing up. Katara just huffed and stomped away. She walked towards the edge of the pier and looked out at the factory.

That night, when everyone was asleep, Katara rose from her sleeping bag. She stuffed grass into it to make it look like there was someone still in there. She then grabbed a nearby cloak and put it on. After that, she knelt in front of a small pool of water. Bending it up against a nearby rock and freezing it, she used it as a mirror and began to apply the paint. She placed the hat on her head and began to move towards the village.

However, her walking managed to wake Momo, who woke up Aang in the process of jumping off Appa. "What's the matter, buddy?" Aang asked as Momo watched the figure disappear. "It's her!" He leapt off Appa's leg and went after her. "Hello, Painted Lady Spirit!" He called out after tying on his headband. Katara stopped, took a quick look back and started to run. But Aang decided to go after her, using his Airbending to help him. "Excuse me! I don't mean to bother you, but my friend's sick and we're on a schedule." She paid him no mind as she made her way across the river. "Wait! But I'm the great bridge between your world and mine!" He went after her, bending ice to form stepping stones to get across the water. "I know Hei Bai! We're close, personal friends!" They ran through the village, Katara on the ground and Aang over the rooftops. "Heeey!" He called out. But he didn't look where he was going and ran into a pole.

Katara took one quick look back but kept running. She made through the village and onto the other side of the river. She hid behind a cluster of rocks and took one last look at the village. Thinking she was safe, she took a sigh of relief. That's when Aang showed up again, hanging upside down from the rock. "My name's Aang, I'm the Avatar." He introduced himself, raising his headband and showing her his headband. She made sure to keep her face obscured.

"Well, hello Avatar." She greeted him in a fake voice as he landed on the ground. "I wish I could talk, but I am very busy."

"Yeah, me too," He muttered. "I hate that." He looked closer at her. "You know, you're really pretty for a spirit. I don't get to meet too many spirits, but the ones I do meet, not very attractive."

She gave a nervous laugh. "Thank you, but—"

"You seem familiar too." He noted, trying to look under the hat.

"A lot of people say that."

"No, you really seem familiar."

"Look, I really should get going." She pulled down the hat and started to walk away. Annoyed that he was just being waved off, Aang flicked a blast of air at her. It blew off her hat, revealing who she was. She quickly grabbed the hat and put it back on.

"Katara?" He asked, surprised.

"Hi, Aang," She said, turning to face him.

"You're the Painted Lady?" He asked, pointing at her. "But how?"

"I wasn't her at first; I was just trying to help the village. But since everyone thought that's who I was anyway, I guess I just kinda became her." She explained, taking off the hat.

"So you've been sneaking out at night? Wait, is Appa even sick?"

"He might be sick of the purple berries I've been feeding him, but other than that he's fine."

"I can't believe you lied to everyone, so you could help these people."

"I'm sorry; I know I shouldn't have…"

"No, I think it's great! You're like a secret hero!"

"Well, if you wanna help, there's one more thing I have to do."

Aang grew confused, so she took him to the bottom of the factory, where the pipes were spewing out the sludge. "You wanna destroy this factory?" He asked, just to be sure.

"Yes. Sokka was just kidding, but he was right. Getting rid of this factory is the only way to help these people permanently." They ran into the factory and then split up. Katara bent her water to cut off the chains that held the barrels of molten iron, dropping them to the ground and spilling the contents. Aang poured another barrel empty, using gloves to protect his hands. He then leapt into the middle of a pipe system and used Earthbending to break the pipes.

Katara stood over a balcony. She bent the water out of a glass tank and flooded the place. All of these actions caused the factory to start exploding, destroying it. As the two of them ran away, the black smoke died away and the sludge stop coming out of the pipes.

(Location: Royal Palace)

Zuko couldn't sleep, so he got out of the bed and started to wander the palace. When he walked through the Royal Gallery, he heard a noise behind him. "Who's there?" He called out, turning around.

"It's just me!" Doll squeaked, scared. "I got lost."

"Doll, what were you doing outside the room?" He asked her, walking up to her.

"I was thirsty, so I went to find something to drink."

"You went by yourself?" She nodded nervously. "I thought you were blind."

"W-well, I am."

"Then why did you go alone?"

"I didn't want to bother the others. Plus, I…um…"

"What?"

"I'm…uh…can you keep a secret?" He nodded. "I'm a Firebender."

"Why is that a secret? Surely the others know of this."

"They do, but they don't know what I can do with my Firebending."

"Why?"

She was quiet for a couple of moments. "…Because I don't want them to think I'm weird."

"Weird?"

She nodded. "If I show them what I can do, what's stopping them from thinking I'm a freak? I don't want them to hate me!"

"They care about you, Doll. Why would they collect money for you if they might possibly hate you?"

"I…I guess you're right."

"What was the money for?" He asked, genuinely curious. The question had been bugging him, but he did not ask until now.

"For a long time, most of the orphans in the orphanage had been taking money. I don't know whether it was from jobs or they stole it, they never told me. They hid it from the owner to make sure he never took it. They told me that I didn't belong in the orphanage or even on the streets if it came to that. They said that I deserved better."

"What were they going to do?"

"They told me that once they were done collecting the money; they were going to use it to send me to one of the lower classes in the Royal Fire Academy for Girls."

"How long were they doing this?"

"For three years. But I had planned on refusing to go."

"Why?" He couldn't really understand. The Royal Fire Academy for Girls was the best place for a girl to receive an education. Even one of the lower classes was better than the typical school.

"Because I'm terrified of what will happened to the others, now even more so. If I leave them, what will happen to them? They've been risking their lives so that I can go somewhere better? I don't want that, not if they'll get killed because of me."

"They've been risking their lives so _you _wouldn't have to live on the streets, Doll." He told her gently, kneeling down in front of her. "They don't want to see you sitting on a street, begging for money or food. You're like their little sister and they're willing to do anything to protect you."

She gave a sad smile. "And yet, I keep a secret from them. I'm a horrible little sister."

"Then tell me your secret." She scurried over to him and whispered in his ear. His eyes went wide when he heard what she had said. "You mean you can…?" She nodded. "Do you think you could teach me this?"

"I don't know, maybe?"

"Then come with me." He stood up and took her hand.

(Location: Team Avatar)

Aang and Katara walked back to the camp as the morning came. Aang laughed and imitated the factory blowing up. "Shhh!" Katara shushed him. "We don't want to wake Sokka." Unfortunately for them, Sokka was already up. Akela, Toph and Momo were up too. "Hi, Sokka, we were just out on a morning walk."

"A morning walk?" He repeated before holding Katara's sleeping bag upside-down and dumped out the grass. He dropped the bag and turned around. "We're leaving."

"Um…isn't Appa sick?" Katara asked, hopeful that Sokka didn't realize that bit.

"Akela, are you sick?" He asked, turning back around to face the wolf. Akela just opened his mouth and showed his purple tongue. "What about you, Toph? You not feeling well?"

"Nope, I'm good. I just had some of these berries." She replied, holding up the bag of berries and showing her purple tongue as well. Momo reached for the berries and started eating them.

"Katara, what you did put our whole mission in jeopardy. We're leaving right now." Katara walked past him with a downcast expression. "And how long did you know about this?" He asked Aang, giving him the hairy eyeball.

"Hey, I just found out this morning." Aang told him before moving quickly away. They all started packing up when they heard a noise coming from the river. Running quickly to the edge, they saw soldiers from the factory riding on jet skis towards the village.

"What's going on?" Toph asked, she couldn't see the river due to her blindness.

"Fire Nation soldiers are heading to the village." Aang told her.

"What did you do?!" Sokka asked Katara, his tone demanding.

"I…kind of destroyed their factory." She told him hesitantly.

"You WHAT!?" He half-shouted at her.

"It was your idea!"

"I was joking! I also said to use spirit magic!" He smacked his forehead. "Did you even think this through? The army is going to blame the villagers. They're headed there right now to get revenge."

"Well, what was I supposed to do?"

"Leave! Do nothing!"

"NO! I will never, _ever_ turn my back on people who need me. I'm going down to the village and I'm gonna do whatever I can." She stood up and began to walk away.

He sighed and stood up. "Wait. I'm coming too."

"I thought you didn't want to help."

"You need me and I will never turn my back on you. Besides, I'm the one who usually cleans up the mess you make."

"You didn't have to put it like that."

"It's true and we both know it." He started to walk down to the village. "Come on, I've got an idea."

Meanwhile the soldiers had reached the village. "I thought we could live as neighbors, in peace." The leader said to the villagers. "But I guess I was wrong. You steal our food, our medicine, and then you destroy our factory."

Dock popped out of the crowd. "We didn't do any of that." He said. He dropped back into the crowd and Xu popped out in a different spot. "Yeah, the Painted Lady brought us food. She's the one who healed our sick, not you medicine."

"Oh, right, the mysterious Painted Lady did it." He held up a statuette of her. "And I suppose she drew the army emblem on your containers too." He smashed the statuette. "This is a town of thieves and liars!" He set a house ablaze. "Where's your Painted Lady now?" He asked the villagers. They said nothing; they could only look at the fire in shock. "We're going to cure the world of this wretched village."

Two soldiers got back on a jet ski and started to circle the village. The soldier on the back threw a chain at one of the beams supporting a house. They drove past, causing the beam to snap and the house to fall into the river.

Meanwhile, two soldiers set a flammable case tied to a buoy on fire. But before they could do anything else, a gust of wind came out of nowhere and put the fire out. Somewhat perplexed, they lit it again, but another gust of wind came and put out the fire.

"Light it again!" The leader ordered. They did so, but this time the wind put out the fire before it could take hold.

"Look at that, where's it coming from?" The female soldier asked.

"I don't know." The male soldier replied. "Something strange is going on." A fog began to roll in towards the village. They could also hear flute music that sounded almost eerie and a deep growling sound.

"It's the Painted Lady." One boy said. "She's coming."

"There is no Painted Lady." The leader snapped. They began to hear a thumping noise, almost like footsteps, that went off in rhythm. If one was to go past the fog, they would see Toph bending a boulder up and down, making the thumping noise. Appa stood next to her, making the growling noise. Sokka sat on a ledge, playing the flute and Akela sat on his haunches, waiting.

"What is that sound?" The female soldier asked as the fog encircled the village.

"Maybe it is her." The male soldier said. As the fog cleared from the other bank, the flute, the growl and the noise all died away. Instead, they heard the howl of a wolf as they saw the Painted Lady (AKA Katara), standing on the other bank. When the howling died away, she surged forward on the water and leapt onto the dock.

"Do something!" The leader ordered, pushing the other soldiers forward.

They approached her cautiously with swords drawn. All she did was look at them and a gust of wind blew off their headbands. Freaked out, they ran away. If someone wanted to know how she did that, all they had to do was look down at the dock. Aang was hiding underneath and used a cracked in the dock to use his Airbending.

"Stand your ground!" The leader ordered. The Painted Lady walked forward a few steps and stopped. She looked over at the jet skis. She bent the river to send them up high and then into the side of the cliff, destroying them. Then all she had to do was raise a hand against the soldiers and most of them ran to the jet skis, leaving the leader alone. "I'll take care of you myself." He declared, taking a Firebending stance.

The two of them had a stare down. He acted first by bending an arc of fire at her. Aang saw this coming and took a deep breath. As the fire was about to hit Katara, he bent a large dome of air beneath her, sending up into the air. He then destroyed the dock with Airbending, sending the soldier flying into the river. As he broke the surface and gasped for breath, the Painted Lady appeared in front of him, standing over the water,

"Leave this place and never come back." She ordered him. He started to swim away until a soldier driving a jet ski pulled alongside and let him get on. She watched with a somewhat amused expression as they drove away.

As Sokka rowed the boat that he and Toph were in to the village, the villagers were cheering for the Painted Lady as she landed back on the dock. "I knew you come." The boy from earlier said.

"Thank you." Dock told her as someone from the crowd shouted that she was the best. "Me and my brothers really owe you a lot." He looked closer at her. "Hey, wait a minute. I know you. You're not the Painted Lady. You're that colonial girl!"

Stunned, Katara touched her face and then looked at her hand. The paint was smudged and had easily come off.

"Yeah, you're the lady that gave me a fish." The boy said.

"You've been tricking us!" Dock accused her. "You're a Waterbender!" The crowd got angry when they heard that little piece of information. They began to get closer to her when Sokka stood in front of her.

"Maybe she is a Waterbender, but she was just trying to help you." He said, making them stop. "Because of her, that factory won't be polluting your river and the army is gone. You should be down on your knees and thanking her."

"Sokka, it's okay." Katara told him. She walked forward and took off the hat. "I shouldn't have acted like someone I wasn't and I shouldn't have tricked you." She addressed the crowd. "But I felt like I had to do something. It doesn't matter if the Painted Lady is real or not. Because your problems are real, and this river is real. You can't wait around for someone to help you. You have to help yourself."

"She's right." Dock agreed. "But what should we do?"

"Maybe we can clean the river." Toph said from the crowd, using a lower voice.

"Yeah, we can clean the river!" The crowd loudly agreed with the statement. "Thank you. You know, you're not so bad for a Waterbender." He told Katara.

"You wouldn't mind keeping that a secret, would you?" Sokka asked.

"No problem, keeping my mouth shut is a personal specialty. My brother Xu on the other hand, ooh, he's a blabbermouth." Sokka just groaned and smacked his head.

"So, Dock, are you gonna help us clean?" Katara asked.

"No, ma'am," He answered. "I'm going to get my other brother, Bushi. He loves cleaning rivers." Then, in front of them with no thought about it, he just switched hats. "Alright, I'm Bushi! Let's get some river cleaning done."

"Aha, I knew it!" declared Aang. "I knew you were the same guy, the shop owner and the boat guy."

"Oh, you must be talking about my brothers, Dock and Xu."

"No, I just saw you! You switched hats and called yourself a different name!"

"Oh, you know who does that? My brother, Dock," He leaned closer. "He's crazy." He told them before chuckling.

Aang had a look of extreme annoyance when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Just go with it, Aang." Sokka told him.

Everyone got aboard boats and went to work cleaning up the river. Katara, Toph and Aang helped by using their bending. Katara pulled out the water and placed it in a tank while Toph and Aang put the sludge onto a boat. They spent the day like this and as the day went on, the river was getting cleaner and cleaner.

(Location: Royal Palace)

"Father," Azula greeted Ozai as she, Naruto, Zuko and the orphans came into the throne room. "I believe I have found something more useful for the land where the orphanage is."

"Have you now?" He asked.

"Yes. Instead of a spa, have them build a Firebending dojo instead."

"Oh? How is that any better than a spa?"

"If we build the dojo, we can train new Firebenders to harness their Bending. We would also teach them how to help the Fire Nation with their Bending."

"The idea has merit." He agreed. "Very well, the building will become a dojo."

"Thank you, father," She bowed before him and took a step back.

"Father, I have something to ask of you." Zuko said, stepping forward.

"And what would that be, Prince Zuko?"

"I would ask that you would do something for each one of these orphans." He pointed to Spunk, Skid, Slide and Doll.

"Why would I do that?"

He gestured for Doll to come forward. "This girl has something she wishes to show." He took a step back.

Doll bowed to him. "Greetings, Fire Lord Ozai."

"What is your name?"

"My name is Doll and I am a Firebender."

"Yet you are blind."

"Yes, sire."

"What do you wish to show me?"

She took a deep breath to steady herself. "Using my Firebending, I have managed to create a way to see, my lord." The other orphans were stunned at what she had said.

"You have used your Firebending to overcome your blindness?" He repeated. "Continue."

"I could only learn the basics of Firebending, sir. So I tried to use them to overcome my blindness. I eventually managed to redirect my inner energy into my eyes. As a result, I could see the world through the heat of others."

"Then you will not mind if I put what you say to the test." The flames around him grew bigger, almost like they enveloping him. "Can you see me now?"

"Yes, my lord. I can also see the servants standing in the corners, waiting for your orders, and the guards standing in the shadows."

"Father, when she told me about this ability, I had asked her to teach me it." Zuko said, stepping forward. "She has spent the night doing so. I do not have the grasp she has of it, but I too can see the servants and the guards."

"And how would this benefit the Fire Nation?" Ozai asked them.

"Think about it, Ozai." Naruto spoke up. "If she can teach this ability to other Firebenders, we wouldn't be so handicapped at night. We'd be able to see what was coming and be ready for it. Our defenses would be better prepared if an attack at night occurred."

He thought it over. "What would you have me do for them, my son?" He asked Zuko.

"I want you to have Doll placed in the Royal Fire Academy for Girls. As for the others, have them placed in the care of the 41st division. That way, they'll be taken care of."

"Very well, I will do these things, but on two conditions. First, before she can enter the Academy, this child must teach her ability to the teachers there. Second, once the others are of age, they are to join the 41st."

"Sir, we'll become officers if you want us to." Spunk spoke up. "We just want Doll to have a better life then the streets."

"Then consider these favors given. You may go." They all bowed and left the throne room.

"So…how long have you been able to do that?" Skid asked Doll.

"For about a year now," She answered. "Do you guys hate me?"

"Hate you? Why would we hate you, Doll?"

"You mean…you don't hate me?"

"I'm pretty sure that's what my moron of a twin sister said." Slide answered.

Skid turned to look at her twin brother. "I'm a moron? You're the idiot!"

Before the argument could even start, Spunk whacked them over the heads. "Knock it off." He ordered them.

"Look, you four." Azula said. "Be glad for what just happened. Your futures are now safe. Doll's going to the Academy."

"That's true, but we were also kinda hoping that she would be adopted as well." Slide said.

Doll put a reassuring hand on him. "Don't worry, Slide. Maybe one of the teachers there will adopt me, or another family. And I don't have to worry about the other girls teasing me because I have big sister Azula to keep me safe."

"I won't be there all the time, Doll." Azula told her. "You'll have to learn how to stand up for yourself."

"Come on, Azula." Naruto told her. "Let her enjoy the fact that big sister will scare away the bad guys."

She gave a warm smile (one of the very few times she did that). "I never said that I wouldn't do it."

(Location: Team Avatar)

It was dark and most of the team was sleeping. Katara walked to the edge of the river and put her hands into it, feeling the water. Fog began to curl around her hands. She looked up and saw the actual Painted Lady. **"Thank you." **She simply said, before fading away into the mist.

Katara was surprised, but then wore a smile on her face. She then heard a noise behind her. Turning around, she saw her brother walking up to her. "Sokka, I thought you were asleep." She said.

"I was waiting for the others to go to sleep." He told her. "We need to talk."

"What do you mean?"

"Katara, I know you wanted to help the villagers. But what you did was completely and utterly stupid. If we hadn't caught the soldiers off guard, we probably would have gotten captured and possibly killed."

"What do you want say? That I'm sorry?"

"No, I'm going to give you this one warning. You pull something like this ever again and I will have Appa fly you back home so you can act like a child there."

"What? You wouldn't do that!"

"If it ensures the safety of the group, yes I would. Are we clear?"

She was about to voice another argument, it died down when he looked at her. Standing under the light of the moon, she didn't see who her brother was, she saw what he was going to become. She saw a warrior, a leader, a man who would have to make decisions and live with them, whether they were good or bad. Above all else, she saw the Paragon of the Water Tribes. "Yeah, we're clear."

"Then get some sleep, I'll take watch." He told her. She walked back to the camp.

"Wasn't that a bit harsh?" Dock asked, walking up to Sokka.

"It had to be." He simply answered. "What are you doing out here, Dock?"

"Oh, I'm just out here visiting my aunt."

"Your…aunt?"

"Oh don't play around, boy. You saw her, same as me and your sister."

He thought about it until it made sense. "Wait…I thought you said the Painted Lady was a river spirit."

"Well, that was her cover before she died. I just helped maintain it over the years."

He narrowed his eyes at him. "You're not as crazy as everyone thinks you are, are you?"

He chuckled. "What do you think?"

"Those names you use, they're not your real name, not any of them."

"Oh, I don't know. They suit me when I need them."

"…What _was_ your name?"

He stiffened a little, gave a tired sigh and took off his hat. "My name was Raka, from the Northern Water Tribe. And my aunt was your predecessor."

He touched the medallion underneath his shirt. "You mean she was…?"

"The Water Tribe Paragon before you? Yes she was."

"What was she doing in a Fire Nation village?"

"She was in hiding."

"Who was she hiding from?"

"…I'm afraid that's not my story to tell. And it's not yours alone to hear. You best be going back to your camp now."

"Yeah, you're right." He turned around and started walking back to the camp. He stopped and looked back. "Hey, Raka, if you ever see her again, tell her I'm sorry I couldn't learn from her."

"Don't you worry; I have a feeling she already knows." He pointed the edge of the river. Once again, the Painted Lady stood over the water. But this time she looked different, her skin was darker and her eyes were blue. But she still wore the dress, the hat and the makeup.

Sokka turned to look at her. He then did the only thing he thought appropriate. He bowed to her, like a student bowing to his teacher. "My lady," He said in voice of respect. She simply smiled before disappearing again. When he looked up, Dock had disappeared too. He turned back around and walked back to the camp.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

Before you start telling me that Sokka shouldn't have been harsh to Katara, I must point out that what she did was pretty stupid. If the soldiers had caught them, they would've been in a lot of trouble. So Sokka has a right to chew her out.

Now odds are that they are going to be people out there that are going to complain about me taking out the master schedule. I'm sorry, but no one in real life is that anal. The only two people I can of being that anal are Sheldon Cooper from _The Big Bang Theory_ and Arnold Rimmer from _Red Dwarf_.

Sorry if Gaara and the others were in this chapter a lot. I just didn't really need them.

For the heat vision, I would like to thank the reviewer Remzal Von Enili. Due to our discussion, we figured out the ability for heat vision. I wanted to make it sound like any Firebender could learn how to do it, instead of having a special kind of fire (like some stories I've read).

Now, for those of you who are wondering why I made the Painted Lady the pervious Water Tribe Paragon. I wanted to give her a little more depth than just a river spirit. Also, Dock helped add to that depth, given the fact that he kinda looks like he's from the Water Tribes and everyone thinks he's nuts. I just used those two things to my advantage. That story he was not going to tell will come back much later in the story.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	23. Teach and Learn

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 23: Teach and Learn

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Avatar)

It was night and a meteor show was happening. Aang, Sokka, Katara and Toph were watching the shower. "Wow, this is amazing to watch." Katara said.

"Kind of makes you realize how insignificant we are." Sokka mused.

"Eh, you seen nothing once, you've seen it a thousand times." Toph said with boredom. She couldn't see the shower due to her blindness.

There was a brief flash of light and they saw one of the meteors come flying down from the sky. "Oh man, you've never not seen anything like this." Sokka told her as he, Aang and Katara stood up. The meteor flew over their heads and crashed somewhere behind a hill. They quickly saddled up and flew towards the smoke.

"The fire is gonna destroy that town!" Katara announced as they flew down to the fire. The meteor had crashed into a field next to a small town. The crash site had been set ablaze.

"Not if we can stop it!" Aang declared. Appa landed next to the fire and Aang, Sokka, Toph, Momo and Akela got off.

Katara took Appa's reins. "There's a creek over here." She pointed to said creek. "I'll bend the water onto the fire." Appa flew off.

"Toph, let's make a trench to stop the fire from coming any closer." He told the blind Earthbender. The two of them ran towards the fire.

"What am I supposed to do?" Sokka asked.

"Keep an eye on Momo and Akela!" He shouted without looking back.

"Oh great, I'm an animal-sitter."

Toph and Aang ran up to the fire and bent the earth to split apart, forming a trench. They then bent the trench wider, cutting off the room the fire had to grow. The action caused small flames to fly out of the main fire and land near Sokka and the animals, who put them out (Sokka got one while Momo and Akela got the others).

Appa flew down over the creek and Katara bent a large amount of water up out of it. She flew it over the fire, letting some drizzle out to minimize the fire. Meanwhile, Toph was using Earthbending to flip a piece of the trench's bottom over and over again, putting out the fire's edges.

"Sokka, stand clear!" Aang shouted out as he took the rest of the water from Katara.

"Right, stand clear, got it." Sokka muttered as he stood up from where he sat and walked away, carrying Momo. Akela padded behind him. Unfortunately, Aang didn't bother to wait. He used both Waterbending and Airbending to expand the water. The deluge hit both Sokka and Akela (Momo flew skyward when he saw it coming). The deluge expanded into a dome of water and then exploded, extinguishing the fire and turning the rest of the water into snow.

"Good work, everybody." Aang congratulated them.

"Yeah, great job," Sokka said after popping his head out of a pile of snow. Akela did the same thing right next to him. "You couldn't have waited five minutes?"

"Oops, sorry about that," He apologized with a sheepish grin.

"Just help us out of this." His face had a brief look of both pain and surprise before he glared at the wolf next to him. "Hey, watch where you put those paws, Akela!"

(Location: Royal Palace)

"Prince Zuko?" Há said as he walked into the room. "I have the latest reports from the front."

"Thank you, Há." Zuko replied. "Put them right there." He pointed to a spot on the table he was sitting at.

"Here you are, sir." He placed the papers down. "…sir, may I ask a question?"

"Go ahead."

"Why are you reading the military reports? I thought the war was over."

"Just because we took Ba Sing Se doesn't mean the war is won. If anything, it'll keep the war going."

"But why are you reading the reports, sir?"

"I had fought in the war for brief amount of time. I couldn't keep track of what happened during my exile, so I'm catching up."

"Will you take an active part in the war, sir?"

"I'm not sure yet, but…" He stopped talking as he looked at the report in his hands. He put the report down and picked up another. He grabbed the first report and compared the two before looking the map of the Earth Kingdom on the table.

"Is everything alright, sir?"

"Há, I want you to arrange a meeting with General Shinu. There is something he should know about."

"Yes sir, I'll see to it immediately." He bowed and walked out of the room.

(Location: Royal Prison)

The warden opened the door to Iroh's cell. He walked to the cell, dropped the bowl of food in his hands to the ground and kicked it past the bars, spilling its contents. Iroh rushed over and began to eat the food off the ground. "Look at you." The warden said. "You're just a fat, disgusting old man. You do nothing, you say nothing, you just eat and roll around in your own filth like a pig. You're a disgrace." He spat into the cell and walked away, closing the door.

Once the door closed, Iroh gave a small smile and sat back up, eating like a normal person.

(Location: Team Avatar)

Aang brought a tray of food to the table. "These people have no idea how close they were to getting toasted last night." He noted.

"Yeah, the worst thing about being in disguise is we don't get the hero worship anymore." Toph said. "I miss the love."

"Yeah, yeah, woe is you." Sokka muttered from where he sat on the steps.

"What's your problem?" Katara asked him. "You haven't even touched your smoked sea slug."

He looked at the sea slug and noticed Akela was trying to go for a bite. "Hey! Keep your paws and your teeth off my slug!" He ordered the wolf. He sighed and looked back at the group. "Look, all you guys can do amazing things and I can't. There are days where I feel like I can't do anything."

"That's not true." She reassured him. "No one can read a map like you."

"I can't read at all." Toph chimed in.

"Yeah, and who keeps us laughing with sarcastic comments all the time?" Aang asked him. "I mean, look at Katara's hair, right? What's up with that?" He held up a bang of her hair.

"What? What's wrong with my hair?" She asked insecurely, taking back the bang.

"Nothing, I was just trying to…" He tried to explain it, but couldn't find the right words (you never can in that situation).

"Oh great, I'm the team's wise-cracking pack mule." Sokka said. "You know, you're just proving my point."

Katara walked over and sat down next to him. "I'm sorry you're feeling so down, but I hope you know that none of us see you that way." She thought something over. "I know something that'll make you feel better."

"You do?" He asked, a little curious. She simply had everyone finish their meal and then led them to a weapons store. Sokka looked at her. "I love you." He said before heading into the store. "Maybe something to reinvigorate my fighting style," He muttered to himself. He grabbed a pair of nun-chunks and gave it a couple of practice swings. Shaking his head, he put them back.

Katara tried on a pair of gloves. "What do you think?" She heard Aang ask behind her. She turned around and saw him in some of the most overdone armor she had ever seen. "Pretty slick, huh?" He asked her.

"_More like ridiculous."_ She thought to herself. "Well, it's…something."

"Thanks. All I need to complete the outfit is a wind sword."

"What's a wind sword?"

"It's where I get a sword handle and then I just swing this around and bend air out like a blade." He swung the handle around and made a few whooshing noises.

"Yeah…nice."

The weight of the armor finally got to Aang. He tipped over and crashed into the ground, despite Katara's attempt to catch him. "I'll just stick to what I got."

Meanwhile, Sokka was trying an assortment ofweapons. But whatever he tried, he could never get a feel for it. As he fiddled around with a sai (which included picking his teeth with it), he saw a jian hanging on the wall. He wasn't an expert, but even he could tell this was a beautiful piece of work. "That's what Sokka's talking about." He said as he closely examined the jian.

"You have a good eye." The shopkeeper declared as he walked over. "That's an original from Piandao, the greatest sword master and sword maker in Fire Nation history. He lives in the big castle up the road from here." The others had gathered to hear what he had to say before he walked away.

"That's it!" Aang suddenly said. "That's what you needed all along, Sokka."

"A sword?" asked Sokka, a little confused.

"Not the sword, a master." He clarified as Sokka took the jian of the rack and held it in his hands. "We all had masters too help us get better. You should see if you can study with Piandao."

"That's a great idea." Katara chimed in. "I could've never gotten to where I am without Master Pakku."

"He trained me too, you know." Sokka remarked.

"Not the point and you know it. What I'm trying to say is that everyone needs a teacher."

"I learned from badgermoles." Toph said. "They don't talk but they're still good teachers."

"It would be nice to be a master swordfighter." He mused as he drew the jian and inspected it. "Alright, I'll talk to him."

(Location: Royal Prison)

Iroh lay on his back, looking at the light coming in through the window. Without warning, he began to do sit-ups, grunting in effort as he did.

(Location: Royal Palace)

He heard the door open. "General Shinu." He greeted the man as he entered the room, saluting.

"Prince Zuko." The general returned the greeting and the salute. He looked at the table. "I see you've been keeping track of the war."

"Once you've been in it, you can't ignore it."

"Indeed. What is that you want to tell me?"

"Have you read the latest reports?"

"Yes, the generals and the Fire Lord have agreed that the movements of the Earth Kingdom troops are heading in the direction of Ba Sing Se. We have ordered the nearby troops and ships to be ready for them."

"There won't be anything waiting for them."

"What?"

"They're not heading for Ba Sing Se. In fact, they're going the other way. They plan to hit the colonies, to be specific, Akawan, Kouzan and Yu Dao."

"And what makes you think that?" His voice held a little curiosity. He knew about Zuko's actions during the Siege of Akawan. The Fire Lord had called the generals into the throne room and told them what had happened. That was one of the very few times Ozai spoke of his son with a proud smile on his face. While the other generals expressed polite disbelief behind the Fire Lord's back (nobody was stupid enough to express it to his front), he was willing to see if the prince would live up to the reputation.

"Look at this map." Zuko told him, gesturing to the map. "One of the previous reports said that troops still couldn't find Full Moon Bay. In that same report, it said that General How had managed to escape imprisonment and flee Ba Sing Se. Being a general on the Council of Five, he would know about Full Moon Bay."

"What exactly are you trying to get at, Prince Zuko?"

"Full Moon Bay is just outside the Si Wong Desert. If someone walks into that desert, they're practically gone until they come out again, and that can be anywhere. Also, General How is practical. He knows that retaking Ba Sing Se won't stop the war. It's a symbol and that won't end the war. So he'll go after the colonies, the essential ones."

"How will he do it?"

"He's already begun. He's marching troops in the direction of Ba Sing Se. But instead of going there, he'll have them swing down to where ships or boats will be able to pick them up and sail into Full Moon Bay. From there, he'll march his troops into the Si Wong desert, where we'll lose them."

"Our forces will be scattered if we try to send troops after him." He acknowledged.

"Coming out of the desert," He continued. "I suspect he'll first hit Kouzan, then Yu Dao and finally Akawan."

"Wouldn't he hit Akawan first?"

"I had thought that would be the case at first. But then I realize that if he managed to capture it, he would probably use it to mount an attack on the Fire Nation. He will want to take Akawan last so he can make sure that the other two colonies are nonoperational."

"But why would he attack those three colonies out of all of them?" He knew the answer and he knew Zuko knew he knew, but he wanted to test him.

"Like I said before, the General is practical. Those three colonies are essential to supporting the army. Kouzan has the raw supplies. Yu Dao is the refinery. And Akawan is the port. Take any one of those and you will hinder the army. Take all three and you will cripple it. Something tells me that General How will want to cripple it with a passion almost holy."

"What do you think we should do to counter this?"

"Have every Fire Nation soldier south of the Serpent's Pass reinforce those three colonies. It might be risky, leaving the other colonies open to attack. But it is a risk we would have to take."

The general was silent. "I hope you understand that I'll have to check all of this myself."

"I just wanted to inform you of this, not tell you and then order you to take it straight to my father."

"And I thank you for that consideration." He bowed to the prince and walked away. He stopped at the doorway and turned back around. "Prince Zuko, if I may ask? How did you manage to see all this?"

"Pai Sho and a game of hide-and-seek," He answered cryptically.

"I beg your pardon?"

"…I had lived with my uncle and his Pai Sho set for three years and he always told me that Pai Sho was more than just a game. I think I'm beginning to see what he meant."

"And the game of hide-and-seek?"

"Naruto tried to teach me, Azula, Mai and Ty Lee a lesson with the game. He tried to teach us how to always look underneath the underneath."

"I…see. By your leave, Prince Zuko," He bowed again and left the room.

(Location: Sokka)

He stood in front of the gates of Piandao's castle. He took hold of one of the knockers and banged it. When no one opened the door, he knocked again. Finally, he grabbed both knockers and banged them repeatedly.

The gate opened and a man appeared. "Can I help you?" He asked.

Sokka was surprised but recovered. "I've come to train with the master." He answered formally.

"You should know the master turns almost everyone away. What did you bring him to prove your worth?"

"Um…" He wore a look of confusion.

"Right," He shook his head. "Let's get this over with." He opened the gate a bit more and allowed Sokka to come in. He then closed the gate and led Sokka into the castle. He took him to the room where Piandao was practicing calligraphy.

"Master, my name is Sokka and I wish to be instructed in the way of the sword." He introduced himself.

"Sokka," Piandao repeated. "That's an unusual name."

"It's actually a fairly common name in the Fire Nation colonies." He explained hurriedly.

"Let me guess. You've come hundreds of miles from your little village, where you're the best swordsmen in town. And you think you deserve to learn from the master."

"Well, actually I've been all over this side of the planet."

"Yep, here we go."

"And I know one thing for sure." He got down onto his knees. "I have a lot to learn."

"You're not doing a good job of selling yourself."

"I know. Your butler told me that when I met you, I would have to prove my worth. But the truth is…I don't know if I am worthy."

"Hm, I see." He put down the brush, took his sword and stood up. "Well then…let's find out together how worthy you are. I will train you."

Sokka had a big smile on his face. "Thank you, master."

"Fat will give you more appropriate clothing. Once you have changed, meet me out back." He walked away.

The butler led him to a room and gave him some clothes. He changed and followed Fat out to the back of the castle. "I'm here, master." He said as he stood across from Piandao.

"Very good," He replied. "The first thing you must learn is that your weapon is an extension of yourself." He drew his sword and went through a few motions. "You must think of it as another part of your own body."

"Like an extra-long, really sharp arm." He summarized.

"Exactly, the sword is a simple tool, but in the hands of a master it becomes the most versatile of weapons, and just as the imagination is limitless, so too are the possibilities of the sword." He sheathed the sword.

Sokka could only look at him in amazement and agree.

(Location: Team Avatar camp)

"What should we do today?" Aang asked as they lounged around the camp.

"I'm tapped out." Toph replied. "I already picked my toes, twice."

"Twice?"

"The first time is for cleaning, but the second time is just for the sweet picking sensations!"

"Sokka's been in charge in the schedule." Katara said. "I'm not sure what we should be doing."

"Plus it's so hot today."

"How hot is it?" Aang asked, attempting to get a joke out of her.

"I dunno, real hot?" She replied, missing the point.

"I-It's hot, it's so hot…" Katara tried to come up with a joke. "Momo is shedding like Appa! Huh? Huh?"

Aang just scratched his head. "I guess the jokes don't run in the family."

"Oh, everyone's a critic." She grumbled. She was about to make a joke about Akela when she heard him growling slightly. She turned her at him and saw that he was looking straight at her. He was also giving her the wolf version of the hairy eyeball. All-in-all, he was essentially telling her "Don't go there." _"How does he do that?"_ She thought to herself. _"It's like he knows what we're about to do."_

(Location: Royal Prison)

Iroh hung upside down, his feet hanging from the top of the cell. He was doing crunches and was panting with effort.

(Location: Royal Palace)

"Hey, Zuko," Naruto said as he sat down next to the prince in the garden. "How did the meeting with Shinu go?"

"Decently enough," He answered as he watched the turtle ducks. "He listened to what I had to say without disbelief but didn't automatically believe what I told him."

He chuckled. "That's one of the reasons I always liked Shinu. Unlike the rest of those generals, he's actually earned his position. He's one of the few people I trust to make good use of the Yuyan archers. Also had the decency to inform me when that idiot Zhao tried to use them to take the Avatar."

"You chewed Zhao out for that, didn't you?"

"Like a pack of dogs on a piece of meat." They shared a laugh.

"Aren't you supposed to be protecting Azula?"

"She and the other girls are having 'girl-talk'."

"…What's so bad about that?"

He threw him a look. "Have you ever felt the urge to throw yourself off of the Gates of Azulon?" Zuko shook his head. "I did that _twenty times in a row_ the last time I was in the same room when they had 'girl-talk'."

"You're kidding, right?"

"Zuko, it's just one of those things where we leave the other alone. She has 'girl-talks', I take a bath." It was common knowledge that whenever Naruto went to the baths, he went with armed guards. The reason for this was because every time he went to the baths, his Fangirls somehow know when he's going (he'd narrowed down the reason they could do this to either they had a network of spies following him, or when he went through the doors of the baths, a pheromone went up into the air that alerted them). The guards usually had to fight off a literal invasion of Fangirls when this happened, which was why Naruto only took volunteers and made sure they got a pay-raise. The two details that Naruto enforced was that only men could volunteer (for obvious reasons) and that there were no Firebenders. "You're supposed to stop them, not barbeque them, no matter how tempting." He often told them.

"Prince Zuko." Há said as he walked towards the two. "General Shinu wishes to speak to you."

"It's only been a day." He remarked. "I thought it take longer."

"It would've, had you talked to any other general." Naruto told him. "You go have that meeting. I need some time to write out a few ideas for my book."

"How's that coming, by the way?" He asked as he stood up.

"Somewhat better than I expected. Then again, I'm not an experienced writer, so I could be wrong."

"It's your book." He walked away.

(Location: Piandao's castle)

"The warrior practices a variety of arts to keep his mind sharp and fluid." Piandao told Sokka as he prepared a piece of paper. "The first you will learn is calligraphy. Write your name." He ordered Sokka as he handed him a brush.

"Writing my name will make me a better swordsman?" He asked with disbelief in his voice.

"When you write your name, you stamp the paper with your identity." He explained. "You must learn to use your sword to stamp your identity on the battlefield." Sokka dipped the brush into the ink and held it over the paper. "Remember, you cannot take back a stroke of the brush, or the stroke of the sword." He withdrew the brush and looked at it, trying to think of what to do. "You're getting ink on your face." Piandao told him.

"I am?" He asked before looking at the brush. "I am! So this is about putting my identity on the page, right?" Piandao nodded. He took the brush and painted his face with ink. He then put his face on the paper and rolled it around. When he was done, he showed the ink drawing of his face to Piandao, who just closed his eyes.

Afterwards, Sokka and Fat engaged in a spar. They wore sparring armor and wielded wooden swords. Sokka made the first move by lunging at the butler. Fat's only move was to knock the sword out of his hands. He ran away and Fat followed, whacking his butt along the way. All-the-while, Piandao just watched.

Later, Piandao blindfolded Sokka and took him outside of the castle. "Landscape painting teaches a warrior to hold the lay of the land in his mind." He stopped Sokka and took of the blindfold. "In battle, you only have an instant to take everything in." Sokka saw a breathtaking view of a waterfall and the surrounding land. "Now paint it." Piandao ordered him, turning him around and making him sit down in front of a small desk with paper and ink. "And no peeking." He warned him.

While Sokka painted, Piandao looked out at the waterfall and waited. "I'm finished!" Sokka declared, showing him the painting. It looked like a child had drawn it and what was even more obvious was that there was no waterfall!

"You added a rainbow." He said.

"Is that okay?" He asked worriedly. Piandao just sighed and rolled his eyes.

Once again, Sokka and Fat sparred. Sokka was faring a little better than before. "Sokka," He heard Piandao say his name. He made the mistake of taking his eyes off of Fat; the butler used that mistake to get behind him and knocked him to the ground. "Concentrate on what you're doing." Piandao told him. He could only give thumbs up in response.

After changing back into his clothes, Sokka followed Piandao out back again. "Rock gardening teaches the warrior to manipulate his surroundings and use them to his advantage." Piandao told him as they walked to the rock garden.

Sokka looked at the rock garden. "Hm, manipulate them to my advantage." He repeated. "Oh!" He ran into the garden and started to move the boulders around. He studied a sheet of moss before grabbing it and running over to the boulders. He draped it down on the boulders and then sat down himself, relaxing. He had made a recliner out of the boulders and the moss. However, when Fat saw the state of the rock garden (which had become messy), he had a small panic attack. "Hey, would you mind grabbing a cold drink for me?" Sokka asked once he saw the butler.

Fat looked towards Piandao. "I'll take a slice of lemon in mine, please." He simply said. Fat dropped his shoulders into a slump and walked away.

Sokka and Fat sparred again for the third time. Sokka was doing much better, parrying the butler's strikes. He finally, he saw an opportunity and took it. He got his sword underneath Fat's hand and knocked the sword of it, disarming him. He held the sword's point to Fat's neck. After the butler held his hands up in surrender, he withdrew the sword and bowed to Piandao.

(Location: Royal Prison)

Iroh was doing pushups on his knuckles, clapping every time he pushed off. However, the noise attracted the warden. "What's going on in there?" He demanded. What he saw was Iroh sitting against the wall, clapping randomly in the air with a blank face. "Crazy old man," He muttered before walking away.

Iroh smiled as the warden walked away from the door.

(Location: Team Avatar camp)

"So, where are we going next?" Katara asked as she and Aang looked at the map. She pointed to a spot on the map. "We're starting from here…"

"No, we're over on this island." Aang pointed to a different spot.

"You noodle-brains don't know what you're doing." Toph told them. "I miss Sokka."

"Ooh, I got one!" Katara said. She was about to tell a joke when she heard Akela growling. Turning around to look, all she saw was his rear end. "Okay, Akela, I get it. Don't fart in my face." The wolf padded back to where he was taking a nap and lay back down again. "How does he do that?" She wondered aloud.

"Do what?" Toph asked.

"It's he knows when we're about to do something and stops us."

"I don't know and I really don't care."

(Location: Piandao's castle)

"You've had a good first day of training." Piandao told Sokka as they across from one another.

"I have?" Sokka asked. "But I thought I messed up every single thing we worked on."

"You messed things up in a very special way. You are ready for a real sword."

"Are you going to give me one of yours?" He asked with excitement.

"No." His answer made Sokka's face fall. "Your sword must be an extension of yourself. So tomorrow, you will make your own sword." When he heard that, Sokka had a big grin.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

Zuko walked into Shinu's office at the barracks. "You asked for me, General Shinu." He said after saluting the general, who returned the salute.

"Yes, Prince Zuko. Come in." He walked back to the desk. "Please close the door behind."

He did and walked over to the desk. "Is this about the information I passed on to you?"

He nodded. "I have gone over the reports myself. What you have told me has made sense. Tomorrow morning at the meeting, I plan to tell the council and purpose your idea. I want you to join me in the meeting."

"I would be honored but that's not what you called me for, is it?"

"No. I asked you to come because I wish to have your opinion on the deployment of soldiers. You were the one who saw what General How was planning, so you should have a voice on who fights where."

He reached for the plans on the table. "May I?" He asked the general, who nodded. He looked over the details. "You seem to have everything in hand. But I would make two adjustments. First: See if you can get Yuyan archers in all three colonies."

"Their skill with the bow would help the defenses." He admitted. "And the second is?"

"Have the Dragon's Fangs defend Akawan. They know that colony. They're the best choice to defend it."

"Yes, I can see the reasoning there. Very well, I'll make the adjustments. Thank you, Prince Zuko." He saluted.

"It is my pleasure. I will await your summons for the meeting." He returned the salute and left the room.

(Location: Piandao's castle)

Both Piandao and Sokka stood in the armory. "Choosing the correct material is the most important step in crafting a sword." Piandao told Sokka as they stood in front of a table that held bricks of different kinds of steel. "You must trust your steel with your life. Choose carefully," He warned.

Sokka began to examine the different bricks, holding them in his hands and weighing them. He couldn't get a feel for any of them and that was when a thought struck him. "Master, would it possible for me to leave and bring back a special material for my sword?" He asked.

"I wouldn't have any other way." He answered with a small smirk.

(Location: Team Avatar camp)

They were all taking a nap when Toph sprang up from the ground. "Sokka's coming!" She declared excitedly. Katara and Aang woke up in an instant when they heard that.

Sure enough, Sokka walked into camp. "Hey guys, what are you doing?" He asked. Their answer was to jump him and give him a big group hug.

"We missed you so much!" Katara declared.

"Say something funny." Aang told him.

"Funny how?" He asked with confusion, making the two of them laugh. "What's their deal?" He asked Toph.

"I don't know." She said as she turned around. "They missed you or something. I didn't care." However, one could tell by the blush on her cheeks that she was lying.

He looked over at Akela, who shook his head slightly. "If you say so," He told her before looking at the rest of the group. "Anyway, I need some help." He led them to the crash side of the meteorite. At the bottom of the crater was the meteorite itself.

(Location: Royal Prison)

Iroh sat in his cell, his eyes closed. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and put himself into a handstand. Sweating with effort, he began to do the handstand version of pushups.

(Location: Royal Palace)

The meeting was about to begin. The generals had begun to walk into the room and sit down around the map. Zuko sat beside Shinu and looked around. "What's with that one guy? He looks like he wants to roast me alive." He asked the general in a whisper.

"That's Jin, Zhao's son." He answered. "And it's not just you who he has it in for."

He looked over to where Azula was sitting and noticed Naruto leaning against one of the pillars. "I see."

Everyone settled down when Ozai came into the room and sat down at the top of the stairs. "Prince Zuko, what are you doing down there?" He asked, a small amount of surprise was heard in his voice.

"I had asked him to come, my lord." Shinu explained.

"Well, with any luck, he'll know his place." Jin said with a condescending smirk. If he was expecting Zuko to talk back, he was disappointed. Zuko just stayed in his seat, completely silent. Sitting next to Ozai, Azula watched with approval. Naruto watched with approval as well.

"You have something to bring forward to this meeting, General Shinu?" Ozai asked, ignoring what Jin had said.

"Yes, sir," He stood up. "As you know, sir, we have been getting reports of enemy troop movements. We had initially believed that they were planning to attack Ba Sing Se and retake it. However, due to information given to me by Prince Zuko, I believe that is not the case. I believe that the enemy will swing down to the coast near Ba Sing Se and take ships to Full Moon Bay. From there, they'll head into the Si Wong desert and we'll lose them. Once they come out of the desert, they will attack Kouzan, Yu Dao and Akawan, crippling our forces. Once they have done that, they will use Akawan as a staging area to invade the Fire Nation."

"And how do you plan to counter this supposed attack?" His face did not show anything.

"We cannot pull our forces away from Ba Sing Se, to do so would leave the city open to attack. My recommendation is that we pull all Fire Nation forces south of the Serpent's Pass into defending the three colonies." He signaled the servants to give the generals copies of the plans for the deployment of the soldiers.

"You would have us abandon the other colonies to protect these three?" One of the generals asked as he looked at the plans.

"Yes general, if the enemy forces do indeed attack us like this, the other colonies become unimportant. The colonies of Akawan, Yu Dao and Kouzan are the lifeline of the Fire Nation in the Earth Kingdom. We lose those three; we might as well pack up and leave the Earth Kingdom."

"NEVER!" roared another of the generals, standing up. "I'm from the colonies. They're my home and I would rather be damned by Agni then leave them!"

"Thank you, General Lee." Ozai said. "Continue, General Shinu."

"Thank you, sir. As you can see, I believe I have the right divisions at the colony that best suits them. The only thing that could be improved is that if we had squads of Yuyan archers at each colony." He looked at Naruto.

"That's fine. I'll have Bao-yu sends some of the men over to each." He answered.

"You cannot be taking all of this seriously!" Jin spoke, crumpling up his copy of the plans. "We already know that the enemy forces are heading towards Ba Sing Se and plan to retake the city. There's no need to listen to any of this crap!"

Shinu was about to speak when Zuko stood up. "General Shinu, if I may?"

"Please, Prince Zuko, by all means." He told him.

"Thank you." He turned to Jin. "The man leading the enemy forces is one of the Council of Five who managed to escape imprisonment in Ba Sing Se. He is a practical man and thus, has practical goals. He knows retaking Ba Sing Se will accomplish nothing. It's a symbol, nothing more and it will not stop the war. If he wants the war to end, he will go for the colonies and cripple us. He will then use that to stage an invasion of the Fire Nation."

"Listen to the experienced prince." The word "experienced" was laced obvious sarcasm. "Just because you've been in one fight, you think you know everything about war, don't you?"

"No general, I do not—"

"Of course you don't! You led a single division in the defense of one colony. A weak and pathetic division at that! I'm amazed that you actually managed to win, let alone defeat the enemy forces."

The entire council was silent after what Jin had said. Zuko stood there in silence, nothing showed on his face. "I'm assuming you're going to apologize." He finally said.

(Location: Team Avatar)

Sokka, Aang and Katara pushed the meteorite up the road to Piandao's castle with Toph helping out by Earthbending. When they finally stop at the gate, Sokka ran towards it and began to bang both of the knockers. The gate opened and Piandao walked out. "Who's this?" He asked.

"Oh, these are my friends. Just other, good Fire Nation folks," Sokka told him. The others bowed to Piandao, who bowed back. "Do you think it's possible to make a sword out of a meteorite?"

"We'll make a sword unlike any other in the world." He declared.

They set to work. He had Sokka start up the forge and kept it going by shoveling coal into it until they brought the meteorite next to the forge and Fat had gotten the hammer. Sokka reached for the chisel but grabbed the pointy end by mistake, cutting his hand.

"Are you alright, Sokka?" Piandao asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry about this, I'll get another one." He reached for a different chisel.

"No, we will use that one." His tone was final.

"Yes, Master." He brought the chisel forward in the cut hand, covering the point even more with his blood. He held the chisel over the meteorite while Fat drove it in. After that was done, he grabbed a smaller hammer and chiseled away smaller fragments of the meteorite. It was hard work, even more so with the forge going behind him and making him sweat.

He finally had enough pieces for Fat to place in the forge while he worked the billows. Aang and Katara looked on as he worked. The smelting process took all night, but he never left the forge. When he awoke from sleep, he would get back to work by putting more coal into the fire. Unbeknownst to him, Piandao was watching him.

By the time morning came, the fragments of the meteorite had melted down into liquid. He pulled out the crucible with a pair of tongs and poured it into a mold of a jian. Piandao took over at this point. He hammered the metal into shape and once he felt it done, plunged it into a barrel of water, cooling it.

Once the actual blade was done, Piandao disappeared for several hours. They were told by Fat to join him in the practice room. Sokka sat before Piandao while the others sat behind him.

"Sokka, when you first arrive, you were so unsure. You even seemed down on yourself." Piandao told him. "But I saw something in you right away. I saw a heart as strong as a lion-turtle and twice as big. And as we trained, it wasn't your skills that impressed me." He took the sheathed sword offered by Fat. "No, it certainly wasn't your skills." Sokka looked away in shame. "You showed something beyond that." He drew the jian from its sheath, showing the black blade. "Creativity, versatility, intelligence…these are the traits that define a great swordsman. And these are the traits that define you." He sheathed the sword and held out for Sokka to take. "You told me you didn't know if you were worthy." Piandao told him as he took the sword. "But I believe you are more worthy then any man I have ever trained."

Sokka could only look at the jian in his hands. He couldn't continue the lie anymore. "I'm sorry, Master. You're wrong." He told him. "I'm not worthy. I'm not who you think I am. I'm not from the Fire Nation. I'm from the Southern Water Tribe." Katara, Aang and Toph had varying degrees of shock plastered on their faces when he said that. "I lied so I could learn swordsmanship from you. I'm sorry." He offered the sword back.

"I'm sorry too." Piandao said as he turned away, only swing around and swipe at Sokka with his jian. Sokka leapt backwards and blocked the next strike with his sheathed jian. When they saw he was being attacked, the others charged in to help.

"No." He told them. "This is my fight, alone."

(Location: Royal Prison)

The warden walked into Iroh's cell again with food. "You used to be the pride of the Fire Nation. Our top general, the Dragon of the West," He told him with scorn in his voice. "Now look at you." He dropped the tray to the ground, scattering its contents. Iroh reached for the fruit behind the bars. "Look at what you've become." He walked out of the cell.

Iroh stood up and undid his robe. As the robe fell off, so did a sheet off of his stomach. Whatever flap or fat Iroh had had before his imprisonment, it was replaced by muscle (lots of it). It was like he had become the Dragon of the West once more. Eating the fruit, he grabbed the bars on the top of the cell and started doing one handed pull-ups.

(Location: Royal Palace)

"Excuse me?" Jin asked. "What did you say?"

"You heard me, General Jin. I am assuming that you are going to apologize for that insulting remark about the 41st division." Zuko said patiently. "By insulting them, you have insulted me."

"Oh, I got two for the price of one?" He asked with a condescending smirk.

"Will you apologize, sir?"

"I do not need to apologize for insulting a single division and a pathetic one at that. I also see no reason to apologize to you, Zuko." The fact he didn't say Prince made everyone look at him in shock. "You are a pathetic person who does not even belong in this council, let alone this chamber. It probably would've been better if you had stayed in Akawan. That way you would have some illusion of being in control before they killed you."

"Have you all heard him, everyone?" He asked the chamber. "General Jin has insulted both my honor and the honor of the Dragon's Fangs. I have asked if he will apologize and he insults us both further. Therefore I ask for satisfaction."

"You would challenge me to an Agni Kai?" He barked a harsh laugh. "You will be humiliated in front of your father."

"Your father said something like that before I fought him. He was the one who was humiliated. Do you accept the challenge?"

"He will." Ozai announced. "General Jin has spoken out of turn and has acted with complete disrespect to both Prince Zuko and the 41st division. The Agni Kai will take place at noon in the training yard at the barracks." He stood up. "This meeting is adjourned." He stated before walking away.

(Location: Piandao's castle)

Sokka and Piandao stood across from each other with swords drawn. The others just watched as the two faced each other. There were only a few times they had seen such a serious expression on Sokka's face. If they were serious, it was getting to the point where that expression scared them.

Piandao made the first move by lunging forward. Sokka blocked and they exchanged strikes. He had to be careful; Piandao wasn't a master of the sword for nothing. _"But he is older and a bit slower."_ He thought to himself. _"If I use what agility I have, I might be able to level the field." _He lunged forward, only to be shoved back against into a post of the bridge. Recovering, he got onto the post to give himself a small advantage. Piandao pushed him back, making him jump from one post to the other and then along the wooden rails. He got off the rail and rolled across the bridge to both give him more room and to avoid a strike from Piandao's sword.

"Excellent." Piandao told him as he got onto the rail again and used it as a launching point to jump away from the bridge. "Using your agility against an older opponent…smart." He pressed forward.

"_Now he knows what I'm trying to do, he'll be able to counter it."_ Sokka thought as they fought. He was being pushed away from the bridge and onto a staircase. _"There! I need to get to higher ground."_ Before he could do so, Piandao maneuvered him up against the staircase wall. He dodged the strikes of his sword, which made two cuts in the stone. He cartwheeled away to avoid a strike and swung back in an arc to deliver his own strike. He placed both feet on the wall behind him and used it to push off, leaping forward into a lunge. Piandao turned to avoid it and he used the opportunity to climb up the wall.

"Good use of terrain…fighting from the high ground," The sword master acknowledged.

"_So long as I can stay up here and he stays down there, I'll have a chance to win."_ He thought as he swung his sword. He saw a chance when Piandao lunged forward with his sword in a thrust. He used his own sword to trap it and placed his foot on it to hold them in place. Piandao tried to get his sword free, but Sokka had trapped it. He finally got it free by pushing it up, off-balancing Sokka and making him slam into a stalk of bamboo. The others winced when they saw and heard that.

When Sokka looked up, he saw Piandao standing over him. He ducked his head to avoid a strike that sliced the stalk behind him in two. As the bamboo fell, he ran into the thicket behind him. _"I need to get an advantage on him."_ He thought. _"Maybe if I can block him with the bamboo, I can also distract him."_ He started cutting off stalks as he went through, letting them fall. As Piandao came through, he cut through them effortlessly. _"Spirits, that didn't work!"_ Sokka thought. _"I need a different tactic."_ He grabbed a stalk and pulled along with him as he ran. When he released it, it swung back towards Piandao, who cut through it with ease.

"Yes, use your surroundings." He told Sokka. "Make them fight for you!" He cut through two more stalks Sokka tried to use against him.

Sokka ran out of the thicket with Piandao behind. He took a quick look behind and saw that he had disappeared. _"Where did he go?"_ He asked himself. He got his answer when Piandao's sword appeared right in front of his eyes. He leaned back to avoid it and slide forward. He stood up but stumbled forward. He stabbed his sword into the ground and then used his momentum to swing it back at Piandao, making dirt hit him in the eyes.

Piandao backed off. He tried to see but the dirt ensured that he couldn't. "Very resourceful," He told Sokka with approval. He turned his head to listen.

"_Okay, I've blinded him, but that doesn't mean he can't fight. He hears one sound from me and he has me."_ Sokka thought as he moved carefully around. _"If I can get around him without making a sound, I should be able to…"_ He was so busy keeping his eyes on Piandao and trying to come up with a plan; he didn't see the stick on the ground until he stepped on it and made it crack.

Piandao swerved his head to the noise and charge forward. He swung a strike and Sokka blocked it, but that was what he wanted. He quickly disarmed Sokka and with a swing of his sword, knocked him to the ground. As Sokka looked up from the ground, Piandao stood over him, his sword pointing at his face.

Aang, Katara and Toph leapt over the banister and charged forward. They stopped when Piandao withdrew his sword. "Excellent work, Sokka," He told him, making him look confused. He signaled Fat, who threw the scabbard at him. With practiced movements, he held the sword directly in the path of the scabbard, sheathing it. "I think I'm a little old to be fighting the Avatar." He told the others pointedly.

They were surprised when he said that. "How did you know?" Aang asked him.

'Oh, I've been around a while. Pick things up." Fat came to him with a towel, which he used to clean his eyes. "Of course, I knew from the beginning that Sokka was Water Tribe. You might want to think of a better Fire Nation cover name. Try Lee, there's a million Lees." He suggested as he drank the cup Fat had given him.

"We know one." Sokka told him. "He's a bit…eccentric."

"Why would you agree to train someone from the Water Tribe?" Katara asked him.

He handed the cup back to Fat. "The way of the sword doesn't belong to any one nation. Knowledge of the arts belongs to us all." He handed his sword to Fat and walked over to where Sokka's sword had stuck into the ground. Pulling it out of the ground, he presented to Sokka, handle first. "Sokka, you must continue your training your own." He told him as he took the sword. "If you stay on this path, I know that one day you will become an even greater master then I am." They bowed to one another.

Sokka looked over his jian. He noticed an inscription on the blade. It was one he had seen before and he was surprised to see it. "Abandon your fear. Don't give an inch. Advance and never stop. If you retreat you will age. Be afraid and you'll die." He read. "Master, how do you know this phrase?" He asked Piandao.

"It was my master who taught me that inscription. And yet, you have seen it before."

"Yeah, I have."

"Well, I am surprised. Even if you are a Paragon, I never thought you would know about this inscription."

"Wait, how did you know I was a Paragon?"

He smiled a little. "I saw the medallion."

"_Of course he saw it."_ He thought to himself. "Who was your master?" He asked with curiosity.

"He was a man from the other side of the world but was famous worldwide. To swordsmen, he was known as the **Ken no Ryōshu **(Lord of Swords). But his name was Kenji Uzumaki."

"You knew an Uzumaki?" Katara asked.

"Indeed I did and I was proud to learn from him. He taught me everything he knew, including the art of the forges."

"He knew how to forge a weapon?" Aang asked, surprised.

"Yes. The Uzumaki clan was among the greatest forgers in the world. You would've been hard-pressed to find a weapon that was equal to one forged by an Uzumaki. That inscription had been in the clan for as long as they could remember. To them, it was the vow they've always made in a battle, but my master had known it meant something else entirely."

"Did he tell you?" Sokka asked.

"No, the secret was meant for only one person to know. But he did entrust me with something." He took the scroll in Fat's hands. "When I was finished learning from my master, he gave me this scroll and told me to safeguard it. I was also told to pass it on to the student I thought worthy enough to keep it. He instructed me that it was only to be opened and read by another member of the Uzumaki clan. Now I give it to you." He handed it to Sokka.

He took the scroll and examined it. It was old and slightly yellowed. He feared that if he handled it wrong, it would be ripped apart. It was tied off by a complex knot and the seal on the scroll was a red whirlpool. "Shouldn't you have given this to Naruto? It belongs to him by right."

"I would have, had he been my student. But now, it is your care."

"Thank you, Master." They bowed once again to each other.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

Zuko and Jin faced off in the training yard of the barracks. "You should surrender right now." Jin told him. "It'll save you the humiliation." Zuko said nothing; he simply waited for the Agni Kai to begin.

On the sidelines, Azula was watching with Naruto at her side. Mai, Ty Lee and Kori did not come but Gaara, Kankurō and Temari did. "I'm glad little ZuZu isn't rising to the bait." Azula commented.

"He's grown use to the putdowns." Naruto said. "But I'm surprised at you, Azula."

"What do you mean?"

"Don't play coy. I watched you in the meeting. You looked like you would burn Jin down to a crisp after that last remark." He had stopped her by placing a firm grip on her shoulder.

"When someone insults a member of the royal family, they insult the entire family."

"Azula, be honest."

"…Fine. Zuko might not have been in the war for long. But when he was, he gave it his all. I am proud of that. He showed his worth and Jin belittled that. Had he not issued that challenge, I would have."

"It is good that you would stand up for your brother." Gaara told her.

"He'd probably be grateful to know that you would do that." Temari said.

"Well, I'm not planning on telling him." She said.

The gong rang. Zuko and Jin began to circle each other. They didn't attack; they were waiting for the other to attack first. "Are you afraid to attack, coward?" Jin taunted.

"Are you?" Zuko asked. Jin simply snarled and threw a fireball at him. He deflected it with ease. That earned him a barrage of fireballs, which he dodged and brushed aside with ease. "Is that it?"

"Don't mock me, brat!" Jin yelled at him. He bent a stream of fire at him. Zuko ducked beneath the stream and moved forward. When he got closed to Jin, he broke the stream and jumped high into the air. He bent an arc of fire at him, using his feet. It forced him back, but Zuko didn't press the advantage. He landed and then waited.

"Why isn't he taking attacking?" Azula asked. "He had a perfect opportunity right there!"

"He hasn't figured out his enemy completely." Kankurō told her. "He's still seeing if there any more moves that Jin has and checking his reactions. Either that or he's just trying to piss him off."

"Is that you have to offer me?" Jin asked. "Did you just hide behind the walls when Akawan was attacked?"

"No, but I understand why you hate that division now. You wanted that glory, didn't you? You wanted to be the hero of Akawan." Zuko said. He said nothing in response. "I guess you are like your father, a vain, selfish, egotistical, narcissistic, arrogant man who wants only to have his name glorified. Perhaps it was a good thing that Naruto killed him."

He howled in anger and fury. "DIE!" He screamed, attacking aggressively. He hurled fireball after fireball at Zuko, then bent streams, then whips, everything and anything he could think to attack him. And yet, Zuko did nothing but dodge, parry and deflect the attacks.

"That came out of nowhere." Temari commented.

"Actually, it didn't." Naruto told her. "Jin has never liked me, due to the fact I've always rebuked his father in one way or another. It turned into full blown hate when I killed Zhao."

"So why is he fighting Zuko?"

"He also thinks that Zuko helped me kill Zhao."

"Is that true?"

"Well…kinda. He helped me out by allowing me to find them. I guess he couldn't take it anymore."

"Zuko seems to be gaining ground." Gaara noted. They all turned to look at the duel. Slowly but surely, Zuko was making his way towards Jin. He took a step forward every time he practically brushed aside the attacks.

"What is he doing?" Azula asked.

"The same thing he did to Zhao that won him the duel. He's going to break his roots and unbalance him." Naruto told her.

She looked at the duel. "Yeah, I can see that now. I would never have thought of doing that."

"Zuko hasn't gotten much advanced training, so he's relaying on his best strength: the basics. By making his opponent angry, he's made him lose focus and attack blindly. If Jin was focused right now, he would realize what Zuko's trying to do and either stop or keep his distance. But since he's not, he won't realize what going to happen until it's too late."

"The fight will be over when that happens." Gaara agreed.

Meanwhile, Jin was getting tired. His continuous barrage of attacks were getting slower. That was when Zuko made his move. He used his legs to try and sweep Jin off of his feet. Jin saw what he was trying to do and backed away, but this was what Zuko wanted. He had broken Jin's roots and made his stance unbalanced. He pressed his advantage, forcing him back with controlled bursts of fire from both his hands and his feet. Finally, he knocked him with a fireball from his hand. He stood over him, looking at him.

"Go on then, kill me." Jin told him. "Kill me!" Zuko shot a fireball to the right of his head. "What? You don't have the stomach to end a life?!"

"This isn't the time for that, Jin." He told, lowering his hands. "There is still a war going on, and we need every general we have. This fight is over." He turned around and walked away. Jin stood back and with a yell of rage, bent a fireball at his back. But to everyone's surprise, he swung back around and knocked the fireball away with a kick. And then, bringing his Yin and Yang energies that he had separated as he walked away back into one, he breathed lightning at Jin, sending him flying back and crashing into one of the walls. He tried to stand up, only to find Naruto's jian resting on his throat.

"Give me a reason." Naruto threaten him.

"General Jin." Ozai's voice rang out, everyone turned to face him. "Because of your disgraceful actions, you are stripped of your rank and are banished from the Fire Nation military. If you do not leave now, you will be killed."

When Jin heard this, his face had a look of shock. He stood up and stumbled out of the barracks, getting jeered by the crowd and being pelted by whatever they threw at him.

"_The mood of the crowd is a fickle one."_ Naruto thought to himself.

"**You have no idea."** Kyuubi told him.

Ozai signaled a servant forward. "I want these plans copied and sent to all forces in the colonies. Tell them that this takes priority." The servant took the copy of the plans and bowed. He walked away, only to stop when Zuko said "Wait."

"Yes, sir?" asked the servant.

"When you have the plans copied, I want you to have a message from me taken with the copy that goes to Akawan."

"What is the message, sir?"

"That the only time I should have to come over there is to celebrate their victory against those idiotic rock-heads."

The servant smiled and bowed. "Yes sir, I will make sure the message is written."

"Thank you." He walked into the barracks to get away from the crowds and changed back into his clothes. While he was in a corridor, he saw Yāo Jing waiting for him.

"Congratulations, little brother." She said.

"Get out of my way, Yāo Jing." He told her.

"What, you're not going to say thanks?"

"Not when it's to the person I know orchestrated that entire thing."

"Whatever do you mean little brother?"

He grabbed by the shirt and slammed her into the wall, catching her by surprise. "I'm not an idiot, Yāo Jing. I knew it was you who set this up. I have never had a problem with Jin until that meeting and I only know one person who can manipulate people to that degree. You were hoping he'd kill me in the Agni Kai, leaving you with one less obstacle to the throne."

"So what if I was?" She said with a smirk. "What are you going to do? Tell our father what I 'supposedly' did?"

"No, I don't have to. You may have to sneak around to try and kill me and Azula, but we'd have to do is order your death and tell Father you were plotting with the Earth Kingdom."

"You wouldn't dare do that to another child of the Fire Lord!"

"You may be his child, but you're also the daughter of a whore and if Father hadn't taken you in, you would have been a whore as well." He released his grip. "You would do well to remember that." He continued to walk away.

Yāo Jing just stared at his back, her face murderous. Her right hand kept clenching and unclenching, creating and extinguishing a flame in her palm at the same time.

(Location: Piandao's castle)

The four of them walked out of the castle gate. Sokka's jian was now slung across his back and the scroll was safely tucked away in his bag.

"Wait!" They heard Fat cry out. They turned around and saw him jogging towards them. "The Master wanted you do have this, as something to remember him by." He handed Sokka a small brown bag. He bowed to them, which they returned, and walked away.

Sokka undid the knot and pulled out what was inside. "It's a Pai Sho tile." He said.

"The white lotus," Aang noted. "Huh."

"What does it mean?" Katara asked.

"Something, I just don't know it." Sokka said. They heard the gates closed behind them, they turned to look at them and saw the lotus design on the gate. "Ooh, that reminds me!" He put the tile away and took out a small piece of the meteorite. "Toph, I thought you might like this since you've probably never had a chance to bend space earth before."

She took the rock out of his hand. "Sweet!" She cheered. "Check this out." She bent the rock into a swirl, then into a star and then into something that looked like it had been splattered against a wall.

"You know, I don't think there's such a thing as 'space earth'." Katara said. "If it's from space, then it's not really 'earth'."

"Okay, then we'll call it the space rock." Sokka said as they walked away. "Must you ruin everything?"

"I can't believe I missed you." She muttered.

"Love ya too, sis."

**End**

**Author's note: **Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me. I had always hoped that I'd be able to hit quadruple digits.

So you've gotten a little backstory on Yāo Jing. I'm planning on expanding on that and explain the thing about her wanting to break Naruto. It's not sexually, so get your minds out of the gutter. It's more along the lines of being in control.

That scroll will be back as well as Kenji, though he will only be mentioned. When that comes around, some of the history of the Uzumaki clan will be explained.

If you're wondering about the part with Ozai having a proud smile, even though he is a Royal Flaming Asshole, he can have moments of being a parent. It's just a little more difficult. Actually, it's a _lot_ more difficult.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	24. Relaxation and Issues

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 24: Relaxation and Issues

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Ferry)

The ferry was being pulled through the water by a sea lion. The passengers on the ferry were Zuko, Azula, Ty Lee, Mai and Kori. Naruto, Gaara, Temari and Kankurō were sitting up on the roof of the ferry.

"I'm so excited to spend the weekend at Ember Island." Ty Lee told them. "It's going to be great to hang out on the beach and do nothing."

"I hope so." Kori said. "I've always heard about Ember Island. I just hoped it lives up to the reputation."

"It's a nice place to look at." Naruto told from where he sat on the roof. "I should know. I washed up on it."

"We're being sent away on a forced vacation." Zuko said as he looked at the sea. "I feel like a child."

"Lighten up." Azula told him. "So Dad wants to meet with his advisors alone, with no one else around, don't take it personally."

"If that's the case, why isn't he taking the vacation?" Kankurō asked from above.

"The Royal Flaming Asshole doesn't take a vacation." Naruto told him. "If I didn't know better, I would think he sleeps on that throne."

"You know, I thought Yāo Jing would've come along." Temari said.

"She was planning to do that, at first."

"What did you do?"

"I might've said that if she came along, she would end being buried alive."

"Same as ever, Naruto," Gaara noted.

"Your family has a house on Ember Island, right?" Kori asked Azula.

"We use to come every summer when we were kids." She replied.

"That must have been fun."

"That was a long time ago." Zuko told her. "The last time we were there was when Naruto was rescued."

"I have fond memories of that place." He admitted. "Although, I don't think I'll be able to look at your closet the same way again, Azula."

"Don't remind me." She replied, blushing. She could still remember him in the closet, wearing only his borrowed swim trucks. Had that incident occurred today, it would've gone a whole different way.

"What happened?" Temari asked.

"All I'm gonna say is that it involves a tidal wave and hormonal teenage girls." Naruto told her.

"Oh come on, you have to tell us more than that." Kankurō said.

"No, we don't." Azula and Naruto said in unison. They looked at each other and looked away, blushing faintly.

"_That would've been cute if it wasn't so painful to watch."_ The Sand Siblings thought in unison._ "Sand dunes have moved faster than those two."_

The ferry pulled into the dock. Everyone aboard saw a number of big houses, but they pulled up to the smallest house there. Standing on the dock, waiting for them were the twins, Lo and Li. "Welcome to Ember Island, kids." They said in unison. All they could do was look at the house behind them with disappointment.

"Not one word." Gaara warned his brother as he was about to open his mouth, He closed it.

The twins led them up the stairs and into the house. "It smells like old lady in here." Zuko whispered as they walked in.

"Gee, I wonder why." Mai replied.

Ty Lee, Kori and Gaara saw a painting of two girls posing in swimsuits. "Who are these two beautiful women?" Ty Lee asked.

"Can't you tell? It's Lo/Li and me." The old twins said in unison, doing the same pose. When Zuko saw that, he almost threw up (the other guys had better gag reflexes). They led them into the bedroom.

"Ooh, I love the seashell bedspread." Ty Lee commented as she fell onto one of the beds.

"Are you serious?" Mai asked her. "It looks like the beach threw up all over it."

"It's not that bad." Kori commented.

"We know you're upset that you were forced to come here for the weekend." Li told them.

"But Ember Island is a magical place. Keep an open mind." Lo said.

"Give it a chance."

"And it can help understand yourselves and each other." The twins spoke as one.

Lo took a rock from the table. "The beach has a special way…"

"…Of smoothing even the most ragged edges." Li took the rock from her sister. Azula yawned in boredom.

"Azula, be nice." Naruto told her quietly.

The twins clapped their hands and disrobed, showing swim suits underneath. "Time to hit the beach!" They said together. Mai covered Zuko's eyes so he didn't have to see that.

"…If anyone needs me, I'll be finding a barrel of ice cold water so I can stick my head in there and scream, or gouging out my eyes." Naruto told them before walking out of the room.

"Wait for me." Gaara said, following him.

"I'm right behind you two." Kankurō told them as he followed.

(Location: Team Avatar)

They decided to take a break in a secluded hot springs. "Aang, I know swimming is fun and all." Toph said. "But do you really think you should be exposing yourself like that? Cover up."

"What?" Aang asked her as he swam around with Momo. "I'm wearing trunks."

"I know, it's your tattoos I'm worried about. What if someone sees you?"

"There are walls all around us." Katara told her. "It's completely safe."

Aang heard water rushing behind him. Turning his head, he saw that water was rushing down a tunnel. When he saw this, he leapt in with glee, taking Momo with him. While the lemur was screeching in panic, he was cheering.

Meanwhile, two Fire Nation guards were lounging by their post. "This has got to be the most boring job in the Fire Nation." One guard complained. "Nothing ever happens."

"WHOA!" They heard someone shout from behind them. Hearing a splash in the water, they turned to see who it was.

"Let's go again." Aang told Momo as they broke the water's surface. They hopped back the cliff, unaware of the two guards who saw him. The two guards were shaking in their boots.

"The Avatar's alive!" The first guard exclaimed. "We better send a messenger hawk to the Fire Lord." He ran over to the cage that held the hawk and opened it. The hawk hopped on his arm and waited as he placed a scroll with a black ribbon in its case. It flew off with the message.

"A black ribbon message," The second guard said. "This is so exciting."

(Location: Ember Island)

They walked down to the beach. "This is going to be fun." Ty Lee cheered.

"Punishment is what it is." Naruto replied. He was the only one who wasn't wearing swimwear. He just wore a pair of pants and a shirt.

"What makes you say that, Naruto?" Kori asked.

"They did tell the unofficial rule about me, right?" He pointed to Azula and the others. "I must've done something recently that really pissed Ozai off for me to get this."

"Stop complaining, Naruto." Azula told him. "You're here, get over it."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it."

"You might actually enjoy this vacation, Naruto." Gaara said. He wore a small gourd at his side due to the fact bringing the actual gourd would've looked ridiculous.

"We'll see. Which reminds me," He turned to face Azula. "I want you to behave, Azula."

She stopped walking and turned to face him. "What?"

"You heard me. Whenever you try to relax, you tend to go overboard. There's a reason the head chef flinches and looks at that one spot on the wall whenever you come into the kitchen."

"I was bored and I apologized!"

"I know that and he knows that. Look, keep a level head when we're here, can you do that?"

"Fine, I'll try." She turned back around and kept walking onto the beach. Once they found a suitable spot (Azula was about to crush a couple of kid's sandcastle, but she felt Naruto's gaze on her back) they began to unpack. "Where is my blanket?" Azula asked as she looked around for it. She got her answer when she saw Naruto rolling it out for her.

"Here you are, my lady." He said in a tone that managed to sound both formal and mischievous at the same time.

"Thank you." She lay down on the blanket. Most teenagers who saw this were a little jealous (the boys and the girls had different reasons).

Meanwhile, Ty Lee and Kori had attracted guys. "Hey, you need some help unpacking?" One teenager asked Ty Lee.

"Sure. Thanks." She handed him her bag, making him collapse. He threw out random things in the bag until he found a blanket and pulled it out.

Azula watched this happen. "You know, if I didn't have you, I think I would be jealous of that." She told Naruto.

"You flatter me." He replied

Ty Lee sat down on the blanket and looked up, squinting. "Could you move a little bit more to the…?" The teenager got the point and stood in front of the sun. "Perfect." She winked at him.

"Do you need help?" Another guy asked Kori.

"Um…I'm good, thanks." She told him, putting her blanket down herself.

"Why did you brush him off like that?" Ty Lee asked her, completely ignoring the guy giving her shade. "Didn't the guys come after you back at Yu Dao?"

"I don't know, I didn't really pay attention to them."

"What did you do with all that time?"

"I trained."

"That's it?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

Both Kankurō and Temari overheard the last part of that conversation. "If that girl and Lee ever meet, we had better make sure they are never alone." Temari told her brother as she lightly fanned herself (with a small fan mind you, not her battle fan).

"Seconded," He agreed as he lay on his back, fiddling with some extra parts from his puppets.

Zuko and Mai were sitting underneath an umbrella together. Noticing a seashell nearby, he reached over and picked it up. "Here, this is for you." He told Mai.

"Why would I want that?" She asked.

"I saw it, and I thought it was pretty. Don't girls like stuff like this?"

"Maybe stupid girls," She told him with a scoff as she looked the other way.

"Never mind, forget it." He replied, throwing the shell away.

"That was harsh." Kankurō quietly commented.

"Oh come on, Mai doesn't like stuff like that and we all know it." Temari replied.

"At least he's trying." Gaara said. This all made them look discreetly at both Naruto and Azula. She was relaxing and he was keeping a subtle watch. Both were trying to avoid eye contact with the other.

"Have they even talked about the fiasco of a date?" Kankurō asked.

"I don't think so. It seems that Naruto is still slow on the uptake in some areas."

"Why is that a relief?"

"Probably because we found a small part of the Naruto we knew is still there." Temari said.

He looked over to Gaara. "This is why she's the smartest out of us three."

"I've never said otherwise." He replied.

The seashell that Zuko had thrown landed next to another teenager. He turned around to see who threw it and saw Ty Lee. When she played with her hair, he saw it in slow motion. Grabbing the shell, he zipped over to her and offered it. "Wow, thanks! This is so pretty." She told him, taking the shell.

"Not as pretty as you are." The guy told her.

"Oh, gag me." Kori groaned.

"You're pretty too." He assured her.

She gave him a look. "Just shut up."

The shade guy, who had been fuming since the shell guy came over, finally snapped. "That shell's not so great!" He told the second guy.

"Ahem! Shade, shade!" Ty Lee told him pointedly, cover her eyes.

Zuko, who had left Mai, returned with two ice cream cones. "I thought, since it's hot…here." He sat down and offered her one of the cones, but at the angle he held it at, the ice cream fell off and landed onto her lap.

"Thanks. This is really…refreshing." She said.

Hearing the sounds of a kuai ball game, Azula looked over and saw a game going on. "Hey, beach bums, we're playing next." She told everyone before turning her head towards Ty Lee and Kori. "Ty Lee and Kori, get over here now!"

When they heard that, they came over (Kori used her feet, Ty Lee used her hands). "You guys take one side, we'll take the other." Naruto told them as he and the Sand Siblings stood on one side of the net.

"I'll just referee." Kori said, standing on the side.

Azula, Zuko, Mai and Ty Lee huddled up. "How do you want to play this, Azula?" Zuko asked his sister.

"Naruto's versatile, so keep an eye out on him. He'll be able to adapt to whatever we throw at him. Kankurō will probably stay in the back. Temari will probably be a heavy hitter, so she'll send the ball farther back. The wild card is Gaara."

"What do you mean?" Ty Lee asked.

"Judging by the way he fights, he doesn't move much." Zuko explained. "But we don't know if he's faking it or not."

"Good eye, Zuko." Azula complemented him.

"So what's the plan?" Mai asked.

"We keep the ball away from Naruto for the time being and test the others' reactions. We'll go from there."

"They still have the advantage." Zuko noted. They all looked at him. "What we have is mostly guesswork, but Naruto knows how we fight on the battlefield. He'll know we'll try to put that into how we play and there's a good chance he'll tell Gaara and his siblings."

"We'll just have to go with it." With that said, they broke the huddle and took their positions. Azula served the ball and sent it over towards Gaara. It was meant to be a probing shot, but he bumped back into the air and Naruto smashed it back into the opposite side with a fairly impressive overhead kick. It crashed into the ground before any of them could stop it.

"Is that the best you got, Azula?" Naruto asked with a small smirk.

"Not even close, Naruto." She told him. "Bring it!"

"Your wish is my command, my lady." He said, giving a mock bow and using the formal, yet mischievous tone. The game continued, although as it progress, it began to look more like a duel between Naruto and Azula. They had lost count of the number of times the ball flew out of the court or of Kori calling a foul. A crowd had begun to form around the sides and there was even cheering for each side.

The game ended when the ball was teetering on top of the net. Both Naruto and Azula leapt for it, swinging their legs at it. They hit the ball at the same time, causing the sing to burst and actually setting the net on fire.

"Game's a draw!" Kori declared.

"Well, that's a bummer." Ty Lee said as the crowd dispersed.

"I'm just glad it's over." Mai grumbled.

"Tell me about it." Kankurō told her as he, Temari and Gaara joined them. "You didn't have to put up with the constant mutterings of 'Take off the shirt. Take off the shirt. Take off the shirt.'"

"What?"

"The girls on our side kept saying that over and over, for obvious reasons." Temari said, pointing at Naruto.

"I am not about to turn Ember Island into a condemned place, okay?" He told her pointedly. She just raised her hands in surrender.

While they had that conversation, two boys swaggered over to Ty Lee. "I'm having a party tonight." One of them told her. "You should come by."

"Sure. I love parties." She told them.

"Your friends can come too." The other guy said, gesturing to Mai, Kori and Temari.

"Thanks for the invite, guys." Kankurō said, joining in the conversation.

"And who exactly are you?" The first guy asked.

"Her brother," He pointed to Temari.

"I'm surprised you weren't going to invite us." Azula said. The two shared a look. "You don't know who we are, do you?"

"Don't you know who we are?" The first guy asked. "We're Chan and Roun-Jian."

"Yeah," Roun-Jian said.

"_And we should care about this why?"_ Naruto silently asked himself.

"**That had better not be a question for me."** Kyuubi said.

"_Shut up and go back to sleep."_

"But fine, you're invited." Chan said. "Just so you know, though, some of the most important teenagers in the Fire Nation are going to be at this party, so try to act normal."

"We'll do our best." Azula told them. They walked away.

"Now that those morons are gone," Naruto said, turning to the others. "You guys go have fun in the water."

"You're not going to join us?" Mai asked sarcastically.

"You know the reason, Mai. Don't be a smartass. You guys go wet, I'll stay here." He walked back over to the blankets and sat back down. Gaara joined him. "Not going into the water?"

"You need the company." They watched the others start swimming. "Naruto, about you and Azula…"

"What about us?"

"Do you have feelings for her?"

"What…where did this come from?"

"It's a simple question."

"She's a princess, Gaara. I'm her bodyguard."

"And you still haven't answered my question."

"There's nothing to answer."

"Naruto, I am not going to beat you black and blue in order for you to answer the question. Just answer already."

"I mean it, Gaara. She's a princess, I'm her bodyguard. That's all there is to it. This isn't one of those books or movies where the princess falls in love with the bodyguard."

"_Oh, the irony,"_ He thought to himself. "Have you even asked her if she's in love with you?"

He groaned. "Why do you have to keep bringing things up like this?"

"I'm your friend."

"…So what if I do have feelings for her? In the end, it won't work."

"You're afraid of being rejected. You don't want this to end up like you and Sakura."

"I thought I said I didn't want to hear this." He half-growled at him.

"You did. I'm ignoring you. You keep telling me that you left Konoha behind, but it seems you still keep a part of it with you. She's not Sakura, Naruto. She's not going to punch you if you ask her out on a date."

"Nah, she'll just fry me alive."

"No, she won't and you know it. You know she has feelings for you, but you won't tell her what you feel. You'll only hurt yourself if you keep going on like this. She won't reject you, Naruto."

"You don't know that."

"And neither do you." That was when they heard the sounds of sniffling nearby. Turning towards the sounds, they saw a little boy crying.

"Hey, little man. Why are you crying?" Naruto asked with a gentle voice, walking over to the boy and kneeling down in front of him.

"Those kids told I couldn't play with them." The boy said, his voice quivering. "Th-they said they don't need someone who's stupid and keeps messing up their sandcastle."

"Have you tried making your own sandcastle?" Gaara asked, joining them.

"It's no fun making one on your own. And mine keep looking pathetic." Tears began to fall from his face again.

"What's your name?" Naruto asked as he shared a quick look with Gaara.

"Hung, my name is Hung."

"Would you like it if we played with you?"

He stopped crying and looked at them. "What?"

They bowed to him. "Command us, my liege. We are but minions to you. Order us and we will do your bidding."

"Really? Y-you mean it?"

"Of course, my lord," Gaara said. "Please tell us what to do."

The tears stop falling and he gave a big grin. "You will help me make the best sandcastle on Ember Island!"

"As you wish, master," The two of them said together, bowing their heads.

Meanwhile, the others were swimming and playing water games. "Hey, where did Naruto and Gaara go?" Kori asked when she looked back at the blankets and didn't see them.

"They'll probably around." Mai said.

"Without telling us where they went?"

"They can handle themselves. They don't need to tell us where they're going every single time." Temari pointed out.

"Hey, what's causing that ruckus?" Ty Lee asked, pointing to where a small crowd had gathered. They came out of the water and went over to the crowd. That was when they saw a funny thing.

"Minion," Hung said in an imperious voice. "Are the walls not done?"

"I'm almost done, master." Naruto said as he built sandcastle walls.

"Master, would you like there to be a moat around your castle?" Gaara asked.

"Of course I do." It went on like this and it was actually pretty humorous. Naruto and Gaara acted like Hung was their master and obeyed his every order, even if it led to them crashing into each other and destroying part of the castle. They didn't argue or talk back. They had fun with the kid, while also making the crowd laugh.

Azula watched this and saw that Naruto was great with kids. _"He would make a great parent."_ She thought to herself.

"The castle is done, master." The two said, bowing to the kid. "Are you satisfied?"

"Indeed I am minions." He walked to the castle, which was fairly big. "And now, there's only one thing left to do." He stomped on the sand wall, crushing it. Naruto and Gaara joined him in destroying the castle. When the castle was finally destroyed, the crowd had left.

"That was fun!" Hung declared as they lay in the ruins of the sandcastle.

"Glad you enjoyed yourself, Hung." Naruto said.

"As entertaining as that was." Azula spoke up. "It's about time to head back."

"Do you have to?" Hung asked with sadness in his voice.

"Unfortunately, we must." Gaara said, standing up.

"You had fun, right, Hung?" Naruto asked him. He nodded. "Good, that was the intention. You better go; I think your mother is waving at you to come back." He pointed to where a woman was waving her arm.

"Thanks! Bye!" Hung told the two of them as he ran off.

"Let's get going." Azula said. They packed up and headed back to the twins' house. When they got there, they sat down to eat.

"Why didn't you tell those guys who we were?" Zuko asked Azula.

"I guess I was…intrigued." She said. "I'm so used to people worshipping us."

"They should." Ty Lee stated.

"No, they shouldn't." Naruto argued. "A ruler and his family are not gods, they are human."

"You have a point, Naruto." Azula said. "For once, I want to see how people would treat us of they didn't know who we were."

"Like waves washing away the footprints on the sand, Ember Island gives everyone a clean slate." Li told them.

"Ember Island reveals the true you." Lo said. Then the two of them stood up and clapped. "To the party!" They declared.

"Just because we're at your house, doesn't mean you get to be pushy." Naruto told them. "We'll go when we're ready."

(Location: Messenger hawk)

The hawk flew through the air, carrying its message. Flying towards it was a raven hawk. The raven hawk dived towards the hawk and grabbed the black ribbon. It hog-tied the messenger hawk with the ribbon, making it crash to the ground. It landed next to the messenger hawk, took the message and flew off.

It soon landed on the metal arm of the assassin, who took the message from its beak. As he read it, the paper began to burn.

(Location: Ember Island)

They walked up to Chan's house. They had changed out of their swimwear (those who were wearing it anyway) and into clothes. "Kori, why exactly is there a chain wrapped around your midsection?" Naruto asked, looking at her.

"It's for protection." She answered.

"Why would you need protection?" Kankurō asked, mystified.

"I saw some of those looks Ty Lee's 'servants' were giving me and her. I'm surprised they didn't try to jump us then and there."

"Oh stop worrying, Kori." Ty Lee told her. "Those guys aren't going to do anything."

"I expect an apology when you're proven wrong." She replied with a straight face.

"People, that's enough." Azula said. "We're here." She banged the knocker.

Chan opened the door. "Um…you're a little early. No one's here yet."

"I heard you telling someone you'd be partying from dusk to dawn. It's dusk, so we're here."

"But that's just an expression."

"We're punctual people." Naruto said.

He shrugs and waved them in. "All right, listen. My dad's an admiral. He has no idea I'm throwing this party, so don't mess anything up."

"Understood," Gaara told him.

"That's a sharp outfit, Chan." Azula complimented him. "Careful, you could hurt someone with it, because it's so sharp."

"Um…thanks." He said before walking away. Her face fell into a look of disappointment.

"Good try." Naruto whispered to her as he walked up beside her. "It could've been worse."

"How could that have been worse?" She asked quietly.

"You could've told him it could puncture a hole in an empire-class Fire Nation ship, leaving thousands to drown at sea."

As they walked in, Ruon-Jian was fixing his hair. He saw them in the mirror and turned around. "Hey. First ones here, huh?"

Zuko scoffed. "He thinks he's so great." He looked over at Mai. "Well, what do you think of him?

"I don't have any opinion about him. I hardly know him." She told him.

Zuko, being a guy, jumped to conclusions. "You like him, don't you." The only response he got was an exasperated sigh.

"That's not going to end well." Kori noted.

"Don't be nosy, Kori." Naruto told her off. Soon enough, more people showed up and the party got underway.

"So how do you know Ty Lee?" One guy asked another.

"I met her at the beach today. She was pretty impressed by a sand pagoda that I made for her."

"Well, I met her first." A third guy joined in the conversation. They all turned to Ty Lee, who was backed into a corner (literally). Other guys joined them as they stared at her.

"Look, i-it doesn't matter who I met first, 'cause I like you all." She tried to pacify them.

"But which one of us do you _like_?" The first guy asked.

"Yeah," The third guy agreed.

"Tell us." The second guy told her.

"Is there a problem here?" Gaara asked from behind the crowd. Hearing his voice, Ty Lee flipped over the boys and stood behind him.

"They kept asking who I liked and wouldn't leave me alone." She told him.

"Gentlemen, if the lady doesn't want to answer your question, leave her alone." He told the group of boys.

"What? You like her too?" The first guy demanded. Gaara simply folded his arms. To any who knew him and was his enemy; that was the signal to run.

"I recommend you boys leave her alone now." The tone in his voice offered no compromise. Thankfully, the boys had enough brains in their heads to get the warning. They scarpered off quick. He turned back to Ty Lee. "That better?"

"Thanks Gaara, you're a lifesaver." She told him before walking away. She soon found Azula leaning against a pillar. "Hey Azula, those boys won't leave me alone. I guess they all just like me too much."

"Come on, Ty Lee. You can't be this ignorant." Azula told her.

"What are you talking about?"

"Those boys only like you because you make it so easy for them. You're not a challenge. You're a tease. It's not like they actually cared who you are." These made Ty Lee start to cry. "Okay, okay, calm down. I didn't mean what I said. Look, maybe I said it because I was a little…jealous." She whispered the last part.

"What? You're jealous of me? But you're the most beautiful, smartest, perfect girl in the world."

"Well, you're right about all those things. But when I meet boys, they act as if I'm going to do something horrible to them. The only ones who don't act like that are Naruto, Zuko and maybe even Gaara."

She giggled. "You probably would do something horrible to them. I'm sure they're just intimated by you. Okay, look, if you want a boy to like you, just look at him and smile and laugh at everything he says even if it's not funny."

"Well that's sounds really shallow and stupid." She looked over at Naruto. "Plus, the boy I like probably wouldn't like that."

She followed her gaze. "You have a point. In that case, forget everything I said." She turned around and saw Kori standing in front of her. "What's the matter, Kori?"

"I'm waiting." She told her.

"Um…waiting for what?"

"You didn't think I wouldn't see what happened in that corner, Ty Lee? Had Gaara not shown up, they would've pounced on you."

"Alright, alright, I'm sorry that I was wrong. Happy?"

"Yes."

Meanwhile, Mai and Zuko were sitting together on a bench. "I'm bored." Mai said.

"I know." Zuko told her.

"I'm hungry."

"So what?"

"So find me some food."

"Sure." He got up and left.

Kankurō was walking through the party when he saw something on a pedestal. "Well, hello." He said as he picked the puppet. "And who are you?" He began to fiddle with it. "You're broken. Why hasn't anyone fixed you?" He fished out a few tools from his pocket. "That's going to change."

"What are you doing?" A girl asked from behind him.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" He asked without turning to face her. He was completely focused on his work.

"It looks like you're playing with a doll."

"I'm not playing with a doll. I'm fixing a puppet." He put his tools away. "And now I'm done." He hoisted the puppet off of the pedestal and showed it to the girl.

"Why are you so interested in a broken puppet?"

"I restore puppets. It's a profession where I from. Puppets are quite valuable where I'm from."

"How is that possible?"

"We're home to many puppet theaters." Temari told her as she joined in the conversation.

"Really?" asked the girl as she looked back at Kankurō. "So you're a puppet actor?"

"Well, I'm training to be one. A part of the training is that you help restore the puppets, then make your own."

"Have you've made yours?"

"Yes, I have. But I didn't bring him here." He placed the puppet back on the pedestal. "If you can, tell Chan that it's fixed." He walked away with Temari.

"You and I know perfectly well that you brought **Sasori** with you." Temari whispered.

"But I didn't bring him here." He whispered back, gesturing at the house. "That would've caused a scene."

As they were talking, Zuko was putting food on a plate for Mai. As he walked away, another guy swung his arm and knocked the food on the ground. "Hey, watch it!" Zuko told the guy. "That food was for my cranky girlfriend!" He pointed over towards Mai, only to look over and see her talking to Ruon-Jian. He had been trying to keep his temper under control the entire day, but when he saw that, he had to respond. He rushed over and shoved him away.

"What are you doing?" Ruon-Jian demanded.

"Quit talking to my girlfriend!" He ordered.

"Relax, it's just a party." He said, walking back towards them. Zuko just shoved him, this time sending him crashing into a vase, destroying it.

Zuko then felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned his head to see it was Naruto. "Zuko, calm down, now," He ordered.

"Zuko, what is wrong with you?" Mai asked.

"What's wrong with me?" He asked back.

"Your temper is out of control and you're blowing up over the littlest thing!"

"Well, what about you? You have no passion for anything! You're just a big blah!"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Naruto thundered, getting their attention and everyone else. "The two of you, knock it off!"

Mai decided to get the last word in. "It's over, Zuko. We're done."

"What did I just say, Mai?" Naruto asked. She fell silent.

"Who broke my nana's vase?" Chan demanded, running over to the destroyed vase. Ruon-Jian pointed at Zuko. "That's it! You're out of here!" He told him after coming over.

He shrugged his shoulder out of Naruto's grip. "I was just leaving."

"Have fun by yourself, loser boy." Ruon-Jian called after him.

"Nice." Chan said. Zuko said nothing; he just walked out and slammed the door behind him. He walked down to the beach and away from the house. He wasn't quite sure how long he had walked, but when he passed a rock, looked up and saw the old beach house, he knew he had walked far.

"_It's been a while."_ He thought to himself. He started to walk up to the house. As he did, he couldn't but remember memories from his childhood, memories of playing amongst the dunes and with a younger Iroh and Lu Ten. He reached the door and tried to open it. _"Right, forgot it was locked. Well then…"_ He kicked the doors open. He walked in and saw the portrait of his family, when he was younger. His gaze traveled from his father to him and then to his mother. He remembered a memory of when he was little and she helped him make a handprint in a stone. He saw that same stone was still on the drawer beneath the portrait. He picked it up and put his hand on it. His hand was now bigger than the imprint in the stone, the fingers stretching past the stone's edges.

(Location: Team Avatar)

They were all sleeping on the shore next to the hot springs. Both Toph and Akela awoke at the same time. "Guys," Toph said, waking the others up. "You're all gonna think I'm crazy, but it feels like a metal man is coming."

A light shined in Aang's eyes, making him rub the sleep out of them and look at where the light was coming from. Everyone followed the light to see it shining off of the assassin's metal arm. Sokka reached for his jian and Akela started growling.

The only thing the assassin did was inhale. Aang realized what he was about to do and ran forward. The assassin's stomach clench up and he fired a blast from his third eye. The blast was so small and so fast; it left air waves in its wake. Due to it being a warning shot, it hit the wall of the hot springs just in front of them. The shockwaves sent them all flying backwards.

Toph recovered first and retaliated by bending a large rock-wave at the assassin. Just as it was about to completely cover him; he destroyed it with another blast, which also flew directly at the team. Aang deflected it with an air blast; the force of it sent him skidding backwards. Katara tried to attack by bending a large wave of water at him. He hit that with a blast as well, causing the hot springs to be covered in steam, blocking his view of the team.

(Location: Ember Island)

"I thought I'd find you here." Azula remarked as she stood on the steps of the house. She looked at Zuko, who was sitting against one of the wooden columns.

"Those summers we spent here seem so long ago. Even the one when we met Naruto," He told her, looking at the stone with his handprint. "So much has changed."

"Come down to the beach with me." She told him after a moment's silence. "Come on. This place is depressing." She walked away. He followed her after leaving the stone on the steps. The two of them walked down to the beach, where the others were waiting. Zuko and Mai shared a glance before he kept on walking.

"Hey," Mai said, trying to mend the bridge.

"Where's your new boyfriend?" Zuko asked curtly. Mai scowled and looked away.

"Am I going to have put the two of you in a room together and lock the door?" Naruto asked them pointedly.

Zuko walked over to Mai and sat down next to her. "Are you cold?" He asked her, putting his hand on her shoulder, which she slapped away.

"I'm freezing." Ty Lee declared, trying to relieve the tension.

"I'll make a fire." He looked up to the house. "There's plenty of stuff to burn in there."

"You'd better not go pyromaniac on us." Kori warned him.

"Was that really necessary, Kori?" Temari asked.

(Location: Team Avatar)

The assassin fired another blast through the mist, trying to hit the team, but he missed. The others could hear the noise and feel the vibrations. "This is crazy!" Sokka declared. "How could we beat a guy who blows things up with his mind?"

"We can't!" Aang said. "Jump on Appa! I'll try to distract him!" He leapt away before anyone could argue with him. He charged through the steam and leapt over the hot springs' wall, avoiding another blast by inches. He slid down the other side and ran into the forest of rock columns and hid behind one.

The assassin chased after him. He looked around and soon spotted him. He fired off a blast that destroyed the rock column and Aang too, had he not leapt to a different column. He repeated the action again at the second column. This time, Aang leapt away and responded with bending a column at the assassin. He replied by destroying the column with one blast and fired another at Aang.

Aang managed to survive by using Airbending against the blast to be sent flying off into the air. He landed far away from the assassin, smashing through a column as he landed. The assassin rushed over to the destroyed column and then began to walk slowly, his eyes searching for his target. As he walked back one column, he stopped and took a closer look. All he saw were Aang's eyes underneath the rock before Aang leapt out covered in stone. He jumped off of the assassin's shoulder and into the air. The assassin fired another blast at him, which only sent him further into the air. Finally, the stone covering him broke away and he began to fall. That was when Appa flew in and caught him.

"I'm okay." He told them as he regained control of his breathing.

"Well, that was random." Toph stated.

"I don't think so." Katara said. "I get the feeling he knows who we are."

"Oh great, one more thing to worry about." grumbled Sokka. Akela nodded once in agreement.

(Location: Ember Island)

They had managed to start a fire. "What are you doing?" Ty Lee asked Zuko as he threw the painting of his family onto the fire.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" He asked back.

"But…it's a painting of your family."

"You think I care?"

"I think you do."

"You don't know me, so why don't you just mind your own business?" He turned around and started to walk away.

She scoffed quietly. "I know you."

"No, you don't." He snapped at her. "You're stuck in your little 'Ty Lee world' where everything's great all the time."

"**And here we go."** Kyuubi said with exasperation. **"I hate it when you humans reach puberty. All that emotions, hormones and other whatnot, it's enough to make a Biju gag."**

"_Speaking from experience, are we?"_ Naruto silently asked him.

"**Shut up."**

"Zuko, leave her alone." Mai ordered him.

"I'm so pretty. Look at me; I can walk on my hands. Whoo!" Zuko mocked Ty Lee, getting into a handstand. He held eye contact with her before falling down, looking up at the sky. "Circus freak."

Both Azula and Kori looked like they were about to do serious harm to Zuko when Ty Lee spoke. "Yes, I'm a circus freak. You want to know _why _I join the circus? Do you have any idea what my home life was like? Growing up with six sisters who looked exactly like me? It was like I didn't even have my own name." She knelt down to the ground and began to cry. "I joined the circus because I was scared of spending the rest of my life as part of a matched set. At least I'm different now. Circus freak is a compliment!"

"Guess that explains why you need ten boyfriends too." Mai said.

She looked at her. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Attention issues. You couldn't get enough attention when you were a kid, so you're trying to make up for it now."

"Well, what's your excuse, Mai? You were an only child for fifteen years, but even with all that attention, your aura is this dingy, pasty, grey…"

"I don't believe in auras." She said, cutting her off.

"Yeah, you don't believe in anything." Zuko said standing up.

"That's more fuel for the fire." Kankurō said quietly. Temari just glared at him.

"Oh, well, I'm sorry I can't be as high-strung and crazy as the rest of you."

"I'm sorry too." He walked back to the fire. "I wish you would be high-strung and crazy for once instead of keeping all your feelings bottled up inside." He pointed at Ty Lee. "She just called your aura dingy. Are you gonna take that?"

She leaned back against the rock. "What do you want from me? You want a teary confession about how hard my childhood was? Well, it wasn't. I was a rich only child who got anything I wanted…as long as I behaved and sat still and didn't speak unless spoken to. My mother said I had to keep out of trouble. We had my dad's political career to think about."

"Well, that's it then." Azula said. "You had a controlling mother who had certain expectation, and if you strayed from them, you were shut down. That's why you're afraid to care about anything and why you can't express yourself."

"You want me to express myself? Leave me alone!" She shouted, standing up. That action surprised everyone.

"I like when you express yourself." Zuko told her as he tried to put a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't touch me!" She snapped at him, taking a step back. "I'm still mad at you." She sat back down.

"My life hasn't been that easy either, Mai." He told her.

"Whatever. That doesn't excuse the way you've been acting."

"Calm down, you guys," Ty Lee said. "This much negative energy is bad for your skin. You'll totally break out."

Naruto gave a small groan and covered his eyes. _"Why did she have to go there? Why?"_ He asked himself.

"**She didn't think it through?"** Kyuubi offered.

"_What gave it away?"_ He said with obvious sarcasm.

"Bad skin?" repeated Zuko. "Normal teenagers worry about bad skin. I don't have that luxury. My father decided to teach me a permanent lesson on my face!" He pointed to his scar.

"Sorry, Zuko, I…" Ty Lee tried to apologize.

"For so long I thought that if my dad accepted me, I'd be happy." He ranted, turning around and walking away. "I'm back home now, my dad talks to me. Ha! He even thinks I'm a hero. For Agni's sake, I've even helped in the war. Everything should be perfect, right? I should be happy now, but I'm not." He walked back to the fire. "I'm angrier than ever and I don't why!"

"Zuko, it's a simple question." Gaara said. "Who are you angry at?"

"No one, I'm just angry."

"Yeah, who are you angry at, Zuko?" Mai asked.

"Everyone! I don't know!"

"Is it dad?" Azula asked.

"No, no."

"Your uncle?" asked Ty Lee.

"Is it Yāo Jing or Azula?" Naruto asked.

"Is it us?" Temari asked, gesturing to her brothers and Kori.

"No, n-no, no, no!" He told them.

"Then who?" asked Mai. "Who are you angry at?"

"Answer the question, Zuko." Azula told him.

"Talk to us." Ty Lee pleaded.

"Come on, answer the question." Mai told him.

"Come on, answer it." Azula said.

At this point, his temper, which he had been fighting a losing battle against all day, finally snapped. Swinging his arms down, he bent the fire into a pillar, making the others recoil from it, before turning to face the sea. "I'M ANGRY AT MYSELF!" He yelled before breathing lightning out into the sea. He was done as the pillar diminished and the fire died, leaving embers.

"Why?" Azula finally asked.

"Because I'm confused. Because I'm not sure I know the difference between right and wrong anymore."

"Don't worry, Zuko." Naruto said. "You're not the only one who gets that."

"I know one thing I care about." Mai said as she stood up and went over to him. "I care about you." They shared a kiss together.

"Well, those were wonderful performances, everyone." Azula said, clapping mockingly.

"I guess you wouldn't understand. Would you, Azula?" Zuko asked, putting a hand around Mai. "Because you're just _so_ perfect."

"Perfect? Hardly, that would be Yāo Jing." She replied sarcastically. "But I guess that if I did have a sob story, it would be that our mother cared for Zuko more than me." She looked at the embers. "But can you blame her? She thought I was a monster."

"You're not a monster, Azula." Naruto told her, sitting down next to her. "You've proven that lately."

"He's right." Ty Lee agreed. "If anyone's a monster, it's Yāo Jing."

"How did she become like that?" Kori asked.

"You can thank her father for that." Naruto told her, with almost a snarl in his voice. "He raised her to believe that power was everything. She believed every word and saw the throne as the way to get the most power. When she was told that she would never get it, she was furious. So, she came to the belief that if she killed Zuko and Azula and wasn't blamed for it, her father would have no choice but to give her the throne."

"Why does she seem so fixated on you, Naruto?" Gaara asked.

"The Royal Flaming Asshole also taught her that one of the best ways to gain power to have others fear you. She took that lesson to heart and terrorized the palace ever since; even Azula and Zuko were scared of her. To her, the only person she can't scare is her father. Anyone else should be in fear of her. The reason she wants me to be broken is because I do not fear her. That one fact alone infuriates her. But she can't touch me because of my position as Azula's bodyguard. I stand outside of her grasp and I openly mock her."

"You know, compared to you guys, my issues are tame." Kori admitted.

"What Lo and Li said came true." Ty Lee said as she picked up a rock. "The beach did help us learn about ourselves. I feel all smoothed. I'll always remember this."

Azula got an idea. "You know what would make this trip really memorable?" She asked them.

"I know that look in your eye, Azula." Naruto said. "For once, I'll condone it."

"What did you have in mind?" Gaara asked her. She quickly told them the idea and led them back to Chan's house. Chan opened the door after they had banged on the knocker.

"We have some bad news, Chan." She told him.

"Party's over." Zuko declared. They all charged into the house (with the exception of Naruto, who stayed outside) and proceeded to destroy it. As they tore up the house, teenagers ran out of the house screaming (even Ruon-Jian).

"Kankurō, what are you doing?" Temari asked.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" He asked back. "I'm saving the puppet."

"Just leave the thing alone!" Zuko shouted.

"Are you insane!? This is a beautiful piece of work." He ran back to the door. "Naruto, hold this!" He handed off the puppet and went back to the carnage. By the time they were done, the house had been all but burned down.

"You guys have fun?" Naruto asked as they left the burning building.

"Why did you guys do that?" Chan demanded. "There's nothing left!"

"Oh right, here you go." He handed him back the puppet. "We'll be leaving now." They started to walk away.

"What am I going to tell my father!?"

"Have him send me the bill for repairs. The name's Naruto."

"Do you think he'll actually do it?" Kori asked.

"Oh, he'll do it. I'm just sad that I won't be able to see his face when he finds out who I am and who you two are." He said to Zuko and Azula."

"You are an evil person, Naruto." Ty Lee accused.

"Only to people who deserve it," He replied, making them all laugh.

(Location: Naruto's dream)

He found himself floating in the air and in immeasurable pain. Forcing himself to look down, he saw the Sanbi being sealed into the Gedō Mazō. He could hear the Biju inside his head. _**"Yagura, where are you?! Please save me! Don't let them take me. PLEASE! YAGURA!"**_ His voice finally went silent when he was sealed inside the statue.

"The Sanbi is sealed." The leader (Naruto figured that since he did the announcing, he was the leader) announced. It was at that point Naruto awoke from his sleep with a gasp. He struggled to regain control of his breathing.

"_I need some fresh air."_ He thought as he grabbed a nearby shirt and ran out of the house. He ran all the way to the beach, where he finally stopped.

"**You knew it was going to happen, gaki."** Kyuubi told him, his tone somber.

"I know and I hate Sifu right now for making me go through this." He replied. He had dreamed of the Sanbi being captured the night before they had left for Ember Island. "Why was he calling out to someone named Yagura?"

"**The last time I checked, Yagura was his last host. He always got attached to his hosts. When he was extracted and they died, he would always go into mourning."**

"And so, when he was being sealed, he begged for his last host to save him. But why could I hear him?"

"**You're a Jinchūriki and he was scared. He was practically screaming to anyone who could hear him."**

"And now, there are two of us left." He gave a bitter laugh. "How long will it be until they come back? Will I be the last or am I next on the list?"

"**Maybe…maybe you should let the other Paragons help you when they come?"**

"How can I do that? I've never met the Earth Paragon, me and Sokka are on opposite sides of this war, and we both know how hard it is to get ahold of her."

"**She is the Paragon of the Air Nomads."** He admitted.** "But what are you going do until they come?"**

"…I don't know."

That was when he heard Azula say "Naruto?" from behind him. He turned around to look at her. "Are you okay?" She asked, walking towards him.

"I'm fine, Azula. I…just had a bad dream, that's all."

"Are you sure?" She was caught off guard when he suddenly pulled her into a tight hug. "N-Naruto, what are…?" She tried to ask, her face blushing.

"Azula, please, just let me do this." He told her, his tone begging. "With you here, I know that everything will be alright."

She didn't argue, nor did she struggle against it. She simply returned the hug. Under the light of the moon, the two who were reluctant to admit what they felt to the other, held each other. Though neither of them knew it, they shared the same feeling.

They felt safe in each other's arms.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

Okay, first up, I'm skipping The Avatar and the Fire Lord. The reason for that is because it has no point in this story. Besides, what I've got planned will pretty much destroy the point of the episode and no, I'm not telling you what is I've got planned. You'll just have to wait.

If any of you catch the reference to my other story, congratulations.

So now you know why Yāo Jing wants to break Naruto. And it's not sexually. It's about making him afraid of her. If he fears her, everything's back to normal for her.

I know that there are some of you who're going to say that after the last chapter, I returned Zuko to who he originally was. Despite being more serious and more mature, he's still a teenager. So he still has to deal with everything that comes along with. That's probably why they made this episode in the first place.

If you're going to complain about how Naruto didn't talk about his issues in this episode, I will remind you that he's tight-lipped about that. Even if that had happened, he wouldn't have said anything.

Originally, the plan for the end of this chapter was for the Sanbi to arrive at Ember Island, mad with grief. Naruto has the island evacuated and then he and Gaara fight it. I realized that this wouldn't work. How exactly am I supposed to have two people fight against a creature that's easily the size of a skyscraper? Also add in the fact that Naruto would not summon the toads at all to help. Don't bother suggesting the navy, they wouldn't have gotten there in time and even if they did get there, one flick of one of the Sanbi's tail would capsize them. So instead, I went Naruto dreaming about the Sanbi being captured.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	25. Scams and Viewpoints

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 25: Scams and Viewpoints

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Avatar)

Katara and Toph stood apart from one another, holding themselves in their bending stances. "Okay." Aang announced as he stood up and tied his headband around his eyes. "I'm ready for some training." He took his Earthbending stance and felt the vibrations in the earth. He moved forward in a zigzag motion to avoid the rock columns Toph bent out of the ground. He felt Katara bend the water at him, which he returned and then bent a large rock out of the ground and hurled it at Toph.

"Good job, Twinkle Toes." She told him after grabbing the rock. "Visualize, then attack!" She threw the rock back at him. He dodged by literally drilling himself down into the earth. The rock sailed over him and slammed into Katara, knocking her down.

"Maybe you should take your own advice, Toph." She said after getting back up.

"What's the matter? Can't handle some dirt, Madam Fussy-Britches?" Toph taunted her as Aang popped out of his hole.

Katara's eyebrow twitched. She bent a large wave up out of the river and pushed it at Toph, leaving a small hole in the middle to allow her and Aang to stay dry. The wave dropped on Toph, soaking her to the bone. "Oh, I'm sorry. Did I splash you, Mud-Slug?"

Trembling with anger, she bent up an earth ramp and charged forward. Katara bent water from the river and charged forward, freezing it into an ice ramp. The two collided and went flying. "Are we taking a break?" Aang asked; the blindfold still around his eyes.

"Sneak attack!" Sokka shouted out as he charged forward. Aang casually bent a stone pillar up out of the ground, stopping in his tracks.

"Sokka, sneak attacks don't work if you yell it…" He said as he dropped the pillar back into the ground, turned around and raised the headband. However, he didn't see Sokka when he turned around. That was when he felt the edge of a jian at his throat.

"I know they don't work, which is why I did it." Sokka said from behind him. "It was meant to distract you."

"You got me again." He admitted. Sokka withdrew his jian. The two of them saw mud splash nearby and saw that Katara and Toph were fighting in the mud.

"Hungry for a mud pie?" asked Toph, kicking mud in Katara's face. She stumbled back and tried to wipe the mud off her face.

"I'll give you a mud pie!" She bent mud at Toph, knocking her down. She leapt back up and off-balanced her by bending a small earth column up underneath her. It sent her flying back against the wall. They were about to attack each other again when Aang spoke up.

"Uh, guys? I thought we were supposed to be training me." He said.

Katara calmed down and took a few steps forward. "Very well, pupil," She said. "I believe we've had enough training for today." She walked away.

Toph bent the mud off and walked out of the mud pit. "While Katara cleans up, let's go have some fun!" She told Sokka and Aang. They agreed with the notion.

(Location: Royal Palace, Training Yard)

Naruto stepped out into the training yard and saw something peculiar. _"Am I seeing this right?"_ He thought.

"**Trust me, gaki. You're seeing this right. Even I'm seeing this."** Kyuubi told him. Standing in the middle of the yard was Yāo Jing and she was training hard. There were burnt target dummies lying everywhere.

"Lord Naruto?" A nearby servant said to him. "It's probably best if Lady Yāo Jing doesn't see you right now."

"Why's that?" He asked the servant.

"According to the maid who served Lady Yāo Jing this morning, she had a nightmare concerning you. When she awoke, she vowed again to break you."

"That's nothing new."

"My lord, the maid also said that when Lady Yāo Jing awoke, for a brief second, she actually looked scared." Naruto's eyebrow rose when he heard. When it came to information being accurate, he could trust the servants. They gossiped like everyone else, but when it came to telling Naruto about stuff, they had two rules: never exaggerate and never bullshit.

"_Yāo Jing was actually scared because of a dream of me?"_ He thought. _"How does that happen?"_

"**Maybe she dreamed of a different Naruto?"** The fox suggested.

"_What? Where did you come up with that?"_

"**It's just a thought."**

"_One we're not voicing aloud, okay?"_ He then saw that Yāo Jing was looking straight at him. "If you got a problem, Yāo Jing, we can fight right now." He told her, his hand drifting towards the handle of his jian. She just snarled at him with a glare full of hatred, before turning back to the target dummy in front of her. "Might as well go back inside," He said as he turned around and walked away.

(Location: Fire Fountain City)

Sokka, Aang, Toph and Akela walked down a road in the city. "Look at all those messenger hawks." Sokka said as they pasted a large coop. "Wouldn't it be cool to have one of those? That way you wouldn't talk to anyone, you could just send them messages."

"I like the idea of not talking to you." Toph remarked.

"Funny, Toph, funny." He replied sarcastically.

"So, guys, what are we going to do with our last silver piece?" Aang asked the two.

"We can get more money." Toph answered; stopping and pointing down below them. "Right there," Aang and Sokka looked down at where she was pointing. They saw a man playing the three shells game with a crowd. "This is where you see people are at a disadvantage. Everyone guesses wrong because the dealer moves the rock at last minute." She told them after they had gotten down there. "But I can feel it with my Earthbending."

The person playing lost and wept for the loss of his money. He and a few others left. The dealer looked around and saw Toph, to be more specific, he saw Toph's blindness. "You there," He called out. "Want to play a friendly game?"

"How can I possibly play? I'm blind." She waved her hand in front of her face to emphasize the point.

"You don't have to see to be lucky." He told her. She sat down, felt out the table and the shells, playing the "Can't see" card for all it's worth. Aang placed the coin on the table and the dealer started up. He showed her the pebble and placed the shells back down. He started to move them around, but unbeknownst to everyone else (minus Toph) he put two extra stones into the shuffle. That way, whichever Toph chose would be the right one. She pointed at one and he took the shell off, revealing the stone.

"Flamey-o, Toph," Aang told her.

"Wow, fancy guessing. You're amazing at this." The dealer told her, tossing two silver pieces onto the table. "Would you like to make the game a little more interesting?" He played around with a few coins to get his point across.

"More interesting? How?" She asked.

"Well…let's say you toss in your friend's fine sword there." He pointed at Sokka's jian. "Then I'll put up twenty silver pieces against it and that's more interesting."

Before Sokka could even protest, Toph snatched his jian out from his hands. "I'll do it for forty pieces."

"Forty silver pieces it is." He started shuffling the shells again, taking out the extra two in the process. As he tried to do the same with the third stone, Toph bent it back into the shell. He waited confidently for her to choose. "Sorry, little lady, but…" He began to say as he picked up the shell she pointed at, only to find the stone underneath. "Huh?"

"I won!" Toph cried. She grabbed the money while Sokka grabbed his jian and the four of them ran off before the dealer could say anything else.

"That was so cool!" Aang declared.

"Yeah, it was." Sokka agreed. "However, Toph, the next time you're going to be bet my sword, I will feed you it. Understand?"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it." She told him. Even though she said without sounding like she cared, she made a point not to do it anymore. If Sokka made a promise like that, he would keep it.

(Location: Royal Palace)

Naruto was in his room, working on his book. "Hey Naruto," Temari said as she and her brothers walked into the room. "Working on the book?"

"How could you tell?" He asked with slight sarcasm. He put the pen down and turned around to face them. "I could use your help."

"What do you need?" Kankurō asked.

"I'm trying to come up with a rank that sounds both vague and mysterious at the same time. Got any ideas?"

"What about something like 007? That's sounds kinda cool." Temari suggested.

He shook his head. "Sounds more like a codename then a rank."

"What about Triple Black?" Kankurō suggested.

He thought about it. "Yeah, I like that. But how do I show it as a rank and not a phrase?"

"Have them as a tattoo of a black triangle on each wrist and between the shoulder blades." Gaara said. "That, in turn, forms a triangle itself."

"Oh, that's a nice touch." He wrote down the idea so he wouldn't forget.

"Lord Naruto," A servant came in and handed him a message.

"What's wrong?" Temari asked.

He finished reading the message, sighed and put the book and pen away. "I have to go out for a while. I'll be back." He stood up and went out the door.

(Location: Team Avatar)

Toph, Aang and Sokka walked back to the camp with their arms full, Akela padded behind them. "Where did you guys get the money to but all this stuff?" Katara asked them as they put the baskets down.

"Toph got us money." Aang explained. "She scammed one of those guys in town who moves shells all sneaky like." Katara had a scowl on her face.

"She did use Earthbending to help win." Sokka said.

"Ah, so she cheated." Katara stated.

"Hey. I only cheated because he was cheating." She protested. "I cheated a cheater. What's wrong with that?"

"I'm just saying this isn't something we should make a habit of doing."

"Why? Because it is fun and you hate fun?"

"I don't hate fun!" She protested before putting Momo on top of her head. "See? Fun," Momo fell off her head, screeched at her and ran away.

"Katara, I'll personally make you an Avatar Promise that we won't make a habit doing these scams." Aang told her, standing up and showing his headband.

That promise lasted about twenty five minutes (which was the amount of time it took to get back to the city). The three of them got back to the city and went back to work. First, she started off with two men playing a dice-like game with sticks instead of actual dice. She bet her money, tossed the sticks and made sure she'd won via Earthbending.

Next, they went to a carnival, where there was a test-your-strength challenge. After one beefy-looking guy tried and failed, Toph went. She struggled with the hammer a bit, making the crowd laugh and then swung the thing, using her Earthbending to help. Not only did she ring the bell, she destroyed it and took her reward as the weighted ball landed in a tent, collapsing it.

She then scammed someone by using her Earthbending to push a small rock up in front of a noble's carriage. She pretended to be struck by the carriage and Sokka arrived, dressed up as a local guard (complete with bushy beard). The nobleman had bribed him with several small bags of money before he supposedly agreed to look the other way.

(Location: Royal Palace)

Naruto walked back into the palace. "Hey Naruto," Ty Lee called out, waving him over. "Where have you been?"

"I went to go see a prostitute." He said bluntly. "Don't jump to conclusions." He warned them as Ty Lee, Mai, and Kori had looks of outrage (Azula had one of hurt).

"What exactly are we supposed to do when you say something like that?!" Mai demanded.

"She does have a point, Naruto." Zuko agreed. "And I'm not saying this as her boyfriend."

"First off: Just because she's a prostitute, doesn't mean I've slept with her." He told them. "Second: She asked me to come for a favor."

"What kind of favor?" Kori asked.

"That is something only a few of us need to know right now." He started to walk away. "Zuko and Azula, come with me."

"Where are we going?" Zuko asked as they went down a corridor.

"Some where I'd never thought I'd go voluntarily. If this wasn't happening, she would owe me big time." He muttered that last part to himself.

"Naruto, just what is this prostitute to you?" Azula asked, having heard the muttered part.

"You'll see. We're here." He said, stopping in front of a door.

"Uh…Naruto, this is Yāo Jing's room." Zuko said, looking at the door with confusion.

"I know, trust me, I know." He knocked on the door.

Yāo Jing opened the door. When she saw Naruto, she glared at him. "What do you want?" She all but snarled.

"Can we come in?" He asked.

"If you've got something to say, then say it there. Otherwise, go away."

"You do realize that it's fairly rude not to invite guests in, right?" She was about to slam the door in their faces, when he gave her surprising news. "Your mother is dying." While Azula and Zuko were shocked, she didn't show a single thing on her face.

"So? What's your point?" She asked.

"She wants to see you before she dies. She asked me to pass that on to you." He looked her straight in the eye. "Should I tell her you'll be coming?"

"…Leave." She slammed the door closed.

"That went well." Naruto said as he walked away.

"Is her mother really dying?" Zuko asked. While he and Azula knew that Yāo Jing's mother was a whore, they had never actually met the woman.

"Do you honestly think I would lie about something that serious?"

"How do you know her?" Azula asked.

"I tracked her down after I met Yāo Jing. Once I found her, I got to know her and we became friends." He chuckled. "It's ironic. One of the most sadistic and evil people I know on this planet is the daughter of the whore with the biggest heart of gold I have ever seen."

"What will you do now?"

"I'm going to see her one last time. The two of you are welcome to come along, but it won't be a pretty thing to see."

"What do you mean?" Zuko asked him.

"She's been burned, and it was your loving father who wielded the flame."

(Location: Team Avatar)

"Guys, I think these scams have gone on long enough." Katara told the others. "If you keep doing them, something bad is gonna happen."

"Could you for once stop being such a sourpuss and lighten up?" Toph asked her, tossing her a silver piece.

"Oh, I'm sorry! You thin k I should be more like you? Like some wild child?" She asked in return, tossing the piece down to the ground.

"Yeah, maybe! Maybe then you'd see how great we have it!" As she spoke, Sokka grabbed the piece. "I mean, look at us. We're travelling around this side of the planet, making easy money, having fun, with no parents telling us what to do!"

"Ah, I see. You're acting like this because of your parents."

"Whatever."

"They were controlling over you, so you ran away and now you act like your parents don't exist. You act like you hate them, but you don't. You just feel guilty."

"I _do_ hate them!"

"I don't think so. I think you miss them, but you don't wanna deal with that, so instead you act like this crazy person."

"Look, I ran away to help Aang!" She declared, standing up.

"You know what? It doesn't matter. These scams put us all at risk and we don't need that. We already got some third-eyed freak after us."

"Let's just call him the assassin." Sokka stated.

"What? No colorful name?" Aang asked.

"This is nothing to kid about, Aang."

"We have enough money!" Katara told Toph, completely ignoring Sokka and Aang. "You need to stop this!"

"I'll stop when I want to stop and not when you tell me!" Toph shouted at her. She bent the bag of money into her hand, walked away and made an earth tent.

"Speaking of money," Sokka stood up and grabbed a bag of money. "I'm off to spend some. See you guys later." He made his way into the city and towards the messenger hawk coop. "Wing," He told the bird. "Welcome to Team Avatar. My name is Sokka and I am your new owner. As such, I'm must warn you that there is already a lemur in our group, so I don't want to see any fighting. Also, there is a wolf with us. You mind your manners and he won't eat you. Understand?" The messenger hawk screeched. "Glad you understand." As he walked away from the coop, he went past the board of wanted posters. One poster made him stop and ripped it off the board. It was a poster of Toph. "You're right, Wing." He said after the hawk saw the poster and screeched. "This is bad."

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

The three of them stood outside the brothel. "Are you guys ready?" Naruto asked Azula and Zuko. They nodded. "Alright, we might as well go in." He walked up to the door and knocked on it. It opened to reveal a stunning woman wearing almost nothing. Zuko focused his eyes on the ground and chanted in his head that he had a girlfriend. Azula just scowled at her.

"She's been waiting." The woman simply stated.

"Thank you, Cong." He said, walking through the door with Zuko and Azula behind him. "How has she been doing?"

"Not well, the doctor thinks she won't last longer." She looked out through the door. "Is she coming?"

"I don't know. But maybe it's better if she didn't."

"Naruto, you know how much she wanted to see her."

"I know, but Yāo Jing isn't what she hopes to see." He gave a sigh. "May we see her?"

"I won't stop you."

"Thank you." He made his way towards the stairs. He went up them with Zuko and Azula following him. They went to the third floor, where there was only a door at the top. He walked up to it. "Chun? It's me, Naruto. I brought some friends."

"Please come in." A pleasant voice called through the door. They walked through the door and into a large room. "Have a seat; I'll be out in a moment." They sat down next to a table. She came out and Zuko and Azula had to stifle their gasps, but they couldn't hide the looks of shock and horror.

Chun's face was completely disfigured. The left side of her face looked melted and drooped down. Her right side was the same color of red that Zuko's scar was and was also paralyzed, locking it into the form of a half-crazed grin. While her right ear was still there, her left ear had been reduced to nothing. Her hair ironically looked like it hadn't been touched; it just looked like it was recently cut.

"_Our father did this?"_ Both Zuko and Azula thought in horror. It was strange, but they could see Yāo Jing in Chun, a kinder and gentler Yāo Jing.

Naruto stood up to greet her. "Chun, as radiant as ever," He told her, taking the tray of tea she held.

"Don't be a tease, Naruto." She told him, her tone lightly chiding. She looked at the two other people in the room. "Prince Zuko and Princess Azula, I am honored to have you." She bowed to them.

"The honor is ours, Lady Chun." Zuko told her.

"Lady Chun?" She repeated. "I'm certainly not a lady. I am a simple madam of a brothel." She sat down and looked at Naruto.

He knew the meaning of that look. "I'm sorry, Chun. I don't know if she's going to come."

"There's no need to apologize, Naruto. All I asked for was that you tell her. What she did was up to her." She told him, but they could tell she was disappointed.

(Location: Team Avatar)

While Aang and Katara practiced their Waterbending, Sokka approached Toph, who was counting the money. "Toph, when I was in town, I found something you're going to like." He told her, pulling out the poster.

"Well, it sounds like a sheet of paper," She said. "But I guess you're referring to what's on the sheet of paper."

"It's a wanted poster, of you." He told her. "They've nicknamed you 'The Runaway'."

"A wanted poster, that's so great! 'The Runaway' I love my new nickname. Is there of me? Does it look good?"

He looked at the poster, then at her, then back at the poster. "Well yeah, actually, it does look pretty good. But Toph, you're missing the point. Maybe Katara was right. These scams are drawing too much attention to us."

"Don't be such a worrywart like your sister." She told him, picking up the bag of money. "Think of it this way: Now you have plenty of money to help with the invasion plan."

"Well that is true. I had this idea of making armor for Appa and Akela."

She handed him a few gold pieces. "Here's a little extra so you can get yourself a nice map of the Fire Nation. You know what?" She handed him the entire bag. "Make it an atlas."

"No." He handed her the money back. "The armor is fine, but don't try to bribe me to ignore this."

"Very well, but this wanted poster is going to stay our little secret." She grabbed the poster and put away before he could grab it. She walked away as Katara and Aang walked up to him.

"Sokka, tell me you didn't buy a bird." Katara said with an annoyed look.

"No, he just likes my shoulder." He replied with obvious sarcasm. "Besides, it's not just a bird. It's a messenger bird. Now we can send messages all over the world, even to Gran-Gran."

"Wow, how does it work?" Aang asked.

"Uh…I never actually thought about that. Wing, Gran-Gran, South Pole," He ordered the hawk, pointing south. Wing just shook his head. "Okay, so we might have to work on it."

"You named him Wing?" Katara asked. "What kind of name is that?"

"It's better than Hawky."

"He's got a point." Aang agreed. Momo climbed up onto Aang's shoulder, screeched at Wing and then leapt at him. The two of them were about to start a fight on Sokka when he grabbed the both of them and held them apart. "The two of you knock it off or I will feed you both to Akela!" He warned them. Akela, having heard the prospect of food, stood up and padded over, looking at the lemur and hawk with the interest of a hungry predator. The two of them got the point and calmed down.

Later, Sokka and Toph had gone back to the city, leaving Katara and Aang with the animals (minus Wing). While Aang sat next to Appa and took a drink out of a canteen, Katara cooking something in the pot before bending some of it into Appa's mouth. "Well, look who decided to join us." She said as Sokka, Toph and Wing came back, carrying bags of money. "Where have you two been? Off scamming again?"

"Yes, we were." Toph answered.

"And I suppose you don't think what you're doing is dangerous at all?" She asked, walking up behind her.

"No, I don't."

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

"Well then. What's this?" She pulled out the poster.

"I don't know! I mean, seriously! What's with you people? I'm _blind_!" She pointed at her eyes.

"You don't act like it, Toph." Sokka told her.

"It's a wanted poster of you! 'The Runaway' is that what you're called now?" Katara asked Toph. "Are you proud of this?"

"Where did you get that?" She demanded.

"It doesn't matter where I got it. The fact is—"

"You went through my stuff! You had no right!"

"Your stuff was messy and I was just straightening up, and I happened to stumble across it."

"That's a lie, you're lying, Katara!" She accused, pointing her finger at her.

"Fine, it's a lie!" She said, slapping the finger away. "But you've been so out of control lately, I knew something was up! I knew you were hiding something and you were!" She showed the poster again, which Toph snatched out of her hands and threw away before walking away. "Don't you walk away from me while I'm talking to you?"

"Oh really, Mom? Or what are you gonna do? Send me to my room?"

"I wish I could."

"Well, you can't! Because you're not my mom and you're not their mom!" She pointed at Aang and Sokka.

"I never said I was!"

"No, but you certainly act like it! You think it's your job to boss everyone around, but it's not! You're just a regular kid like the rest of us! So stop acting like you can tell me what to do! I can do whatever I want!"

"…I don't act that way. Sokka, do I act motherly?" She asked her brother.

"Do you honestly think I'm stupid enough to answer that? I'm staying out of this." He told her.

"What do you think, Aang? Do I act like a mom?"

"Well, I…" He began to say, rubbing his eye.

"Stop rubbing your eye and speak clearly when you talk!" She ordered, proving the point Toph made.

"Yes, ma'am," He replied quickly.

"I can't be around you right now!" Toph declared, walking away.

"Well, I can't be around you!" She walked away in the other direction.

Wing gave a soft screech. "I know, Wing." Sokka said. "Why can't they just get along?" Akela gave him a look that said "Did you really just ask that?"

(Location: Chun's room)

"Please, drink." Chun told them as they held cups of tea.

Naruto took a drink. "Excellent tea as always, Chun," He told her.

"You flatter me." She looked over at Zuko and Azula. "Is the tea not to your liking?"

"No, the tea is fine. Great, actually," Zuko assured her. Three years at sea with Iroh and his tea made him a good critic. "It's just…"

"What?"

"This is the first time we've met you." Azula told her. "It's not what we were expecting."

"Oh, I see. You mean this." She gestured to her face.

"It's not that, not entirely."

"What else is there?"

"Aren't you…mad?"

"Mad at your father?" She gave a light laugh. "I was but not for this."

"Then what for?" asked Zuko.

She put her cup of tea down. "Perhaps I should start at the beginning."

"Chun…" Naruto began to say.

"Naruto, it is my story to tell." She took a breath and began. "I had been a prostitute long before your father visited me, but he was the one who ended it. When he came here, he always chose me. Eventually, I discovered I was pregnant and I knew he was the father. I told him and he was overjoyed at the news. When I had given birth, I held in my arms the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Then your father arrived, with a full contingent of guards. He took my baby away from me and I couldn't do anything to stop him." She stopped talking as tears came down her face (at least, out of the eye that still had a tear duct).

"You can stop, if you want to." Azula told her.

She wiped the tears away. "No, it's best to tell the entire thing."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I am. I forced myself not to think of her for five years, until I saw her on the street. I sent a message to your father, asking him to come. When he did, I pleaded with him to let me see her. I asked for only one day to spend with my daughter. He grew furious; he slapped me and beat me as well. As I lay on the ground in pain, he told me that she wasn't my daughter. I was just a whore and I should know my place. So, as punishment, he decided to burn me."

The two children of Ozai were horrified at what he had done. "What happened next?" Zuko asked.

"He left me there. Thankfully, the others had found me and got me to a doctor. The price to save my life was expensive, but the money was taken care of by a mysterious person, I never found out who it was. The last madam ensured I wasn't cast out to the streets by teaching me what she knew. She soon retired and I took over."

"But why wait all these years before trying to see her again?" Azula asked.

"I was afraid that if I tried, your father would actually try to kill me. That was my reason until I learned I had cancer."

"That's when she asked me to tell her." Naruto said. That's when they heard the door open. They all turned to see who it was and saw Yāo Jing standing in the doorway.

"Měi Lì?" Chun asked with hope in her voice.

(Location: Team Avatar)

Toph was sitting at the edge of the camp. Katara had been sitting on the other end until she had walked away (more liked stomped away). "What are we going to do?" Aang asked Sokka.

"I'll take care of it." He replied. He got up and walked over to Toph. "Come on, we need to talk." He told her. She huffed but followed him.

"So, lemme guess." She said as they sat down on the ledge overlooking the waterfall. Unbeknownst to them, Katara was bathing below. "You brought me out here to tell me that your sister's not annoying as I make her out to be."

"Nah, she's pretty much a pain." He told her, making Katara scowl. "She's always got to be right about everything and she gets all bossy and involved and in your business."

"Yeah, I don't know how you could deal with it."

"Actually, in way, I rely on it."

"I don't understand."

"When our mom died, that was the hardest time in my life. Our family was a mess, but Katara? She had so much strength. She stepped up and took on so much responsibility. She helped fill the void that was left by our mom."

"I guess I never thought about that."

"I'm gonna tell ya something crazy. I never told anyone this before, but honestly? I'm not sure I can remember what my mother looked like. It really seems like my whole life, Katara's been the one looking out for me. She's always been the one that's there. And now, when I try to remember my mom, Katara's the only face I can picture." Katara, having heard all that, began to cry.

"The truth is sometimes Katara does act motherly, but that's not always a bad thing. She's compassionate and kind and she actually cares about me." She wiped away tears in her left eye. "You know, the real me. That's more than my own mom." Katara was deeply touched by this and sank lower into the water. She began to swim away. "Don't ever tell her I said any of this." Toph told him, punching him in the arm.

"Hey, my lips are sealed. Besides, Katara needs me as well."

"What do you mean?"

'If I wasn't with the group, what do you think would have happened at the river town? Or at Kouzan?" He saw the realization appear on her face. "While Katara is all what we said, sometimes she'll believe what she decides is right and everyone should follow her. If someone objects, she ignores them. That's why she needs me; I'm the one who always brings her back down to earth. In a sense, you've been acting like her when she gets like that."

"No I haven't!" She protested.

"Are you sure? You've been scamming people and even when they have a poster for you, you don't care. You said that you can do whatever you want. That's what she does when she gets like that."

She saw his point. "Then what should I do."

"That's your choice, although I recommend restraining yourself when it comes to stuff like this. We aren't on vacation, Toph. We're in the middle of a war."

She thought over his words as they made their way to camp. There, Katara was waiting for them. "Hi, Toph," She began. "Um, I wanna—"

"Katara, stop," She interrupted her. "You don't need to apologize. I was the one being stupid. These scams are out of control and I'm done with them."

"Actually, I wasn't going to apologize. I was gonna say…I want to pull a scam with you." Her words shocked both Aang and Sokka.

"What? You wanna pull a scam?"

"Not just any scam. The ultimate scam," Aang fainted and collapsed to the ground, foaming at the mouth. "Whaddaya say, Toph?" She asked, pulling her close. "Just me and you, one last go. You in?"

"You know I'm in!" She agreed. "Now what's this idea of yours?"

"The plan is simple: this wanted poster says you're worth a lot of money. Ten times more then you've made in all of your scams. So I'm gonna turn you in and collect the reward. Then you Metalbend yourself out of jail and we're on our way."

"Sounds like a plan."

"Okay, who are you and what have you done with my sister?" Sokka demanded.

"I'm right here, Sokka." She told her brother with exasperation.

"Fine," He said. "Just so you know, I reserve the right to call you an idiot should this plan of yours goes south."

"Oh relax, what could possibly go wrong?"

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

The two women stared at each other. "It is you, Měi Lì." Chun said, looking at Yāo Jing.

"Who's Měi Lì? My name is Yāo Jing." She replied.

"We'll leave the two of you alone." Naruto said. He, Zuko and Azula stood up and walked out of the room. It turned silent for a few minutes after they had left.

Chun spoke first. "Will you have some tea?" She asked.

"So you're my mother." Yāo Jing said rudely.

"Yes I am, Měi Lì. Please sit and have some tea."

"Don't call me that." She did sit down at the table and took a cup of tea.

"How has your life been?"

"Why should you care? You were never there for it." She took a sip of tea.

"But I want to know about it. I am your mother."

"If that's what you want to believe."

"It's the truth. I carried you for nine months in my womb. The only time I held you in my arms was moments after you were born. That is, until the now so-called Fire Lord took you away."

"Never talk about my father like that! He is a great man!"

"Would a great man do this to someone?" She asked with both sadness and bitterness, pointing at her face.

"You must've deserved it."

"He gave me this when I asked to see you for only a day."

"Well…why did you ask? You must've known that he would have refused."

"I did, but I had also hoped he'd relent."

"But instead, you got burned for your troubles." She gave a cruel laugh. "You know, it was better that he took me. Then I wouldn't have to be a whore."

"Is it any better than being his recognized illegitimate daughter and have no chance of obtaining the throne?"

"You shut your mouth!" She said in a hissed whisper. "The throne will be mine!"

"…You would sacrifice everything just to obtain it? You would murder your own siblings?"

"Yes, I would. Power is all that matters in this world."

She sighed. "Spoken just like your father, how sad."

"I told you not to speak about my father like that!"

"And what if I did? Would you kill your own mother, Měi Lì?"

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!" She yelled, standing up. "Why do you calling me that!?"

"It was the name that I had chosen for you. You were the most beautiful thing in my life."

She didn't say anything. Finally, she gave a scream of both rage and frustration. She stormed out of the room and down the steps. Chun's calm look melted away as she began to cry. Feeling a hand on her shoulder, she looked up and saw Naruto. "I'm sorry, Chun." He said.

"Don't be. I always knew she would end up something like that, but I kept hoping that there was something of me besides my looks in there."

"I should gut that bastard." He growled.

"Would Prince Zuko and Princess Azula let you?"

"If I did it right now, they'd probably help me kill him and hide the body."

"Killing him will not help the situation, Naruto. It will only make it worse."

"I know, I still want to gut him." He looked at her. "Do you want to be alone?"

"Yes, please."

He walked back to the door. "I'll be back tomorrow."

"Thank you." Only when the door closed and the footsteps on the staircase disappeared did she start to weep again.

(Location: Fire Fountain City)

Toph ran down the street, trying to get away from her chasers. When she ran into the main square, she got caught in a net and was trapped. "How could you do this to me?" She demanded. "You betrayed me!"

"You brought this on yourself." Katara told her. "I had no other choice." She crossed her arms and looked away. But when she looked back, she wore a sly smile.

"You did the right thing by turning in the Runaway." The leader of the guards told her.

"The right thing is its own reward." She replied.

"Well, I'm happy to hear you say that."

"But…I still want the actual reward."

"Of course, right this way."

(Location: Toph)

A guard dragged Toph into the jailhouse. She tossed her into a cell and slammed it shut. Toph felt around, but couldn't feel any metal or any earth. "Hey, what kind of cell is this?" She demanded.

"A wooden one," The guard told her. She got very worried at that point.

(Location: Katara)

She stood in front of a desk as the guard leader picked up a box and opened it. When the door behind Katara opened, he closed it and pointed at her. "That's her! That's the girl you were looking for!" He declared. She turned around and saw the assassin standing over her.

(Location: Camp)

Aang was pacing around the camp while Sokka sat on the ground with Akela at his side and Wing on his arm. "Do you think this scam of theirs should be taking this long?" Aang asked him.

"I was wondering the same thing. We better check it out." As he stood up, Wing hopped off his arm and onto a pot next to Momo. "You two behave, Appa's in charge." He told them as he and Aang walked off with Akela following them.

As soon as the humans were out of sight, the hawk and the lemur began to screech at each other, but one bellow from Appa quelled them immediately.

(Location: Jail)

Both Katara and Toph sat in the same cell. "Wait!" Toph said suddenly. "It's a trap!"

"Really?" asked Katara sarcastically. "No kidding! Is that why we're sitting in a wooden cage right now? Gee, how'd you figure that it was a trap?"

"Not for us, Katara! We're the bait. He wants Aang!"

She understood immediately. "I can't believe I was so stupid! See, this is exactly why I'm against these scams! I knew this would happen!"

"But…this was your idea."

"I know. I wanted to show you that I'm not so motherly. I wanted to show you that I can have fun too."

"Katara, you are fun. If nothing else, you're at least fun to argue with."

"I know your relationship with your parents is complicated. And I shouldn't have said what I said."

"It's okay. I was really mad when you said that because…well, because maybe it's true. I try not to think about it, but when I left, I probably really hurt them." She began to cry as she said it. Katara gave her a hug to comfort her.

(Location: Fire Fountain City)

Aang, Sokka and Akela walked through the city. "Where do you think they might be?" Sokka asked.

"Where do you think anyone is?" Aang asked in return. Since they set foot in the city, they hadn't seen anyone else. As they entered the main square and went past the tall statue of Ozai, Akela stopped, sniffed the air and began to snarl.

"What is it, Akela?" Sokka asked as he went for the jian on his back. Aang heard the sound of someone inhaling. Turning around, he saw the assassin standing on a rooftop, ready to fire.

"Guys, look out!" He cried out, grabbing Sokka and pulling him around the statue just as the blast hit. Akela had leapt through the statue's legs and joined them on the other side. "It's the assassin!"

"Thank you for stating the obvious." Sokka remarked, rubbing his head. The assassin leapt off the roof and fired another blast, making them move.

(Location: Jail)

Toph tried to force the cell door open with no luck. "What are we gonna do?" Katara asked her.

"I don't know." She answered, stepping away from the cell door. "I wish we had some earth or water. We need bendables!"

"What about your meteor bracelet? You could make a saw."

"I left it back at camp." She explained as she sat down. "I was worried they would take it."

She sighed and wiped her forehead. Noticing the sweat on her hand, she got an idea. She got up and started running in place.

"Um…Katara? Are you okay?" Toph asked her.

"Just fine." She replied.

"Well, what are you doing?"

"I'm making my own water." Wiping her forehead again, she bent the water at the cell door, slicing into it.

"Katara, you're a genius! A sweaty, stinky genius!" declared Toph as she stood up. Katara didn't respond, she just reached underneath her armpits.

(Location: Fire Fountain City)

The assassin took a few steps forward and fired off another blast. It hit the ground, just as the three entered an alleyway. Sokka was sent crashing into a wheelbarrow, making it stand upright. He rolled off of it and Aang helped him get up. The two of them, plus Akela hid behind it.

"This guy is too good." Sokka declared. "He shoots fire from his brain!"

"We should split up!" Aang said. "He can't chase us both." Before Sokka could argue that point, the assassin walked through the smoke and into their sights. He fired a blast just as they split, destroying the wheelbarrow. He walked forward when he saw Aang trying to run past him on the rooftops. He fired another blast which sent Aang flying into the statue of Ozai, smacking into the chest and falling to the ground.

As he tried to get up, he saw the assassin standing over him, preparing to fire another blast. But before he could, a good amount of water engulfed his head and froze. As he tried to get his head free, Aang saw Sokka, Katara, Toph and Akela in the street behind him. "Aang, get up!" Katara told him; running forward and helping him get up.

"Let's get out of here." Toph said as they ran away. As they did, the assassin shattered the ice with a punch of his metal arm. He inhale and fired off a blast. Toph, having felt him, bent a rock to act as a shield. The blast hit the rock, shattering it. One of the small fragments sailed towards him and hit him right in the middle of his third eye. He stumbled back, covering his eyes. When he recovered, he attempted to shoot another blast but it literally backfired and sent him flying into a wall. Shaking his head, he tried to look for Team Avatar but couldn't see them.

(Location: Royal Prison)

"You've got a couple of visitors." The guard called into Iroh's cell before opening it. He turned around to see who it was. While he was not surprised to see Zuko, he was surprised to see Azula and Naruto. "I had never thought you would see me of your own violation, Azula." He told her.

"Nice to see you as well, Uncle." She replied sarcastically.

"Uncle, we've met Chun." Zuko said bluntly.

He looked over at Naruto. "She's dying and wanted to see her daughter." He explained.

"Ah, I see."

"You were the one who gave the doctor the money to save her, didn't you?" Azula asked.

"Yes, I did. What my brother did was unnecessary and cruel. I knew he wouldn't care if she had lived or died, so I gave them money so that she could be saved." He looked at his niece and nephew. "You disapprove?"

"…Uncle, for once, I approve of your actions." She told him.

"I do as well." Zuko agreed.

"Thank you." He fell quiet. "Did Yāo Jing meet her?"

"Yeah, but it didn't end well." Naruto told him. He looked at Zuko and Azula. "You guys go wait outside, there's something I want to ask Iroh in private." They didn't argue; they had gotten their answers.

"What is it, Naruto?" He asked.

"You weren't the only who took care of the money, were you?"

He smiled. "Of course I wasn't."

"Who was the other person?"

"Who do you think it was?" He asked cryptically.

He wasn't annoyed with not getting a straight answer. He smiled. "I guess I should've known."

"Are you going to tell them?" He grew concerned.

"Not unless they desperately want to know."

"You are the only one who knows where she is, Naruto."

"You don't think I know that? She made me swear an oath never to reveal her location."

"They still have a right to know."

"Yeah, but I'm not going to tell them right now." He walked back to the door. "Goodbye, Iroh." He said before walking through the door and closed it.

(Location: Team Avatar)

Appa had landed for the night. Aang and Sokka had already gotten out of the saddle and started setting up camp. Katara was about to join them when Toph spoke. "Katara," She began. "I need your help."

"What is it, Toph?" She asked.

"I need you to write some things down for me." She held a piece of paper. "I wanna send a letter to my parents."

She smiled. "I'll be happy to help." She wrote the message. When she was done, the two walked over to Sokka. "Hey, Sokka?"

"Yes, idiot," He replied.

"Will you stop calling me that?"

"Not until I'm bored with it. What do you need?"

"We need to use Wing. Toph has a letter for her parents." He simply handed the hawk to them. They put the message into the holder and Wing took off, taking its message to Toph's parents.

(Location: Royal Palace)

Yāo Jing had taken a private dinner and was readying herself for bed. It had been a week since the visit to the brothel. She was surprised when she heard someone knocking on the door. But it turned to hate when she saw who it was. "Why are you here?" She said harshly at Naruto.

"Your mother is dead." He simply said.

"So what? Are you expecting me to come to the funeral?"

"The funeral already happened, besides the prostitutes wouldn't have let you anywhere near it."

"Then why are you here?"

"Chun wrote this before she died. She wanted you to read it." He offered a scroll to her. She snatched out of his hands and slammed the door in his face. She walked back into the room and opened the scroll, letting something fall to the ground.

Měi Lì 

By the time you read this, I'll be dead. 

I know you might not love me, you might even hate me. But you are still my daughter and I will never hate you, no matter what you do.

I know you probably want nothing to do with me, but I'm still leaving you something to remember me. I can only hope that you won't destroy it.

Goodbye, my little Měi Lì. I love you, now and forever.

Your mother

Chun

She burned the scroll and threw it into the heath. She picked up what had fallen to the ground. It was a picture of Chun when she was pregnant. On the back of the picture was writing that read:

Chun and little Měi Lì, eight more weeks to go!

Looking back at the picture and at the younger Chun, she could see the resemblance. They both had the same long, dark, wavy hair, the same high cheekbones and the same rosy lips. Their eyes were even the same storm grey color. While Chun's eyes looked cheerful, seductive and content, she knew that her eyes held nothing but promises of fear and cruelty, as while as ambition.

She was tempted to burn the photo as well, but couldn't do it. "My name is Yāo Jing." She finally whispered to the room. For some reason unknown to her, tears began to fall from her eyes.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

For the record, Yāo Jing is still going crazy at the end; I'm just adding fuel to the fire. Plus, it gives me a reason to do the mirror scene.

Also, Ozai can be that cruel, remember what happened to Zuko? That was just for speaking out of turn.

Yes, Combustion Man is going be called the assassin until he dies. Do you honestly expect Sokka to grow up like that and _still_ give his enemies nicknames? At the very least, he can come up with something better than Hawky for a messenger hawk.

If you think about it, while Katara does support him, he's there to keep her from getting too big a head. If he wasn't there in Ba Sing Se, Katara would've never taken help from Jet and would probably have browbeaten everyone else into following her lead. Honestly, if you think about it, every time Katara gets on a streak on how right she is, she gets uppity and a little unbearable. A good example: this chapter.

Yes, I know I made a James Bond reference, it was on purpose. Like I said before, I intend to make the character the James Bond version of that world, with a little private detective thrown in for good measure.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	26. Grudges and Promises

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 26: Grudges and Promises

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Avatar)

They had made camp on the top of a small mountain. They sat around the camp fire, telling ghost stories. Sokka had just finished his. "Well?" He asked them.

"I think I like 'the man with a sword for a hand' better." Aang told him.

"Not my greatest, I'll admit." He agreed.

"Water Tribe slumber parties must stink." Toph commented.

"No, wait! I've got one!" Katara said. "And this is a true Southern Water Tribe story."

"Is this one of those 'a friend of my cousin knew some guy that this happened to' stories?" Sokka asked as he sat down.

"No, it happened to Mom." That got everyone's attention. "One winter when Mom was a girl, a snowstorm buried the whole village for weeks. A month later, Mom noticed she hadn't seen her friend Nini since the storm. So Mom and some others went to check on Nini's family. When they got there, no one was home. Just a fire flickering in the fireplace remained. While the men went out to search, Mom stayed at the house. When she was alone, she heard a voice 'It's so cold and I can't get warm!' Mom turned and saw Nini standing by the fire. She was blue like she had been frozen. Mom ran outside for help, but when everyone came back, Nini was gone."

"Where'd she go?" Sokka asked, desperately trying to hide behind the stump he was sitting against.

"No one knows. Nini's house remains empty to this day, but sometimes, people see smoke coming up from the chimney, like little Nini is still trying to get warm." The silence that followed felt almost scaring.

"Wait!" Toph suddenly cried, placing her hand on the ground. "Guys, did you hear that?" She stood up as the others held each other in fright. "I hear people under the mountain. And they're screaming."

"Nice try." Sokka said after forcing himself to calm down.

"No, I'm serious. I hear something."

"You're probably just jumpy from the ghost stories." Katara told her.

"It just…stopped."

"Alright, now I'm getting scared." Aang declared.

"Hello, children," A voice said from out of nowhere, making Sokka, Aang and Katara scream in fright and hug Toph. The voice came from an old lady standing in the shadows of the forest. "Sorry to frighten." She told them, walking into the firelight. "My name is Hama. You children shouldn't be out in the forest by yourselves at night. I have an inn nearby. Why don't you come back there for some spiced tea and warms beds?"

"Yes, please." Sokka said. She walked away and they followed.

(Location: Royal Palace)

"You got everything, Azula?" Naruto asked her.

"Yes. Where are the others?"

"They're already waiting for us."

"Then let's go." She walked out of her room and Naruto followed her. They walked down the corridor before running into Yāo Jing. They didn't say anything and neither did she. She just kept on walking and so did they.

"I think that's the first time she didn't at least try and kill you or me with a glare." He remarked.

"You're right, it feels…somewhat weird." She looked at him.

"According to the servants, Chun's photo is always with her. It had fallen to the floor one morning and the maid knelt down to pick it up. Yāo Jing almost killed her for doing that until she apologized profusely and fled."

"Are you sure?"

"They would never lie about something like that. She's gotten possessive about it."

"Ironic, isn't it? That she'd be possessive about the photo of the mother she didn't like when she met her."

"I would be too, if I had one."

She flinched when she heard that. "Sorry."

"Why do you people keep apologizing? You're beginning to make it sound like you murder my parents."

Even though it was a joke, she still gave a little wince. Thankfully, they met up with everyone else before he saw it. "There you guys are!" Ty Lee said with a small pout.

"Sorry, she wanted to make sure she had everything." He told her.

"Um…guys? Do we have to do this?" Kori asked hesitantly.

"Yes, we have to." Mai said.

"Come on, Kori, it's your last day here in the Fire Nation." Temari told her. "We might as well spend it having fun."

"I know, but I was supposed to stay a few more weeks." She said sadly.

"I'm sorry that your father sent you a letter saying he wants you to come home earlier than expected, Kori. But what's happened has happened." Azula told her. "Now let's go have some fun."

"Time for shopping!" cheered Ty Lee. The girls all started down the steps leading away from the palace.

"Men," Naruto said to Zuko, Gaara and Kankurō. "This will probably be the last chance to pray to whatever deity or spirit that gives you strength. I'd recommend praying to them, because we will soon be shopping with girls."

"Hey you guys! Hurry up!" Kori called from down the steps.

"We'll be right down!" Naruto told her. They all said a quick prayer and joined them.

(Location: Hama's inn)

"Thanks for letting us stay here tonight." Katara told Hama. "You have a lovely inn."

"Aren't you sweet?" Hama said. "You know you should be careful. People have been disappearing in those woods you were camping in."

"What do you mean 'disappearing'?" Sokka asked.

"When the moon turns full, people walk in and they don't come out. Who wants more tea?" She asked them, holding up the kettle. They all looked at her with nervous expressions. "Don't worry, you all completely safe here. Why don't I show you to your rooms and you can get a good night's rest?"

She took them to their rooms and they went to sleep, or at least tried. Sokka was kept awake by the creaking of the house. After a particular loud one, he grabbed his jian and drew it. Akela, having heard the sound of the jian being drawn, opened his eyes and raised his head. His expression pretty much said "Would you put that thing away? I'm trying to sleep here."

"Sorry, Akela," He said, putting the jian back in its scabbard. "But this place is creepy. I don't know if I'm gonna be able to fall asleep!" The wolf just rolled his eyes and put his head back down. He went back to sleep and within fifteen minutes, Sokka had joined him. When he opened them next, he was half-way on the floor and saw both Hama and Katara standing over him.

"Time to go shopping!" declared Hama.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

"_I hate shopping with girls."_ Zuko, Gaara, Kankurō and Naruto thought in unison as they walked behind the girls. As the guys in the group, they were the pack mules. Zuko and Naruto got lucky when Mai and Azula respectively targeted them as their pack mules. Given that they didn't shop much and as such, didn't buy every single thing they laid eyes on, Zuko and Naruto's load were fairly light. Kankurō and Gaara weren't so lucky.

"Look, another store!" Ty Lee said, pointing at it.

"We noticed." Naruto told her dryly.

"It's another clothes store." Kori pointed out. "We've already been to plenty of those."

"But it's not just any clothes store." Ty Lee said slyly.

"_Oh, please don't tell me it's not what I think it is."_ The guys thought again in unison.

"It's an undergarment store!"

(Location: Team Avatar)

They walked through the marketplace; carrying baskets of food (Sokka used his jian to carry his). "That Mr. Yao seems to have a thing for you." Katara noted. "Maybe we should go back and see if he'll give us some free komodo sausages?"

"You would have me use my feminine charms to take advantage of that poor man?" Hama asked her with a raised eyebrow before cracking a smile. "I think you and I are going to get along swimmingly!"

"You won't have any ash bananas till next week?" They heard a customer ask a shopkeeper.

"Well, I have to send the boy to Hing Wa Island to get them, and it's a two day trip."

"Oh, right. Tomorrow's the full moon."

"Exactly, I can't lose another delivery boy in the woods."

"Something is going on here in this town." Sokka stated.

"Maybe they offended a spirit?" Aang suggested. "I bet if we take a little walk around town, we'll find out what these people did to offend it."

"Not everything that happens to people has to do with the spirits, Aang."

"I know that but I can still help people. It's what I do."

"I never said you didn't."

"Why don't you take all those things back to the inn?" Hama suggested to the group. "I just have to run a couple more errands. I'll be back in a little while."

"This is a mysterious little town you have here." Sokka told her.

"Mysterious town for mysterious children," She replied cryptically before walking away.

They made their way back to the inn and started to put the food away. "That Hama seems a little strange." Sokka told them. "Like she knows something, or she's hiding something."

"That's ridiculous." Katara replied. "She's a nice woman who took us in and gave us a place to stay. She kinda reminds me of Gran-Gran."

"But what did she mean by that comment 'mysterious children'?"

"Gee, I don't know, maybe because she found four strange kids camping in the woods at night? Isn't that a little mysterious?"

"I'm going to take a look around." He walked away.

"Sokka! Sokka, what are you doing?" She asked him as he climbed a staircase. "You can't just snoop around someone's house."

"It'll be fine." He told her as he went looking through rooms.

"She could be home any minute." Aang pointed out.

"Sokka, you're going to get us all in trouble." Katara told him. "And this is just plain rude."

"I'm not finished yet." He replied as he tried to open a cupboard. "Come on!" He managed to open it, revealing puppets shaped like humans. He was surprised but managed to hold himself from stumbling back and drawing his jian.

"Okay, I know Kankurō used puppets, but that's still pretty creepy." Aang admitted.

"So she's got a hobby. There's nothing wrong with that." Katara reasoned as Sokka closed the cabinet and kept on walking. "Sokka, you've looked enough. Hama will be back soon."

He climbed the stairs into the attic and tried to open a door, only to find it locked. "She's just an ordinary puppet-loving innkeeper, huh? Then why does she have a locked door up here?"

"Probably to keep people like you from snooping through her stuff!"

"We'll see." He looked through the keyhole. "It's empty, except for a little chest."

"Maybe it's treasure." Toph suggested. Sokka drew his jian and used it to pick the lock.

"Sokka, what are you doing?" Katara demanded. "You're breaking into a private room!"

"I have to see what's in there." He told her. The lock clinked and the door opened.

"We shouldn't be doing this." Aang said as they walked into the room. Sokka ignored him as he picked up the chest and tried to open it.

"Maybe there's a key around here." He said, realizing it was locked.

"Ooh, hand it over!" Toph told him. He handed her the chest. She took off her bracelet and bent it into the shape of a key, which she stuck into the lock and began to work on it.

"Come on, come on!"

"This isn't as easy as it looks." She remarked while Katara kept looking on nervously.

"Guys, I don't know about this." Aang said.

"This is crazy, I'm leaving!" Katara declared.

"Suit yourself." Sokka told her. "Do it, Toph." As she walked away, Toph successfully managed to pick the lock, opening it. Katara came back as they began to open it.

"I'll tell you what's in the box." Hama said from behind them, catching them by surprise. They turned around to face her while Sokka tried to hide it behind his back. She walked and then waited. He relented and handed the box to her. She took it, opened it and pulled out…a comb.

"It's an old comb?" Sokka asked.

"It's my greatest treasure." She told him. "It's the last thing I own from growing up in the Southern Water Tribe." What she said stunned both Sokka and Katara.

"You're from the Southern Water Tribe?" Katara repeated, making sure she didn't hear wrong.

"Just like you." She said, putting the comb back in the box.

"How did you know?"

"I heard you talking around your campfire."

"But why didn't you tell us?" Sokka asked, suspicious. Ever since he met her, he felt that something felt off about her. The fact that she was from the Southern Water Tribe did nothing to quash that feeling.

"I wanted to surprise you! I bought all this food today so I could fix you a big Water Tribe dinner. Of course, I can't get all the ingredients I need here, but ocean kumquats are a lot like sea prunes if you stew them long enough."

"Great." Aang muttered, remembering his last experience with sea prunes.

"I knew I felt a bond with you right away." Katara said.

"Sorry we were sneaking around." Sokka told Hama.

"Apology accepted." She replied. "Now let's get cooking!"

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

"No." Naruto said.

"Please." Ty Lee asked with a pout.

"No." Zuko said.

"It's for Kori."

"Um…I don't think we actually need them in the store." Kori said.

"There, you see?" Kankurō asked.

"We'll stay out here." Gaara said.

"Forget it, Ty Lee. They're not going to come into the store for undergarments." Mai said.

"Thank you, Mai." Naruto told her.

"But having them in there is half the fun!" Ty Lee complained.

"For you!" accused Kankurō.

"Ty Lee, we do have an excuse not to go in there. It's for the sake of our health." Naruto explained.

"How's that an excuse?" She asked.

"Look at us. We're hot guys. If we go into that store, one of us might realize that we might actually need to get something. So we'll grab it and go to the back to try it on. And I'm pretty sure you remember what happened the last time I did that in a clothes store. Imagine that times four."

"He's got a point, Ty Lee." Kori said with a light blush on her cheeks. "Let's just go inside, please?"

"Fine," She said with annoyance. They walked into the store and began to browse. "What did they think we were going to do to them?" She asked aloud. As if to answer her question, a small knife flew through the air and slammed into the wooden wall in front of her. Attached to the knife was a piece of paper. As the others gathered around her, she looked at the piece of paper, which read:

Do I have to list the reasons I gave at Kouzan again?

Naruto

"How does he keep doing that?" She demanded.

"You're never going to find out, Ty Lee, so drop it." Azula told her before walking away.

(Location: Hama's inn)

After Aang had run to the shed to feed Appa and Momo, everyone sat down to a Water Tribe dinner. "I'd steer clear of the sea prunes." He whispered to Toph.

"I thought they were ocean kumquats." She replied.

"Close enough."

"Who wants five flavor soup?" Hama asked. They raised their hands (Toph shrugged). To their surprise, she bent the soup out of the dish and into their bowls.

"You're a Waterbender!" Katara exclaimed. "I've never met a Waterbender from our tribe."

"That's because the Fire Nation wiped them all out." She replied sadly. "I was the last one."

"So how did you end up out here?" Sokka asked her.

"I was stolen from my home." She said as the memories flashed through her mind. "It was over sixty years ago when the raids started. They came again and again, each time rounding up more of our Waterbenders and taking them captive. We did our best to hold them off, but our numbers dwindled as the raids continued. Finally, I too was captured. I was led away in chains, the last Waterbender of the Southern Water Tribe." Katara walked over and put her hands on her shoulders in comfort. "They put us in terrible prisons here in the Fire Nation. I was the only one who managed to escape."

"How did you get away?" Sokka asked, still suspicious of her. "And why did you stay in the Fire Nation?"

"…I'm sorry. It's too painful to talk about it anymore."

"We completely understand." Katara told her. "We lost our mother in a raid."

"Oh, you poor things," She patted her hand. Everyone fell silent.

"I can't tell you what it means to meet you." Katara told her. "It's an honor. You're a hero."

"I never thought I'd meet another Southern Waterbender. I'd like to teach you what I know so you can carry on the Southern tradition when I'm gone."

"Yes! Yes, of course! To learn about my heritage, it would mean everything to me."

"Hold that thought." Sokka said, standing up. "Sorry, Hama, but our group needs to have a talk."

"Please, don't let me stop you." She told him. The four of them (including Akela) walked out of the house and into the shed.

"What's this all about, Sokka?" Aang asked.

"Katara, I want you to stay away from Hama. Something doesn't feel right about her." He told his sister.

"Enough with your paranoia, Sokka," She said with both exasperation and annoyance. "Hama is one of us. She's from our tribe."

"Then why didn't she go back after escaping the prison? Why did she stay here?"

"That's it! I've had enough of your stupid and baseless paranoia! Tomorrow morning, I am making Appa fly you back home where you can—"

_SMACK!_

The sound echoed through the shed. Aang, Toph, Appa, Momo and even Akela were surprised and caught off guard at what just happened. Sokka had simply walked to his sister and slapped her across the face.

"Katara, for once in your life, you are going to shut up and you are going to listen to your big brother." He told her with complete seriousness. She was too shocked at what happened to speak. "It is true that I have been paranoid, I'm willing to admit that. But I've been paranoid because I have been worried about your safety and then the safety of this team. You seem to have gained the notion that every time I'm paranoid about something, I'm wrong. When I told you what I felt about Colonel Qing, you ignore me and told me to grow up. When I made my feelings about Shù Yè known repeatedly, you told me to stop being paranoid and I tried that.

"Look what happen both times. You led Colonel Qing to the colony and he would've razed it to the ground had Naruto, the others and I not killed him first. Shù Yè turned out to be Naruto and had you listened, we might've not lost Ba Sing Se. You need to get your head out of the clouds, Katara and stay away from Hama."

Hot tears of angry and humiliation fell down Katara's face. "I am going to learn what Hama has to teach me." She told him. "Once I'm done, I expect you to apologize before I have Appa send you home." She turned around and stomped out of the shed.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

They left the undergarment store and kept on walking. "Hey look, a new weapon store." Mai said, pointing at the store.

"Let's see what they got." Kori said. They walked in and started looking around.

"Hey, Zuko," Temari said. "Have you ever thought of getting a new pair of Dao swords?"

"I made the swords I have, Temari. Why would I throw them away?"

"It was just a suggestion."

"Also, I have the distinct feeling if that I throw them, they'd get pissed."

"They'd get pissed?"

"Actually, it's singular, not plural."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm not sure, but I think that my swords are somehow sentient, like there's a spirit living in them."

"How can a sword be sentient?"

"One word, Temari," Naruto said having overheard them. "Just one: Samehada."

"Oh, good point."

Kori was looking at lengths of chain for her spiked meteor hammer when she noticed something. "That's good work right there." She noted, getting everyone's attention.

"It's a prototype." The shop owner explained, coming over. "The belt has dagger scabbards built into it. It might have a little extra weight, but you'll still be able to fight."

"Why has no one bought it?" Mai asked.

"Nobody really uses daggers around here. They've already got a sword, a pike or Firebending." The owner walked away.

"Why don't you buy it, Mai?" Kankurō suggested. "You use daggers."

"I use _knives_." She told him pointedly. "There is a difference."

"What about you, Azula?" Kori asked. "You've trained with daggers."

"True, but father believes that I only need my Firebending. He knows that I've practiced with daggers but that's it. He'll be furious if I bought something that had to do with daggers." While she talked, Zuko and Mai shared a look with each other and nodded.

"That's a pity." Temari said.

"Let's keep going." Ty Lee said.

(Location: Katara and Hama)

They walked away from the village, so they could have privacy. "Growing up in the South Pole," Hama began. "Waterbenders are totally at home surrounded by snow and ice and seas. But as you've probably noticed on your travels, this isn't the case wherever you go."

"I know." Katara agreed. "When we were stranded in the desert, I felt like there was almost nothing I could do."

"That's why you have to learn to control water wherever it exists."

"I've even used my own sweat for Waterbending."

"That's very resourceful, Katara. You're thinking like a true master. But did you know you could even pull water out of thin air?"

"Well, I heard from a friend about someone who could do it, but I thought she was exaggerating."

Hama's response was to bend water out of the atmosphere and covered her fingers with it. "You've got to keep an open mind, Katara." She said as the water froze, turning into ice and giving her claws. "There's water in places you never think about." She hurled the claws at a tree.

Katara watched in amazement.

(Location: Team Avatar)

"This has got to be the nicest natural setting in the Fire Nation." Aang declared. "I don't see anything that would make a spirit mad around here."

"So it could be a human." Sokka pointed out as he stood by a tree with Akela at his side.

"Or maybe the Moon Spirit just turned mean." Toph suggested.

"Toph, the Moon Spirit is a gentle, loving lady. She would never do something like this."

"And you would this how?"

"I knew her when she was still human."

Aang noticed a nearby villager walking by. "Excuse me, sir." He said, running over to him. "Can you tell us anything about the spirit that's been stealing people?"

"Only one man ever saw it and lived." The villager said. "And that's Old Man Ding."

"Where does Old Man Ding live?" Toph asked him grabbing his arm.

(Location: Katara and Hama)

"Wow." Katara said as she and Hama walked through a field of flowers. "These flowers are beautiful."

"They're called fire lilies." Hama told her. "They only bloom a few weeks a year. But they're one of my favorite things about living here. And like all plants, and all living things, they're filled with water."

"I met a Waterbender who lived in a swamp and could control the vines by bending the water inside."

"You can take even further." She spun in a circle, bending the water out of the flowers and then hurled it at a rock, cutting it to pieces.

"That was incredible!" She exclaimed before looking down at the withered flowers. "It's a shame about the lilies though."

"They're just flowers. When you're a Waterbender in a strange land, you do what you must to survive. Tonight I'll teach you the ultimate technique of Waterbending. It can only be done during the full moon, when your bending is at its peak."

"But…isn't that dangerous?" She asked with concern. "I thought people have been disappearing around here during the full moon."

"Oh, Katara. Two master Waterbenders beneath a full moon? I don't think we have anything to worry about." She began to walk out of the field and Katara followed.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

All-in-all, they had a fun day out on the town. If they had been able to take a photo, they would've taken one. It was the kind of day that made it seem like there was nothing wrong. All they had to do was to have fun and be with their friends. But even the day had to obey one of the ancient laws of the universe: All good things must come to an end.

"That was great!" Ty Lee cheered.

"Yeah, it was." Temari agreed.

"Despite being a pack mule, I'd have to agree." Kankurō said.

"Stop complaining, Kankurō." She told her brother. "I saw you at that puppet store. You were surrounded by teenager girls. You looked like you were enjoying yourself."

"Actually, I was trying to make sure I didn't make an ass of myself."

"What I found funny was that Gaara was swarmed by little girls." Naruto said with laughter. "You looked like a big, red-headed teddy bear." He told the Kazekage.

"It was kinda cute to watch." Ty Lee admitted.

"I thought of it as practice." Gaara told them.

"Practice for what?" asked Mai.

"For when I become a father," He answered. They were all surprised when they heard that.

"So you're planning to be the father of a horde of girls? You're going to have your work cut out for you, Gaara." Naruto said, making the others laugh. "But in all seriousness, I think you would make a great dad."

"Thanks, Naruto. I think you would too." That comment managed to make both Naruto and Azula blush at the same time (nobody asked why Azula was blushing, they weren't that dense).

"Well, I know today was fun and all." Kori said, getting everyone's attention. "I better go back to my room and pack." The mood fell somber.

"Come on, Kori." Azula said, placing her hand in her shoulder. "I'll help you pack."

"Thanks Azula." She replied. The two of them walked away and the others dispersed, taking what they bought with them.

(Location: Team Avatar)

Night had fallen at the village. Sokka, Aang, Toph and Akela walked through the streets. "Old Man Ding?" asked Aang as they found the man they were looking for.

The man turned towards them and swung his hammer, accidently hitting his thumb. "Dang blame it!" He swore before looking at them. "What? Can't you see I'm busy? We've got a full moon rising. And why does everyone call me that? I'm not that old." He tried to pick a board and failed. "Well, I'm young at heart." Aang decided to help him with the board. "Not ready to get snapped up by some moon monster yet at least."

"We wanted to ask you about that." Sokka said as he picked up the hammer and started hammering in the nails.

"Did you get a good look at the spirit that took you?" Aang asked.

"Didn't see no spirit, just felt something come over me like I was possessed. Forced me to start walking toward the mountain," He pointed at said mountain. "I tried to fight it, but I couldn't control my own limbs. It just about had me into a cave up there. And I looked up at the moon for what I thought would be my last glimpse of light. But then, the sun started to rise and I got control of myself again, I just high-tailed it away from that mountain as quick as I could!"

"I don't think a spirit would take people to a mountain." Sokka said.

"Oh no!" exclaimed Toph suddenly. "I did hear people screaming under the mountain. The missing villagers must still be there!" They looked at the mountain and without saying a word to Old Man Ding, sprinted towards the mountain and then up it. "I can hear them." She said after putting a hand on the ground. "They're this way." They ran off into a different direction.

(Location: Katara and Hama)

"Can you feel the power the full moon brings?" Hama asked Katara as they walked through the woods on the mountain. She stopped and inhale through her nose. "For generations, it has blessed Waterbenders with its glow, allowing us to do incredible things!" The veins in her arms bulged out, making Katara look at her. "I've never felt more alive!"

(Location: Team Avatar)

"This is the place." Toph declared as they stopped in front of a cave.

"I can't see anything down there." Sokka said.

"That's why you have me." She grabbed his hand. "Let's go." They jumped into the cave and went forward until they ran into a metal wall and door. Undeterred, she bent the metal door off its hinges and knocked it down. They ran down the tunnel with Aang and Sokka carrying torches. They soon found the missing villagers, chained to columns.

"We're saved!" One villager said. Toph got to work getting the people out of their chains.

"I didn't know a spirit made prisons like this." Aang noted. "Who brought you here?" He asked the villagers.

"It was no spirit." A woman said.

"It was a witch." A second villager agreed.

"A witch?" asked Sokka, already getting a bad feeling. "What do you mean?"

"She seems like a normal old woman, but she controls people like some dark puppet master!" The woman explained as Toph undid her shackles.

He realized what she meant. "Hama!"

"Yes, the innkeeper!" The first villager agreed.

"I knew it! I knew there was something off about her!"

"We have to stop Hama!" Aang declared.

"I'll get these people out of here." Toph told them. "You go!"

"Akela, stay with her!" Sokka told the wolf before handing his torch to the woman and running back down the tunnel with Aang.

(Location: Katara and Hama)

As a cat owl hooted and flew away, they faced the moon. "What I'm about to show you," Hama told Katara. "I discovered in that wretched Fire Nation prison." She remembered what happened. "The guards were always careful to keep any water away from us. They piped in dry air and had us suspended away from the ground. Before giving us any water, they would bind our hands and our feet so we couldn't bend. Any sign of trouble was met with cruel retribution.

"And yet each month, I felt the full moon enriching me with its energy. There had to be something I could do to escape. Then I realize that where there is life, there is water. The rats that scurried across the floor of my cage were nothing more than skins filled with liquid and I passed years developing the skill that would lead to my escape. Bloodbending," What she said made Katara nervous. "Controlling the water in another body, enforcing your own will over theirs," She remembered the years of practicing and developing the skill. "Once I had mastered the rats, I was ready for the men. And during the next full moon, I walked free for the first time in decades. My cell unlocked by the very guards assigned to keep me in. Once you perfect this technique, you can control anything or anyone."

"But…to reach inside someone and control them?" Katara asked. "I-I don't know if I want that power."

"The choice is not yours. The power exists. And it's your duty to use the gifts you've been given to win this war. Katara, they tried to wipe us out, our entire culture, your mother!"

"I know."

"Then you should understand what I'm talking about! We're the last two Waterbenders of the Southern Tribe. We have to fight these people whenever we can, wherever they are, with any means necessary!"

That was when she realized that Sokka had been right the entire time. "It's you…you're the one who's been making people disappear during the full moons!"

"They threw me in prison to rot, along with my brothers and sisters! They deserve the same! You must carry on my work!"

"I won't! I won't use Bloodbending and I won't allow you to keep terrorizing this town!" She declared, pointing her finger at her. Suddenly, her arm twisted around. She tried to stop it, but it didn't work.

"You should've learned the technique before you turned against me!" She made her stand stiff. "It's impossible to fight your way out of my grip! I control every muscle, every vein in your body!" She began to play around, treating Katara like she was a puppet.

"Stop, please." She begged as she was forced to her knees with tears in her eyes. Hama only cackled in response. The cackling stopped as Katara forced herself to stand up again. "You're not the only one who draws power from the moon! My bending is more powerful than yours, Hama. Your technique is useless against me!" She declared. She drew water from the ground and threw it at Hama, who returned it. This went on for a few more times, before Hama bent the water out of two trees behind her (which shattered the trees), deflected the attack from Katara and sent it at her. She simply slammed her palmed against it, shattering it into droplets and surprising Hama. She took advantage of the surprise by using her Waterbending to knock her down to the ground.

As she stood up again, Sokka and Aang appeared out of the forest behind her. "We know what you've been doing, Hama!" Sokka told her.

"Give up!" Aang ordered. "You're outnumbered!"

"No!" She replied. "You've outnumbered yourselves." She took control of them both, making them go stiff as a board, and sent them at Katara.

She dodged them and threw water at Hama. Her response was to bend the water out of another tree (destroying it) and bend it into a wheel of water, blocking her attack. "Katara, look out!" Sokka told her as he unwillingly stood back up and drew his jian. He swung wildly at her, forcing her back. She knocked him aside with water she bent out of the ground.

"This feels weird!" Aang declared as he was forced to attack her. She used her water to knock him up against a tree and then froze him there.

"I'm sorry, Aang!" She apologized.

"It's okay!" Sokka came back at her, forcing her to destroy a tree by bending the water out of it and knocking him against a tree, freezing his sword hand against it.

"Don't hurt your friends, Katara!" Hama mocked. "And don't let them hurt each other!" She bent them out of the ice and hurled them at each other.

"NO!" She cried as Sokka's jian was about to pierce Aang. They suddenly stop and had control over themselves. Hama, however, suddenly stiffened. Katara had no other choice. To save her brother and her friend, she had been forced to use Bloodbending on Hama. As she was forced to her knees, everyone heard a howl of a wolf in the air.

"Looks like Toph brought a few friends." Sokka remarked as Toph, Akela and the missing villagers arrived. Hama was clasped in irons.

"You're going to be locked away forever!" One villager declared.

"My work is done." Hama said before looking back at Katara. "Congratulation Katara, you're a Bloodbender." She cackled as she was taken away.

Katara fell to the ground, crying. Both Aang and Sokka knelt beside her to give her comfort. "I'm sorry, Sokka." She sobbed. "I'm sorry I ever doubted you."

"It's okay Katara." He told her.

"No, it's not. You told me the truth and I blew you off, like I always did. I could've seriously hurt someone because of my pride. You and Aang nearly died because I was so arrogant."

"It's over, Katara." He gave her a hug. "She's gone and she won't be able to hurt anyone where she's going."

"But it's still my fault."

(Location: Royal Palace)

Azula walked down a corridor, going to her room. "Where's your friend?" Yāo Jing asked standing against the wall. "That colony trash, where's she at?"

"Kori is not trash, Yāo Jing." She replied, turning to face her. "You would do well to remember that."

"You still haven't answered my question. Where is she?"

"Why do you even care?"

"I'm curious."

"She left. She went back home."

"That's a pity. I was hoping to get to know her better."

Her hands covered themselves in blue flames. "You touch her, you even look at her, and I'll…!"

"You'll what?" She asked with a smug smirk.

"I'll burn your photo of Chun." She was suddenly slammed into the wall behind her. Yāo Jing held her there by her neck and was slowly choking her.

"You do that and I will give you a slow horrible death!" She snarled. Her eyes were furious and yet…scared. She was actually scared that the photo would be destroyed.

"If I were you, Yāo Jing," Naruto said from behind her, the sound of a jian being drawn echoing through the corridor. "I would let her go unless you want your head flying through the air without your body attached."

She let Azula go, letting her fall to the ground. She started to walk away when Azula stopped. "Do you wish you had more time to spend with her? Or so you could get to know her more?" She asked as Naruto helped her up.

"It doesn't matter and it's none of your business." She told them without turning to face them. She kept on walking.

"Do you really need to antagonize her, Azula?" Naruto asked as he put the jian away.

"She threatened Kori." She answered as they walked to her room.

"So you threatened her with Chun's photo?"

"It was the only thing I knew that would get to her. I didn't think the reaction would be that extreme."

"Did you forget our conversation this morning? You know; the one about the maid?"

"I'm sorry, okay?" They fell silent as they entered her room. "What's wrong, Naruto?" She asked.

He stayed at the door. "Why was that letter a forgery?"

She froze. "W-what are you talking about?"

"I'm not an idiot, Azula. I know you forged that letter from Mr. Morishita. Now I want to know why."

"Because…" She tried to say it.

"Because…?" He repeated, albeit as a question.

"I was trying to protect her."

"…Continue."

"You heard what Yāo Jing said and you know what she meant. I wasn't about to let Kori be in trouble because of family politics. I knew that the safest place for her to be right now is at Yu Dao, at her home."

"Why didn't you just tell her to leave?"

"She had been looking forward to this trip and I didn't want to hurt her feelings by making her leave early and I didn't want her to hate me."

"So you made that letter."

"To protect her from my family," She said with complete seriousness. "And…well, to protect her from the other thing as well."

"I see. You did this to protect a friend."

"Yes, I did."

"So you finally managed to find your answer."

She nodded. "It took me a while. I couldn't really figure it out until after what happened to us in Ba Sing Se. Then it came to me. Slowly, I began to figure it out. I finally got it after Ember Island and after I met Chun."

"So what is your answer?" He knew that she knew it, but he wanted to hear her say it.

She took a deep breath and looked him straight in the eye. "My friends and my family are important to me. If anyone harms them, that person will know suffering and pain." She vowed.

He smiled. "I see. Then it's a good thing I sent a messenger hawk to Mr. Morishita, explaining what you did and asking him to play along." He turned around. "Azula, if you consider family important, then will you still follow your father?"

"Leave that to me." She told him. "I'll handle that when the time comes."

"As you wish," He bowed to her. "Goodnight, Azula."

"Goodnight, Naruto." She heard the door close behind her. "Yeah, I'll handle it." She muttered to herself with a bit of self-mocking. "Like it'll be that easy."

**End**

**Author's note:** Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

For the record, I've been planning that slap. I've planning it ever since the beginning. To me, this was one of those episodes that could've been avoided if Katara had just thought with her head instead of her heart. Just because someone is from the same place as you, doesn't they're on your side. It doesn't even mean that they share the ideals either. If she was captured by the Fire Nation, escaped and then stayed there, she was not going to be playing with dolls and being the nice old lady that entire time.

It had also come to the point where I felt that Sokka really needed to do something about Katara every time she thinks he's wrong. And nothing gets your attention and shuts you up at the same time better then a slap across the face.

Kori left. Did you really expect her to be there when the invasion happened? That would've made me keep her around until the Boiling Rock or have her come with them. At that point, things would've gotten way too complicated.

Sorry if I was a little short on the Royal Family side of the story. I knew if I kept to just Team Avatar, there would be those of you who complain about it. Also, I've never really had one of those days myself, so I'm just guessing what would happen based on what I've read (and I'm not just talking about Fanfiction here). Personally I would never be a pack mule. If that was me, I would tell the girl to carry her own damn bags. She bought them, she can haul them. You don't like it, tough shit.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	27. Insomnia and Gifts

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 27: Insomnia and Gifts

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Avatar)

They pushed their way out of the bushes to see koala sheep sleeping the grass. "This is it." Sokka said as he looked at the map. "The official rendezvous point for the invasion force."

"How did you pick this place?" Toph asked him.

"Before we split up, my dad and I found this island on the map. It's uninhabited, and the harbors surrounded by cliffs seemed like the perfect secluded place."

"Nice choice, Sokka." Katara told her brother as they set up camp. "And we're here four days ahead of schedule."

"Wait, four days!?" Aang asked, leaping up into the air and freaking out. "The invasion's in four days?"

Sokka yawned. "That's four days from now. Relax, Aang." He went to sleep the minute his head hit the sleeping bag. Akela slept next to him.

"Sokka's got the right idea, Aang." Katara said. "We're here. We're ready. The best thing we can do now is get plenty of rest." She lay down on her sleeping bag.

"…I guess." He agreed reluctantly. He lay down on the ground and tried to go to sleep.

(Location: Aang's dream)

The doors to the throne room were knocked down and Aang came in, with a large amount of hair, a headband and a yellow jump suit. "Your days of tyranny are over, Fire Lord!" He declared, doing poses that would have made any of the Konoha Eleven slap him across the face. "I'm bringing you down!"

The supposed Fire Lord (who looked nothing like the Royal Flaming Asshole) put the bundle of grapes he was about to eat and looked at him. "Really?" He asked. "How do you plan on doing that when you're not even wearing pants?"

He looked down. Sure enough, there were no pants. "Oh no!" He cried, pulling a cover with the Air Nomad symbol on it out of thin air (it's a dream, he can do that). Eyeballs began to appear out of nowhere and looked at him before disappearing.

"Not having pants isn't your biggest concern right now." A voice from behind him said. He turned around and saw Naruto with his jian out and ready to use. "That would be me." Before Aang could say anything, he flew towards the pants-less Airbender, swinging his jian.

He awoke with a gasp and furiously checked his pants, making sure they were still there. His actions woke up the resident lemur. "It was just a dream, Momo." He said with relief. "I still have my pants." He stood up. "Well, I better keep training." He walked and started his training, which was basically kicking a bush repeatedly. Momo just went back to sleep.

(Location: Royal Palace)

Azula was awake but was planning on not opening her eyes. She was planning on staying one with her bed. That is, until her sixth sense went off and she rolled off the bed to avoid a knife flying at her. "I hate you, Naruto." She growled from the other side of the bed.

"No, you don't." He replied with a grin. "Besides, I had to wake you up somehow."

"You couldn't have just shaken me awake?"

"Why would I do that when I can train you at the same time?" He walked over with her clothes. He put them on the bed, then went to the door and waited.

Azula glared at him briefly before started to change. She could still remember the first time she woke up and there were no servants waiting on her. Naruto had told the servants not to come in to her room to dress her. She had yelled at him, demanding who was going to dress her. "You have arms and hands." He had answered with a calmness that she had found infuriating. "I assumed you knew how to use them."

From that day on, she had dressed herself. She hated doing it at first, but had eventually grown used to it. When Naruto offered to have the servants come back, she said no.

She had finished dressing herself. "I'm done." She told Naruto.

"Good to know." He answered, turning to face her. "What do you want to do before the party?"

She thought it over and shrugged. "Let's see how Zuko is doing."

"Lead the way."

(Location: Team Avatar)

Katara, Sokka and Toph woke to the sounds of Aang punching a tree, repeatedly. "Hey, how long have you been up?" Katara asked, walking over to him.

"A couple hours," He answered as he circled the tree, hitting it as he went. "I got a lot more skills to refine if I'm gonna fight Ozai." He stopped and started to pant.

"You know, there is such a thing as overtraining." He didn't listen to what she said, he just punched the tree. It made him fall down and had all the leaves fall out of the tree on top of him. This made the others look at what was going on (Toph was looking in a different direction).

"You don't get it, do you?" He asked Katara as he got out of the leaves. "My form is bad, I'm sloppy and I still don't know any Firebending. Not even the basics."

"The eclipse will block off the Firebending, Aang." Sokka pointed out. "You don't need to know it."

"Okay, well I still have to work on everything else. I better spend the whole day training." He quickly bowed to both Sokka and Katara before running off on an air ball.

"This will go on for a while, won't it?" Sokka asked his sister.

"I hope not." She replied.

"I hear that. But now I have to do something that's probably going to take most of the day."

"What's that?" Toph asked.

He turned to face Akela, who was still covered in black soot. "Time to give you a bath," He announced. That was one of the few times the members of Team Avatar saw the wolf cringe and have his tail droop between his legs. "Akela, don't make this harder than it has to be." He warned as the wolf began to back away. "You were the one who jumped into the soot; you knew this was gonna happen."

The wolf tried to run, but didn't get far due to the fact Sokka had leapt for him and wrestled him to the ground. It took the combined efforts of Katara, Toph and Sokka to give the wolf a bath. He kept struggling to escape and had almost succeeded twice.

By the time they were done, it was time for lunch. Akela's fur was now white again, but he kept glaring at everybody. He finally forgave them when everyone was going to sleep. That was when Aang reappeared. He walked back into camp, yawned and fell to the ground.

"Good night, Katara." He said. "Good night, Sokka. Good night, Toph. Good night, Appa. Good night, Momo. Good night, Akela. Good night, Appa and Mo—"

"Go to sleep already!" Toph yelled at him. He flinched, but followed her instructions.

(Location: Aang's dream)

The doors were knocked and Aang stood before them. He snapped his fingers and smoke began to pour in. He ran in and stood before the Fire Lord. "Your days of tyranny are over, Fire Lord. I'm bringing you down!" He looked down for a brief moment. "And this time I brought pants." He had indeed brought pants; they were covered in chains and locks.

"So it seems." The Fire Lord remarked. "But are you prepared for…your mathematics test?" A giant abacus slammed into the ground behind Aang.

"Math test? Oh no! I forgot all about the math test!"

"Well, here it is." Naruto said from above him. He looked up and all he saw was a jian coming down at him. He came awake with a gasp.

"I gotta be ready." He declared. He got up, walked away from the camp and began training again. This time, he circled a group of sleeping koala sheep. However, his noise woke Katara and she came over.

"Aang, it's the middle of the night." She told him. "You need to go back to sleep."

"But I forgot my pants and my math test." He replied, making her confused for a moment.

She took a deep breath and stopped him. "Aang, sleep," She told him. "Please, for me." He looked at her. He had bags under his eyes, showing how long he had going without sleep. He nodded in agreement and she led him back to the camp.

(Location: Royal Palace)

Azula knocked on her brother's door. "What is it, Azula?" He asked, opening the door.

"I was wondering if I could get a look at my present." She said innocently.

"No. You'll get it at the party tonight."

"So there is a present."

"Of course there is. It's your birthday; you thought I wouldn't get you a present?" He was right. It was Azula's fifteenth birthday and he made sure to get her a present.

"Well that's good to know." Naruto said. "The one problem I've got is that war meeting."

"Let it go already, Naruto." Azula told him.

"He knows today's your birthday and yet, he's still having the meeting."

"Wait, what meeting?" Zuko asked.

He looked at him. "You mean you didn't hear? The Royal Flaming Asshole decided to have an important war meeting today."

"Why haven't I heard of this meeting? I didn't get an invitation."

"Probably because it's so obvious that you should be there," Azula told him, making it sound like she was speaking to an idiot.

"Azula, be nice." Naruto told her before looking at Zuko. "The meeting's in about a half hour."

"Why so early?"

"He's not completely inconsiderate." He pointed his thumb at Azula. "So, will you go know that you know?"

He thought it over. "The last time I showed myself uninvited to a war meeting, I got myself in trouble. If my father wants me to be there, I'll gladly go. Until then, I'll just stay out of the way."

"You're sure?"

"Yes."

"Alright, we'll go now." He and Azula walked out of his room.

"I'm surprised." She said. "I thought he would've started acting like a child when he heard about it."

"He's grown up, Azula." He replied. "He's trying to learn restraint. If he wasn't invited, then he'll accept it."

"But we both know that Father wants him there."

"So he'll send a messenger to get him, we both know that."

(Location: Aang's dream)

"Wake up, Aang." He heard someone say. "Wake up, sleepy head." He opened his eyes and saw Ozai (the actual Ozai) standing over him. "Rise and shine!" You overslept. You missed the invasion." The Fire Lord began to laugh and that was when Aang realized he was riding a flying hippo cow that could breathe fire.

He woke up. "SOKKA, GET UP! I NEED TO KNOW WHAT DAY IT IS!" He practically shouted at the sleeping Water Paragon.

"What? Who's talking?" Sokka asked as he woke up, his hand going for his jian and drawing it. Realizing he wasn't in any danger, he put it back and tried to go back to sleep.

"Relax; it's still two days before the invasion." Toph said grouchily as she and Katara woke up.

"Sokka, you've gotta get up and drill your rock-climbing exercises." Aang said as he tried to get him up.

"What?" He asked.

"In one of my dreams, you were running from Fire Nation soldiers, trying to climb this cliff, but you were too slow and they caught you!"

"That was just a dream, Aang. I'm a good climber."

"Then climb that cliff! Climb it fast!"

"No." He said.

He turned around and saw Toph about to drink something. "Don't drink that!" He shouted at her.

She spat it out and hit Katara. "Why? Is it poison?" She asked as Katara bent the water off.

"In my dream, we were right in the middle of the invasion and you had to stop to the bathroom! We died because of your tiny bladder. And you need to start wearing your hair up." He told Katara. "In my dream, your hair got caught in a train and OW!" He said that last part due to the fact that Sokka had hit him across the back of his head and Akela bit him in the leg.

"Would you calm down?" Sokka asked him.

"Aang, I know you're just trying to help, but you really need to get a grip. You're unraveling." Katara told him

He took a deep breath to calm down. "You're right. I'm losing my mind." He began to pace around the camp, his eye twitching and playing with his fingers. "It's like every time I think about how stressed I am, I just end up more stressed. I'm like a big, growing snowball of nerves."

"Of course you are." Sokka said, looking up from the piece of armor he was working on for Akela. "That's 'cause you gotta fight the Fire Lord, one of the most evil people on this planet. If you don't win, we're done for."

"Sokka, you're not helping." Katara told her brother.

"What? It's true. That's the deal. He knows it." He stood up as he talked to her. She tried to force him to sit down again, but he swatted her hand away and glared at her. She looked away and walked over to Aang, who was getting more nervous.

"You know what?" She said to him. "I've got just the thing! Get ready to be de-stressified!" She led him to a hot springs underneath the ground. "These yoga stretches can really work wonders if you do them in extreme heat. Reach up." She placed her hands together and stretched them over her head. "Reach for the sun." He followed her example. "Feel your chi paths clearing." They stretched side to side before bending down and touching their heads to the ground. "Now close your eyes. How are you feeling?"

"I feel…really warm." He told her.

"Good, good. Go on."

"Like there's this warm feeling all around me. This heat…like I'm in the Fire Lord's palace and he's shooting a bunch of fireballs at me! And the whole world is being engulfed in flames!" He began to freak out again.

"Maybe your stress is the kind you need to talk out." She suggested. This led to him having somewhat of a therapy session with Sokka.

"So what is bothering you?" Sokka asked him as he rested his head on a koala sheep.

"You know what's been bothering me. I have to face the Fire Lord in a few days."

"But why are you so afraid of him?"

"You said it yourself. He's the most evil person on the planet!"

"I said that he's _one_ of the most evil people in the world. There's never just one evil person, there are always more."

"Well, I'm supposed to face this one and saved the world!"

"Actually, it's more like just this side of the planet."

"Okay, but what can I do to feel better?"

"Want to try screaming into this?" He offered him a koala sheep. He took it and screamed into the fur. "…Didn't work?"

"What do you think?" He said as he handed the koala sheep back.

(Location: Royal Palace)

The meeting was over. Sure enough, Naruto had been right. Ozai had sent Zuko's servant, Há, to get him. "So, how did it go?" Mai asked Zuko as he exited the chambers. He had told her about the meeting just as Há had arrived to get him.

"…When I got to the meeting, everyone welcomed me." He said in a slightly surprised voice as they walked away. "My father had saved me a seat. He wanted me next to him. I was literally at his right hand."

"Zuko, that's wonderful." She told him. "You must be happy."

They stopped and stared at a painting of Ozai. "During the meeting, I was the perfect prince." He said. "The son my father wanted. But I wasn't me."

She gave him a hug. "Don't let it get to you." She let go of him. "Come on, we still have a birthday to attend to." He smiled as they walked away. As they did, Azula and Naruto came out of the chambers.

"I cannot believe you said that to him!" Azula said to her bodyguard.

"It had to be said." He replied.

"You threatened the Fire Lord in his own war meeting!"

"It wasn't a threat, it was a warning."

"But…did you have to make it in front of everyone?"

"Yes." He answered firmly. "We both know that he's been thinking about it ever since I came here. If I hadn't warned him, he might've actually tried to do it."

"I…guess you're right." She gave a small smile. "Although I will admit that seeing Yāo Jing flabbergasted at what you said was a perk."

"I'm glad I made you happy." He took a look back at the chamber entrance. "We might as well leave. We don't want to stay around and have a 'polite' conversation with Yāo Jing or the Royal Flaming Asshole."

"Do you have to keep calling him that?" She asked with exasperation as they started to walk away.

"It's a habit and one I'm not willing to drop."

(Location: Team Avatar)

"Alright," Toph said. "What you need is a good old-fashioned back pounding to relieve yourself."

"Pound away," Aang told her. He was lying on a bed of pillars. She began to stomp on the ground, bending the pillars to randomly pound into his back. "Ah! Ow! Ah! Toph…I…think…this…is…bruising…me!" She stopped pounding, but he literally vibrated off the bed.

"Sorry, I forgot you have baby skin." She apologized as he sat back up. "Well, there's one other thing we can try." She stomped on the ground again and something in the distance flew into the air and landed in her hand. "Acupuncture," She declared with a big grin, holding a boar-q-pine in her hand.

When he heard that and saw the animal in her hand, his legs suddenly found strength again. He decided to do what any sane person would do when offered by a blind girl to have sharp, pointy things stuck in their body. He ran away screaming.

(Location: Royal Palace)

The birthday party had gotten underway. People were still coming into the ballroom and offering their congratulations to the birthday girl. "This is starting to become annoying." She muttered.

"What do you mean 'starting'?" Mai asked beside her. "It's not even my birthday and I feel like I want to kill somebody."

"Uh…Mai, you feel like that every time someone is annoying you." Kankurō said.

"I beg your pardon?" She asked, her hand reaching for one of her hidden knives.

"Mai, could you please not kill my brother?" Temari asked her. "We still need him, despite how idiotic he acts sometimes."

"Hey, I'm not the only one who's done that!" He retorted.

"Knock it off, you two." Gaara told them. "We're in the middle of a party."

"Sorry Gaara." The two apologized.

"Personally, I just hope that they don't bring boys to meet you and offer wedding proposals." Ty Lee stated. "I think I'd be sick just watching them try to impress you."

"That's not going to happen." Naruto and Zuko said at the same time, making the group look at them.

"What did you do?" Azula demanded with a scowl.

They shared a look before shrugging. "We might've gone to all the noble houses that had teenage sons." Zuko admitted.

"And we may or may not have threatened them with horrifying deaths if they even thought of proposing to you." Naruto said. He looked at Zuko. "Which threats did we use again?"

"Let's see." He thought it over. "There was being slowly burned alive."

"Right, I remember that one. We also used suddenly being drafted."

"There was the threat of being decapitated with a small, rusty knife."

"Did we use getting lost at sea?"

"Yes and being stampeded by komodo rhinos."

"Okay, we get it." Mai said, interrupting them.

"And why exactly did you feel the need to do that?" Azula asked them, being extremely annoyed. "I could've handled them myself."

"Actually, it was more along the lines of so we wouldn't have to hear them trying to get you to like them. We agreed that your birthday party should not be a bloodbath." Zuko explained.

"Thank you for your consideration." Azula told her brother with obvious sarcasm. "Besides, the only way any boy would be able to court me is if they defeated me in an Agni Kai."

"Um…going by that statement," Naruto said, his cheeks blushing. "The only person who'd be able to marry you is me." This made Azula also blush and made them avoid eye contact. The rest of the group shared a silent groan. _"Will these two just admit their feelings already?"_ They thought._ "This is getting pathetic."_

Ty Lee saw someone in the crowd. "Quick, hide me!" She cried, leaping behind Azula's back.

"Ty Lee? What's wrong?" Mai asked her friend.

"It's my mother and sisters, they're coming this way!"

"Form a line!" Azula ordered the group in a whisper. They all quickly got into a line to hide Ty Lee.

"Princess Azula, my congratulations to you." Ty Lee's mother said as she and the Ty Lee lookalikes stood in front of her. "I beg your pardon, Princess, but have you seen my daughter?"

"I see six of them." She answered, looking at the six lookalikes.

"Ty Lee, your Highness. We haven't seen her since she's come back."

"She's been living with us."

"But where is she now?" Lookalike number 1 asked.

"Yeah, we thought she would've been here." Lookalike number 4 said.

"I think she said something about going back to the circus." Naruto told them.

Lookalike number 6 snorted. "That's just like Ty Lee. She could've done something respectable."

"Instead, she joined the circus." Lookalike number 3 finished. "Could she do anything worse?"

He glared at them. "Be glad we're in the middle of a party, otherwise I would've clocked you both upside the head for that insult." He threatened.

"I'm half-tempted to let him." Azula said.

"Apologize, you two." Their mother snapped at them.

"Sorry." They apologized, but their faces didn't show a single iota of remorse.

"C'mon, Mom," Lookalike number 2 said. "It's obvious she's not here."

"I'm sorry for taking up your time, your Highness." The mother and the lookalikes bowed and then walked away.

"Some friend she is." Lookalike number 5 muttered, loud enough for them to hear her.

"If I tried to skewer her to the wall with a knife, would you guys tried to stop me?" Mai asked; her expression murderous and her fingers itching to grab a knife handle.

"Are you kidding?" Temari asked. "I'd give you the knife."

"Same here," Kankurō agreed.

"I could hold her down if you want." Naruto offered.

"I would help." Gaara said.

"Are…are they gone?" Ty Lee asked from behind Azula.

"Yes, they've left the party." Azula told her. "I guess they just wanted to find you."

"Sorry guys." She apologized. "They've been trying to get me to come back and find a husband."

"They want you to come back just for that?" Temari repeated, incredulous.

"Assholes," Kankurō swore, throwing a glare at the exit where they had left.

"I can see why you left for the circus now." Gaara said to Ty Lee. "It has done wonders for you."

"You really think so?" She asked.

"Of course it did." Naruto reassured her.

(Location: Team Avatar)

Night had fallen again. "Thanks for everything, guys." Aang said as he held his legs.

"So, do you feel less stressed?" Katara asked him. "Ready for a good night sleep?"

"Uh…I kinda think I sorta might feel slightly feel a little better…maybe."

"I guess we're good then." Sokka declared before yawning and laying his head to rest. Both Katara and Toph followed his example. Aang put his down on the ground and closed his eyes.

(Location: Aang's dream)

This dream came and went in flashes. First, he was steering Appa through a storm while avoiding a giant Momo. Then he found himself in the Fire Nation Royal Palace. He saw Toph, who had no eyes, disappearing into the ground before him. He saw Sokka trying to run away, only to be smothered by the earth. He saw Katara surrounded by flames. He went to go help her, but his feet were frozen. The ice spread to his entire body, holding him in place. A fire had taken the shape of Ozai and started laughing. The heat melted the ice and made him fall into water. As he sank, he hit bottom and the world flip over. The bottom of the water became the layer of ice that trapped him. As he looked through the ice, he saw Zuko standing above him, the comet flying through the sky. Then he found himself standing on a small hill, looking out at a green field with mountains in the background. The comet crashed into the ground and turned everything into a scarred wasteland.

As he looked on, he felt a giant burst of pain. He looked down and saw a jian sticking out of his chest, blood dripping from the blade. "This is all happened because of you." Naruto's voice whispered in his ear. "You should not exist, Avatar."

He woke up screaming that woke up everyone, even Appa. "What happened, Aang?" Katara asked him as she, Toph and Sokka ran over to him.

"It's the nightmares." He told them. "They just keep getting worse and worse!"

"Do we need to talk again?" Sokka asked him.

"No, that won't help! Nothing helps. There's only one thing I can do. I'm going to stay awake straight through the invasion!" He started to shake and twitched when he said, making the others look at him like he had lost his mind (Toph just smiled). Knowing there was nothing they could say that would change his mind, all they could was go back to sleep. The next morning, as Katara stood on a cliff-face and stretched, he was walking around behind her. "Invasion," He muttered. "All aboard for the invasion."

'You don't look so good." She told him, walking over to him. "You sure you can't just lie down for a little nap?"

"I told you, I can't go back to sleep." He replied, turning to face her.

"Aang, staying up all night can't be good for you."

"Actually, staying up all night has given me time to think. And I've realized some big things, Katara." He looked out at the sea.

"What big things?"

"I see everything so clearly now. What really matters, and why I'm really doing this." He turned back to face her. "I'm doing this to save the world. But more than that, I'm doing for the people I love." He walked right up to her. "I'm doing it for you, Katara."

"Aang, what are you saying?"

"I'm saying…I love you!" He kissed her. After being caught off guard, she smiled and returned the kiss.

"What are we doing?" She asked in a whisper.

"What our hearts have been telling us to do for a long, long time. Baby," He dipped her. "You're my forever girl." He puckered up for another kiss.

"Aang!" Her voice snapped him out of the daydream he was having. "I was just saying you should take a nap."

"Oh, I guess I kinda drifted into a daydream." He told her, quickly turning back to face her.

"What was your dream about?"

"Um…living underwater?" He said, although he made it sound like a question.

"Sounds neat," She walked away as he chuckled nervously. Once she was away, he breathed a sigh of relief.

(Location: Royal Palace)

The party had gone on. After everyone had given their congratulations to Azula, it was decided to give the presents. Each family came up to as she sat at the head of the table, Naruto standing at her side. Many gave her a present that was something she didn't want or need. Her father wasn't one to give her a present (she had been expecting that), and neither was Yāo Jing (she figured that, if anything, she would somehow turn the present into something that'll kill her). Which was why her friends decided to go last in the giving of presents, that way, she had something to look forward.

After the last family had given her their present (a gem that had been in their family for ten generations), a servant stepped forward, holding a roll of paper. "Princess Azula, your friend, the Lady Kori, had left this for you. She said that she was sad that she could not give to you personally." He unraveled the paper and showed it to her and to the crowd. It was a painting, done in color, of Kori, Azula, Mai and Ty Lee.

It had been when they were in Yu Dao. They decided to relax one afternoon in the mayor's garden. As they lounged around, a nearby artist was trying to find inspiration. He saw them and asked them if he could paint them. They agreed and he got to work. He didn't have them pose; he wanted them to go on as they were. Once he was done, he thanked them and left. Before she had left for the capital, Kori tracked down the artist and asked if she could have the painting. He happily gave it to her once she explained it was for the Princesses birthday, which he had painted.

The painting showed them lounging in front of a large tree. Ty Lee was sitting on her elbows as she watched the game of Pai Sho that both Azula and Kori were playing. Mai was sitting opposite of Ty Lee and was fiddling with a small knife. Azula and Kori were sitting on opposite sides of the Pai Sho table. Both managed to look focused and relaxed at the same time as they focused on the game in front of them. Azula's arms were crossed, while Kori's right hand hovered above a Pai Sho piece, deciding whether to move it or not.

"It is a magnificent piece of work." Azula declared as she looked at the painting. "I wish Kori could be here, so I could thank her in person for this gift." The servant bowed, rolled up the painting carefully and walked away.

The Sand Siblings stepped forward. "Princess Azula," Gaara began. "Our gift to you is this." He offered a small statuette of Azula's mother, Ursa, made out of sandstone. "We know that your mother has disappeared, but we hoped that this would give you a small amount of comfort and would also help you remember her."

She reached out and took the statue hesitantly. Ursa's hands were folded together. Her stance was regal, but not cold or rigid. She wore a small smile on her face. As Azula held the statue, the smile seemed to speak of her love and care for both of her children. "Thank you." She told the Sand Siblings. "I will treasure this, for it does remind me of my mother." She handed the statuette to a servant, who carried it away.

The Sand Siblings stepped away and Ty Lee walked forward. "This is my gift to you, Azula." She offered a pair of gloves. "I helped make them. It's made from the finest leather in the Fire Nation."

She took the gloves and looked closer at them. They were made of black leather and were fingerless. There were holes where her knuckles would go and an open space on the back. The ends would be held closed by use of a button. "Thank you, Ty Lee." She said as she tried on the gloves. "These are quite striking and are also useful."

She lit up with a brilliant smile. Knowing that hugging her friend right now would've been frowned on, she bowed and walked away.

Mai walked forward. "My gift to you, Azula, is this." She held a belt, but it wasn't just any belt, it was the belt from the weapons store. "I saw you making eyes at it and figured you might want it."

Both Azula and Naruto smirked as she took the belt. They knew that if she had bought the belt herself, Ozai would've mad. But if she had gotten it as a gift, there was nothing he could do. "Thank you, Mai. I thought you would've brought some daggers with it as well." Mai didn't say anything. She simply stepped aside.

Zuko stepped forward, the last in the line. "This is my gift to you, Azula." He said. He held a small pillow in his hands and on the pillow, rested two identical daggers. "I forged them myself from Yu Dao metal. Well, forged one and re-forged the other."

She took the daggers and looked at them. The blades were straight and double-edged, so one could slash with either edge. Their handles were black and made of leather. They had a cross guard made of simple metal.

She then noticed an inscription on one of them. "Never give up without a fight." She whispered, only Naruto and Zuko heard her. This was the dagger that Zuko had gotten when Iroh had broken through the Outer Wall of Ba Sing Se. It was the dagger that she wanted herself. Now, he was giving it to her as a gift, of his own free will. Then she noticed that the other dagger held an inscription as well. "Always remember Lesson number 3" She read quietly. She looked quickly at her bodyguard, who gave her a wink.

"Thank you, Zuko." She said as she placed the daggers in the belt built-in scabbards. "I will be sure to cherish this gift." She stood up and faced the crowd. "I thank you for your gifts." She announced to them.

Ozai also rose. "Now, let us eat." He clapped his hands once as everyone gathered around the tables. "Bring in the feast!"

(Location: Team Avatar)

Aang was hiding in a bush. He leapt out into the open and rolled behind a rock. "Put'em up, Fire Lord!" He declared. His opponent was a tree with the picture he made out of noodles and a target beneath it. He leapt into the air and fired a couple of blasts of air at the target. They flew overhead and hit Sokka, knocking him down.

"Hey, I'm trying to build Appa some armor here so he doesn't have to go into the invasion naked." He told the sleep-deprived Airbender. "He's _your_ bison."

"Ozai's defense is impeccable." He said, ignoring Sokka. "I'll have to try a different approach." He leapt into the air and threw about four punches of air at the tree. When he landed, he found out that he had missed all four times. "You think you're untouchable, don't you, Mr. Fire Lord?" He accused the tree.

"Boy, you are really starting to lose it, kid." A voice from behind him said. He turned around and saw Momo.

"Momo, did you hear something?" He asked before turning to check around him.

"No, but I said something." He turned to face the lemur and saw that was him who was talking. "You, my friend, are just a few plums short a fruit pie." Momo told him. He took a step back, shook his head and covered his eyes with his hands. When he opened them again, the lemur was speaking in his normal chitter.

"That's more like it." He said, briefly patting Momo's head. "I'm so tried that for a second there, I imagined you were talking to me." The lemur just cocked his head. "Oh, Momo, let me explain." He began to speak like the lemur. While he and Momo were having this 'conversation', the others saw them.

"Aang?" Katara got his attention. "We're all starting to get a little worried about you."

"You've been awake too long." Sokka stated.

"And you're acting downright weird." Toph told him.

"You've got to take care of yourself. You can't go on like this." Appa declared. Nobody seemed to notice that the sky bison was standing on two legs and talking!

Aang groaned. "Look, I appreciate what you guys are saying. But the stress and the nightmares, they were just too much. Staying awake is the best way to deal with it."

"Yeah, leave the kid alone!" Momo told them, surprising Aang.

"Hey, who ask _you_?" Appa demanded. They began growling at each other.

"Guys, come on." Aang tried to calm them down.

"No! I am sick of this guy always mouthing off and telling me what to do."

"Oh, you don't like it?" Momo asked him. "Well, let's go right now!"

"Would you two knock it off?" Akela asked them, finally speaking. "What are you going to do? Slug it out like samurai?"

"Sokka, what should we do?" Aang asked Sokka, grabbing his shirt.

"About what?" Sokka asked.

"About that!" He pointed at Momo and Appa. Both were dressed up in samurai clothing, Momo wore the fur at the top of his head in a topknot and wore a blue yukata. Appa wore samurai armor that was colored red with an arrow on the helmet. While the lemur was only wielding one katana, the sky bison was using three.

Akela groaned. "I just had to open my mouth. I'm not doing commentary this time!" He yelled at the two before turning his head to Sokka. "Wake me when they're done."

"Sure thing, Akela." He replied. The wolf padded away. Meanwhile, Momo and Appa charged at each other, screaming battle cries. Their swords clashed together and they stayed there, trying to push the other back.

Meanwhile, the koala sheep had broken into parties, one for the lemur, and one for the bison. "Appa! Appa! Appa!" cheered one group. "Momo! Momo! Momo!" cheered the other group. The two fighters disengaged and stepped back. Appa split his third into two and then resting on his tail; he spun into a twister and went Momo. The lemur was able to block all the sword strikes, which was fairly impressive.

"Come on, guys." Aang tried to talk to them. "We're all on the same side." At that moment, a six armed and floating on a cloud Guru Pathik showed, waving two cups of onion and banana juice and playing a veena.

"Chakras, chakras, everyone loves chakras." He sang. "Chakras, chakras, chakra sandwich taste good. Yum!"

As Appa and Momo fought, the koala sheep cheered. As they did that, rocks formed like snakes began to slide through the grass, around Aang and then away. The Ozai tree started dancing and Aang was surrounded by a ring of rocks and koala sheep while Appa and Momo still fought.

That was when he realized the insanity of it all (took him long enough). "I just need to jump in a cold waterfall!" He declared before running screaming like a loon.

(Location: Royal Palace)

"That was a good party!" Kankurō declared as he, his siblings and Naruto made it back to the room.

"Yes, it was." Temari agreed. "The food was great!"

"I'll be sure to let the head cook know you thought so." Naruto told them.

"We can let him know ourselves tomorrow."

"Plus, I can't wait to see how Azula does with those new knives of her." Kankurō said with excitement. When he heard, Naruto flinched.

"What is the matter, Naruto?" Gaara asked him, having noticed the flinch.

He took a deep breath. "I need you guys to do something for me."

"What is it?"

He pulled out one of the seal tags Teams Asuma, Kurenai and Guy had brought with them. "I need you to go home."

They were shock to hear him say that. "What? Why?" Temari asked.

"This isn't your war."

"I thought the war was over." Kankurō said

He shook his head. "Just because the Fire Nation took Ba Sing Se, doesn't mean the war is over. Tomorrow, the Avatar will be visiting us with a few of his friends."

"How do you know this?" Gaara asked him.

"That's classified information."

"But we can still help you fight them."

"Gaara, if Ba Sing Se hadn't fallen, you would've been fighting alongside the Avatar tomorrow as well as the Konoha shinobi."

"We're your friends, Naruto. Why are you refusing our help?" Temari demanded.

"It's because you're my friends that I'm refusing. This isn't your war, guys. This isn't your responsibility. You should go home while you can." He gave them a small smile. "Vacations have to end, right?"

"We're not going to leave you to fight this alone, Naruto." Kankurō declared. "We will help you."

"No, you won't. And if you won't leave willingly, I'll _make_ you leave."

"Very well, Naruto." Gaara said, surprising his brother and sister. "We will go home. It's time I went back to my duties as Kazekage."

"Thank you, Gaara." He handed him the seal tag.

The Sand Siblings stood around the tag as it was placed on the ground. "Will you come to visit?" Gaara asked him.

"Probably not," He answered with a shake of his head.

"Then we will come visit you again."

"No, don't do that. Just stay there, please. This side of the world has enough trouble with the Avatar and the Royal Flaming Asshole; we don't need shinobi thrown into the mix."

"Very well," As he focused on the seal, he heard Naruto walked out of the room. "Goodbye…brother."

Naruto walked down the corridor. He didn't look back, but he heard the sound of a _POOF!_

(Location: Team Avatar)

As he walked back to the camp, Aang saw what looked to be a bed of clouds in front of him, cradled by mist. He walked up to it and started testing it, making sure it was real. "Oh look, another hallucination." He said, not believing what he saw. "An imaginary bed made out of clouds."

"Hey, it's real! We spent hours on it!" Toph told him. Both Katara and Sokka stood next to him.

"We made for you. A good night sleep will probably take the crazy away. We hope." Sokka said as he stood next to a group of shaved koala sheep.

"Look, you guys keep telling me I need to sleep, but I can't!" Aang told them angrily. "The invasion's tomorrow!"

"Aang…" Katara began, only to have him cut her off.

"No, Katara! There's still so much I haven't learned. I don't need sleep. What I need is practice. Quick, hit me!" He started to wobble as he tried to take a fighting stance.

"I'm not going to hit you."

"You want me to do it?" Toph offered, only to have Sokka nudged her in the back.

She walked closer to him. "Listen to me. You've been training for this since the day we met. I've seen your progress. You're smart, brave and strong enough."

"You really think so?" He asked. She nodded.

"We all do." Sokka told him. "You can do this, you're ready."

"You're the man, Twinkle Toes!" Toph agreed.

"Thanks, guys." He said with a smile. He gave a big yawn and rubbed his eye. Katara helped him lay down on the bed. "You know what? I think I am ready." He declared as he fell asleep, the others watching him.

(Location: Aang's dream)

The doors were knocked down and Aang flew towards the Fire Lord, sword in hand. "Your days of tyranny are over, Fire Lord!" He declared.

"Really?" asked the Fire Lord. "You're going to take me out? You're not even wearing pants!"

He smiled smugly. "No, Fire Lord Ozai. _You're_ not wearing any pants."

He looked down and saw no pants. Pulling a cover with the Fire Nation symbol on it out of thin air (it's a dream, he can do that), he held in front of his nether regions. "No! My royal parts are showing!" He said screaming.

Aang looked around and saw no sign of Naruto. In the real world, he had a smile of victory on his face.

(Location: Royal Palace)

Azula sat in front of her mirror. Dressed in a sleeping robe, she had let her hair out of her bun and was brushing it, one of the few times she did. She heard the door open and knew it was Naruto. "Where did you go?" She asked, not turning to face him.

"I saw the Kazekage and his family off." He replied.

"Will they be coming back?"

"No."

"A shame, I liked them." She continued brushing her hair. The silence between them went on for a couple of minutes.

"Did you enjoy the party?" He finally asked.

"I did." She answered, putting the brush down.

"Then why does it sound like you're both mad and disappointed?"

"I don't know. Maybe it's because my bodyguard didn't give me a present. I was wondering what he was going to give me."

He laughed. "Don't worry. He got you a present. It was just something he wasn't going to show in front of her father."

"What is it?"

He walked up behind her. "Close your eyes." She did so. She heard the heard the sound of something moving and then felt something cool against her chest. "Now, open them."

She did so. What she saw took her breath away. Hanging around her neck was the same beautiful green crystal he always wore.

"Happy birthday, Azula," He said.

"It's beautiful." She said in a whisper. She didn't know what else to say.

"And so are you." He replied. Turning around, he started to walk away.

"Wait." She said, standing up from where she sat.

"What is it?" He asked, turning back to her face.

She stood in front of him. Her hands slowly reached for the belt at her waist. Untying it, she let go and grabbed the edges of the robe near her neck. She pulled the robe off, letting it slide down her arms and down to the ground, leaving her wearing nothing but her present.

To say Naruto was stunned would've been an understatement. _"What the…?"_ He tried to think.

"**Way to go, gaki!"** Kyuubi cheered from inside his cage. Before he could even reply to the fox, Azula walked right up to him and kissed him hungrily on the lips. This sent them crashing down onto the bed, with Azula on top of him. **"Oh, no way is a host of mine going to be on the bottom!"** The fox declared before sending a tiny amount of his chakra to Naruto.

With a savage growl, he flipped Azula, making her land on the bed and pinning her hands there. They stared at each other as he hovered over her. Golden eyes looked into blue ones and vice versa. He began to kiss her, hungrily devouring her lips. She returned with equal passion and the room filled the sounds of heavy kissing and small pants. He let go of her so that he could explore of her chest, letting his hands know everything inch of it. She quickly untied the cloth-belt, letting the vest fall open and opening his shirt, freeing his chest.

Her hands began to roam around it, her brain almost begging her to know what it felt like. She began to stroke her finger around one of his nipples, making him shiver and groan. Seeing her victorious smile, he got back at her by finding a particular spot on her back. He pressed down, making her arch her back and gasped, which he took advantage of by invading her mouth.

As his hands trailed down to her hips, he suddenly stopped. "What's wrong?" She asked.

"We shouldn't do this." He replied, taking his hands off her hips he stood up and stepped away from her.

She sat up. "Why shouldn't we?"

"We just can't, Azula. I'm your bodyguard."

"I don't care!" She shouted surprising him. "I love you!"

He fell quiet. "I know you do, but I just…" He struggled to say the words but they wouldn't come out. "I'm sorry." He closed his shirt and vest and left the room.

Azula watched him. "No, I'm sorry." She whispered. She threw herself into her pillow. "I shouldn't have done that." She repeated to herself as she cried.

(Location: Naruto)

"**WHAT IN THE NAME OF EVERYTHING AND ANYTHING HOLY IS WRONG WITH YOU!?"** The fox bellowed at him as he walked down the corridor. **"That girl stripped naked in front of your eyes, all but jumped your bones and you walk away?!"**

"That shouldn't have happened, Kyuubi." He replied.

"**And yet, it did."**

"With your help," He accused. "I felt your chakra."

"**I was trying to help you! For the love of Kami, she said she loved you and you walk away?! When did Naruto Uzumaki become a coward?"**

"I'm not a coward!" He shouted back.

"**You walking out of that room says otherwise!"**

"I had to do that."

"**No you didn't, you just ran away from her like you do with everything else. You pushed the Sand Siblings away and now you pushed her away!"**

"I PUSHED HER AWAY TO KEEP HER SAFE!"

"**What do you mean?" **The fox wasn't sure about what he was talking about.

"Think about it, Kyuubi. What would people think if someone saw us sleeping together? That kind of news would definitely reached Ozai's ears and if not him, it would reach Yāo Jing. And she would take to him with embellishments. What do you think Ozai will do if he found that his daughter had slept with her bodyguard, one of the few men in the Fire Nation that doesn't obey his every command? No doubt he would try to have me killed and have her severely punished. Then Yāo Jing would use the opportunity to have Azula killed. I refused to admit my feelings for her so that doesn't happen."

"…**I can see what you're talking about." **The fox admitted. **"Didn't you ever think about what she thought?"**

"No, and that's probably led to this." He took a deep breath. "Look, we have more things to worry about then my personal problems. We need to focus what needs to be done."

"**I was."** They passed a balcony, which gave them a look at the weather. **"Looks like there might be a storm coming in."**

"In case you haven't noticed, Kyuubi, this side of the planet has been in a storm for the past century."

"_**No, I think this is a different storm."**_ The Biju thought to himself.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Now, I just have one question about the dreams Aang was having. What in the hell were the writers smoking when they came up with that stuff!? You don't get those kinds of dreams and they certainly don't make you try to stay up for four days straight!

For the people who are going to complain that I have Azula's age wrong, I direct you to the first chapter. I clearly stated that Azula was only a year younger than Zuko. Therefore, it was her fifteenth birthday.

That warning to Ozai will be made clear when we get to Sozin's Comet.

I would like to think that since Gaara can control sand, he can form it into sandstone.

I found it odd that, despite talking about them, we never saw Ty Lee's sisters. So I brought them in and made them sound a bit snotty. I do feel sorry for their mother; she had to carry all seven of them in her womb for nine months. You gotta respect her for that. The reason I used the word lookalike and numbers was because I wasn't going to think up six different names that all sounded similar to Ty Lee. I didn't need that headache.

Yes, I sent the Sand Siblings home. Did you think I was going to keep them there until the end? I didn't do that with the Konoha shinobi and I didn't do it with Kori. It would've gotten way too complicated if they stayed.

As for those of you who want to see more of the bedroom action, that's not gonna happen right now or even soon. If I am going to do that, I want to be sure I can actually write it. One of the things I hate about most Fanfiction writers is that when they write this kind of scene, they write like they're doing a screenplay for a porno! If you're going to write a sex scene, try to write it erotically. That's what I'm gonna do (or least try).

I'll see you all next chapter!


	28. Warming up and Moving forward

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 28: Warming up and Moving forward

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Avatar)

Morning had come and the group (minus Aang) had gathered together. They had all changed out of their disguises and back into their actual clothes. Katara decided to keep her hair out of her braid. Sokka studied the maps they had of the Fire Nation over and over again. He rubbed one of his eyes while Katara handed him a cup. That was when Aang joined them. "Top of the morning, Momo!" He said as the lemur landed on his shoulder.

"Sounds like you slept well." Katara noted, standing up.

"Like a baby moose lion." He declared. He did indeed look better. The bags under his eyes were gone and he didn't look like he was about to snap at any minute. "I'm ready to face the Fire Lord."

"So what's your strategy for taking him down?" Toph asked him. "Gonna get your glow on and hit him with a little Avatar State action?" She punched the air a few times to emphasize her point.

"I can't." He told her. "When I was shot by lightning, my seventh chakra was locked, cutting off my connection to all the cosmic energy in the universe."

"…You know what I just heard? Blah, blah spiritual mumbo jumbo, blah, blah something about space," She said, using her hand like a mouth.

"Oh no," Katara said, seeing a huge bank of fog out on the ocean. "Sokka, do you think the fog will delay the invasion?"

He stood up and looked closer at the fog. "No, that is the invasion!" He declared. Coming out of the fog were five ships. Five ships of Water Tribe make. They got down to the beach and Aang and Toph went to work. They bent the rocks beneath the water to rise up and formed five docks, one for each ship. The ships docked and their passengers began to disembark.

Both Sokka and Katara ran towards Hakoda. "You made it, Dad!" Katara cried with joy as she hugged him.

"Were you able to locate everyone I told you to find?" Sokka asked.

"I did." Hakoda answered. "But I'm a little worried, Sokka. Some of these men aren't exactly the 'warrior type'." As if to prove his point, both Tho and Due got off the ship behind them. They were wearing their normal clothes (consisting of a loin-cloth, wrappings around their arms and legs and a leaf-hat) but had included their idea of armor, which was shin and arm guards and a wooden chest piece.

"Ooooh-whee!" whistled Due. "This place ain't nothing like the swamp." He pointed at a rock. "What you reckon that is, Tho? Some sort of Fire Nation exploding trap what eat ya?"

"It's just a rock, Due." Tho told him; with both patience and exasperation.

"Well, I'll be."

"Is it just me, or are those fellas a little loose in the leaf-hat?" Hakoda asked aloud.

"I just wish they would wear pants." Bato told him.

"Pants are an illusion." Huu told as he too got off the ship, scratching his stomach. "And so is death." The adults just looked at him in disbelief while Sokka smiled. They soon got every member of the Swamp Tribe off the ships when Katara heard a familiar voice.

"Hi, Katara." said the voice. Turning around, she saw that it was Haru, who now sported a mustache and a goatee.

"Haru, it's so good to see you!" She said, running over to him and giving him a quick hug.

"Toph, this is Haru." Aang introduced the two Earthbenders. "When we met him, his town was controlled by the Fire Nation. So he had to hide his Earthbending."

"Katara inspired me and my father to take back our village." Haru explained, making Katara look away and blush.

"You helped us find our courage, Katara." Haru's father, Tyro, told her as he stood behind her. "Now we're here to help you."

Toph felt a familiar presence nearby. "No way," She said, turning around and moving into an Earthbending stance. "Is that—?" She got her answer when two big arms picked her up.

"Hippo happy to see Blind Bandit!" declared the Hippo, giving her a hug, behind him stood the Boulder.

"You guys here for a rematch?" She demanded.

"Negatory." The Boulder told her. "The Boulder and the Hippo no longer fight for others' entertainment. Now, we fight for our kingdom!"

"Sweet," She said with a smile. That was when an explosion went off in one of the ships. As they went to go check what happened, the Mechanist appeared above deck, coughing from all the smoke. His son, Teo, rolled down the ramp and onto the dock followed by his father as well as Pipsqueak and The Duke.

"Was that a new invention?" Sokka asked.

"Yes." The Mechanist said. "But unfortunately the incendiary capabilities of peanut sauce prove to be a failure."

"You're making peanut sauce bombs?"

"They're destructive." Pipsqueak said.

"And delicious," The Duke finished. They licked the rest of the peanut sauce off while Momo tried to get the remnants, making them laugh.

"Were you able to complete work on the plans I sent you?" Sokka asked the Mechanist.

"Yes I was." He answered. "And I think the Fire Nation will be quite surprised."

"Aang, my dad and I made this for you." Teo handed him a staff.

"A new glider," Aang said as he watched handles and blue wings snap out. "This is amazing!"

"And as a special feature, I added a snack compartment." The Mechanist told him, demonstrating how it worked.

"Oh…well, I'm sure that'll come in handy" He said hesitantly.

(Location: Royal Prison)

"I bet you're tired of being in this cell, old man." The guard said, talking to Iroh. "Well too bad. You're never stepping outside of these walls again."

"Breakfast," Another guard announced, walking in with food.

"Careful, Ming, don't get too close." He stood up. "His stench will knock you right out." He walked out of the cell, laughing.

She scowled at his back before turning back to face the cell. "I snuck in some white jade tea." She told Iroh. "I know how you like rare teas."

"Thank you, Ming." He said, taking the tea. "Ever since I was put in here, you've been very kind to me."

(Location: Invasion force)

The members of the invasion force sat in front of a stone stage that held a board. Sokka was sitting nearby, clutching his maps with a nervous grip. "Don't worry." Hakoda told him. "You'll do great."

He took a deep breath and walked up onto the stage, getting everyone's attention. He tried to speak, but he just stood there, frozen on the spot and absolutely terrified. He felt a hand on his shoulder and saw it was his father. "Why don't you let me do this?" He asked gently. He nodded numbly and walked back down. Hakoda put the maps on the board and then turned to face the crowd.

"Let me clarify a few points for everyone." He began. "Today is the Day of Black Sun, and I want to thank you all for your self-sacrifice and your courage. There are two steps to the invasion: a naval stage and then a land stage. To gain sea access to the Fire Nation capital, we have to get past our first major obstacle here." He pointed at a spot on the map. "The Great Gates of Azulon," He flipped to the next map. "Next, we hit the land and we hit hard. We must fight past their battlements and secure the plaza tower. Once we do that, it's up to the Royal Palace. At that point, the eclipse will begin."

"Excuse me." The Boulder raised his finger. "The Boulder is confused. Isn't the idea to invade _during_ the eclipse, when the Firebenders are powerless?" The Hippo nodded in agreement.

"The eclipse only last eight minutes, not enough time for the whole invasion." He explained. "And the Royal Palace is heavily guarded by Firebenders. So that's where we'll need the eclipse advantage the most. When this is over, the Avatar will have defeated the Fire Lord. We will have control of the Fire Nation capital and this war will be over!" His words had everyone cheering, except for Sokka.

After the meeting, everyone prepared for battle. Katara filled up her pouches to the brim with water. Toph and Hakoda, as well as many others began to armor up. Standing on the cliffs overlooking the invasion force was both Appa and Akela. Appa was dressed from head to toe in steel armor with the arrow of the Air Nomads on his head. Akela was dressed in a leather cuirass that was steel-plated at his shoulders and helmet, covering the top of his head and leaving his lower jaw free to bite. Appa gave a roar as they stood there, waiting.

Meanwhile, Aang knelt on some rocks, looking at the water's reflection. He had taken what was left of his clothes and wrapped them around his torso, leaving his right arm bare. He held his razor in his right hand and was using it to shave his hair off. The last patch was shaved off to reveal his arrow, the one he had been hiding all this time. He stood up, his arrow tattoos proudly showing themselves to the world once more.

(Location: Royal Palace)

Zuko stood in front of his bed. He took out his head piece, letting his hair fall down. He removed his armor and placed it on the bed as well. Walking over to his desk, he dipped a brush in ink and began to write a letter.

Over in her own room, Azula was changing too. She had completely changed out of the armor and clothes she wore and was standing in her undergarments. She put on a pair of black pants and then a sleeveless red shirt. She put on her boots, but didn't tuck the pants legs into them. She pulled a black leather vest over the shirt and buttoned it up. She grabbed the belt that Mai had bought for her and wrapped it around her waist, making sure it was tight. After checking that the daggers were secured, she put on the gloves that Ty Lee had given her.

She looked herself over in the mirror. That was when she realized she was still wearing the necklace Naruto had given her. _"Should I give it back?"_ She asked herself as her hands drifted towards it. She stopped and shook her head. _"No, I want something to remember him by."_

(Location: Invasion force)

Sokka stood on a small cliff, overlooking the ships and the sea. He had already dressed himself in armor and was staring at the wolf helmet in his hands. He heard the sound of a glider moving through the air and saw Aang landing next to him. "We've been looking all over for you." He said. "The boats are ready to leave."

"I messed up, Aang." He told him.

"What?"

"The invasion plan was my moment of truth and I completely froze!"

"Sokka, that speech wasn't your moment of truth." He told him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "That was just public speaking, and no one's really good at that."

"My dad is! He explained the plan perfectly and inspired everyone, like a real leader should."

"Look, your moment of truth isn't gonna be in front of some map; it's gonna be out there on the battlefield."

"…How do you know we're gonna win?"

"I already failed the world once at Ba Sing Se. I won't let myself fail again." He opened up the glider. "I'll see you down there." He flew off.

"You won't allow yourself to fail, huh?" He repeated, looking at the wolf helmet again.

"**The kid's got the right idea."** A familiar voice said.

He looked up. "It's been a while, Sifu."

"**Funny, it doesn't seem that long to me."**

"Please don't be cute."

"…**You're scared, aren't you? You're scared of the oncoming fight."**

He nodded. "Yeah, I am."

"**Good, that means you have a brain in your head."**

That caught him off guard. "I'm sorry?"

"**Sokka, the ones who die first on the battlefield are the ones who think they're invincible. It's the ones who think nothing can stop them who usually end dying, wondering how it could've happened to them. You're scared. You have this feeling within yourself that's telling you that you might die and you're scared of it. Accept the fear, accept the fact that you may possible die and the only way to avoid it is to be faster than the other guy."**

He listened to what the mysterious spirit had said. "I guess you're right. Thank you, Sifu."

"**Anytime, it's always a pleasure to help one of my Paragons."** He looked at the armor he was wearing. **"That armor would suit you, if you were just a warrior of the Southern Water Tribe. But you are not."** He reached out and touched the symbol of the Water Tribe on his chest. The armor began to change. The color turned darker until it was midnight blue. The fur and wool changed to stiff leather that was reinforced with steel plating. The helmet turned blue grey and grew heavier as the fabric changed into leather as well. But what stood out the most with all of this was that the symbol of the Water Tribe had changed into the symbol of the Paragons. To be more specific, it changed into _his_ symbol of the Paragons, the same one etched on his Medallion. **"Now that's armor befitting a Paragon of the Water Tribes."** Sifu told him with approval before he disappeared.

He walked back down to the docks, where everyone was waiting. "Sokka, are you okay?" Hakoda asked his son.

"Yeah, Dad," He replied. "Sorry, I had a moment of self-doubt."

"We all have those." He looked at the armor he wore. "Where did you get that?"

"My sifu gave it to me. He said it was befitting of a Paragon." He absently scratched Akela's ear when he padded up beside him.

"He was right." Everyone agreed with Hakoda's statement. The armor managed to make Sokka look both regal and deadly at the same time. "Now, there's just one thing left to do." He looked his son straight in the eye and then, to the surprise of everyone there, he bowed. "My lord Sokka, will you do the honors?"

He took a deep breath and nodded. He walked past him, putting on his helmet and with Akela following him. After a few steps, he turned to face the assembled Water Tribe Warriors. "Who are you?" He asked them.

"We are the wolves of battle, our teacher is Akela, the Alpha of all and none, he who walks the ice alone and fights with many at his side." The Water Tribes had many myths and stories to tell at the fire. The most popular ones were the ones about the Pack of Akela, a group of white wolves that would only band together in times of strife and conflict. The most prominent of these wolves was Akela himself.

The stories say that when Tui and La had come into the Physical World, he had followed. He was a spirit of war, but there were many spirits of war. He was the spirit of learning of war. He taught how to fight and how to act so that when one was in a war, one might be able to live.

His first students were the wolves who would eventually become his pack. Once he had taught them, he ordered them to walk their own paths. Soon after, he found the people of the Water Tribe. He took the men who were non-Benders and taught them how to fight. Since then, every warrior who hails from the Water Tribes calls Akela their first teacher. That is why instead of praying to Tui and La for strength, they pray to Akela.

"If you are wolves, let me hear you howl." Sokka ordered them. They tried to, but apparently, he didn't like it. "That sounded like the mewling of pups!" He yelled at them, making every non-Water Tribe member there take a step back. "Are you sure you're students of Akela?"

"Yes, we are!" They answered fiercely, their blood started to run hot.

"THEN LET ME HEAR THE HOWL OF BATTLE WOLVES!" They did and this howl was way much better than the first one. Even Akela joined the howl. Everyone else just watched.

"That has got to be the most exhilarating and most terrifying thing I've ever heard." Haru stated. Everyone else nodded in agreement.

"If skill and ferocity was all that was needed to win a fight, the warriors of the Water Tribes would undoubtedly rule this side of the planet." The Mechanist told them. After that, everyone boarded the ships and set sail. Bato kept an eye out with his telescope. Soon, they saw what they were heading for.

"There they are, the Great Gates of Azulon." Hakoda declared.

"I don't see any gates." Katara noted, she only saw a statue of the aforementioned Azulon two dragon statues at either end of the statue.

"Katara, you and the Waterbenders from the Swamp whip a fog cover." He ordered her.

"We'll sneak by them statues just we sneak by that Fire Nation blockade!" declared Tho. They bent up a fogbank that hid all of the ships. They got closer and closer to the Gates.

"Keep it up!" Hakoda told them. "We're almost through!" Of course, that was when things got a little complicated. They heard a warning bell go off. The dragon statues held the ends of a net in their mouths. The net tightened up and as it reached its full height and length, it was set on fire. That's when everyone figured out it _was_ a gate, just a gate done in true Fire Nation style (big and on fire).

As they all looked at the gates, they heard the sound of jet skis coming at them. Looking at the water, there were indeed jet skis coming at them, carrying soldiers. "Everyone below decks!" ordered Hakoda. They all hurried down the stairs. "Let's hope your invention works." He told Sokka before they joined them.

The soldiers on the jet skis surrounded the ships and boarded them. They quickly went below deck and burst into the quarters…only to find no one there. The same was on every ship. "No one's on board, sir." A soldier told the leader.

"Where'd they go?" She asked. The answer was simple and yet, would've sounded ludicrous to them. The entire invasion force had boarded submarines and was now sailing _under_ the Great Gates of Azulon. Appa was swimming behind them, being able to breathe due to an air bubble.

"You've really outdone yourself this time, son." Hakoda told Sokka.

"Yeah, congratulations, Sokka," Toph said in misery. "You've managed to invent a worse way of travel then flying." She tried not to throw up.

"Helmet?" offered The Duke, handing his helmet out to her. She took it and hurled into it.

"Well, I just came up with the idea." Sokka told them. "The Mechanist did all the work."

"Oh, don't sell yourself short, my boy." The Mechanist replied. "It was your idea to use Waterbending to make the subs sink and float, brilliant! Though your drawings were a bit crude, the explanations helped immensely. Unfortunately, there is one problem I couldn't fix. The subs have a limited air supply. Before we land on the beaches, we'll need to resurface."

(Location: Royal Prison)

"Lunchtime, General Iroh." Ming announced as she walked into the room. "And this time, I brought you an extra bowl of rice."

"Thank you, Ming." He told her. "Your little gestures of kindness have made my days in bearable. I think you should take the rest of the day off."

She was confused. "What?"

"You don't look well. Maybe you should go and rest."

"No, I feel fine."

"Trust me. It is better that you are not here this afternoon." She nodded and walked out of the room.

(Location: Invasion force)

The subs had surfaced and everyone was out on the tops. While everyone stretched, The Duke cleaned out his helmet.

"So…this is it, huh?" Aang asked Katara, Toph and Sokka.

"Are you ready to let the Fire Nation know the Avatar is alive?" Sokka asked him in return.

"I'm ready." He answered firmly. He pulled everyone into a group hug.

"I hope you kick some serious Fire Lord butt, Twinkle Toes." Toph told him.

"Everyone listen up!" Hakoda called out, getting everyone's attention. "The next time we resurface, it'll be on the beaches. So stay alert and fight smart. Now break times over, back in the sub."

Sokka and Toph walked back to the hatch, leaving Aang and Katara alone. "Katara/Aang, I…" They said at the same time.

"You go first." He told her.

"We've been through many things together, and I've seen you grow up so much. You're not that little goofy kid in the iceberg anymore." Aang blushed. "I guess what I'm trying to say, I'm really proud of you."

"…Everything's gonna be different after today, isn't?"

"Yes, it is."

"What if…what if I don't come back?"

"Aang, don't say that. Of course you'll—" She was interrupted when Aang kissed her. She was surprised and when he stepped back, she looked away and blushed. He opened the glider and took off. She watched him fly away.

"Katara, what are you doing?" Sokka called out from the hatch. "It's time to submerge."

"What? Right, I'm on it." She leapt onto Appa and bent a bubble of air over his head. Appa dived and the subs followed.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

Zuko walked into Mai's room. He looked at the picture of him and Mai. "I'm sorry, Mai." He said, looking away. He left a note on her bed and left.

Over in the royal palace, Azula was standing in front of Naruto's door. She pushed it opened and walked in. "Naruto?" She called out. Nobody answered, the room was empty. "Agni." She muttered. "I wanted to talk to him." She looked around. It seemed strange but without him in the room, it felt bare, empty. "If he's not here…" She said as she walked out of the room, closing the door.

(Location: Aang)

He flew over the land, trying to concentrate. His concentration broke when he heard growling coming from his stomach. He repeated the motions the Mechanist did and ate the snacks that came out. "What do you know? It did come in handy." He remarked as he flew on.

(Location: Invasion force)

A periscope popped out of the water. Hakoda looked through at the Fire Nation defenses. "Everyone in position," He ordered to the soldiers in the sub. "Earthbenders, into your tanks, this is going to be a rough ride." Everyone started moving as he spoke, going deeper into the sub. It was happening in every one.

They approached the gate, raising the alarm of the Fire Nation defense. They quickly fired harpoons at the shadows in the water, which were mostly dodged. One harpoon got lucky and pierced through a hull of one the subs, causing water to flood through. A nearby Waterbender managed to freeze the water, but the harpoon was still caught, as was the chain it was attached to. The sub was pulled out of the water. It would've been the end for that particular sub had Katara not flown Appa out of the water and sliced through the chain holding it. The sub fell back into the water and rejoined the others.

"Ready the torpedo." Hakoda ordered as he looked through the periscope at the grates in the defense. In the bottom of the sub, frozen Fire Nation torpedoes were being loaded into the tubes. "Launch!" He ordered. The Waterbenders bent the torpedoes out of the tubes and sent them flying at the grates, destroying them.

They passed through the grates and made their way to the beaches. Everyone waited in silence, but in their minds, they were offering one last prayer to whatever spirit gave them comfort and strength. The subs came up out of the water and hit the beach, despite incoming from the Fire Nation. The front of the subs opened and revealed another of Sokka's and the Mechanist's inventions: tanks in the shape of caterpillars powered by Earthbending. They took the lead and the soldiers on foot soon followed, screaming battle cries.

They quickly got into formation, moving between the tanks for protection. Supply trucks, carrying rocks and water, followed them. One such truck dropped three rocks for the Boulder, Hippo and Toph, who hurled them at a battlement tower up on the walls. As this went on, Katara and Appa arrived, ready for the fight. Gates at the sides opened up and the Fire Nation version of tanks showed up to the party. The Earthbending tanks kept moving undeterred. One crushed a battlement tower while another smashed a Fire Nation tank.

But despite that, the invasion force was soon surrounded on both sides by Fire Nation tanks. The Waterbenders bent water from a nearby supply truck to defend against the bursts of fire thrown at them. Both Tho and Due stepped forward and bent their water at one of the tanks, knocking it sideways and sending it crashing into another one. "We're a man down," Tho stated as he and Due threw another round of water at the tanks. "Where in tarnation is Huu?!" As if to answer his question; a familiar-looking creature made out of seaweed appeared out of the water. It quickly demolished a couple of tanks, sending one flying up into a battlement tower.

"Hey Huu!" called out Due. "Where you been?"

The seaweed that held the monster together opened a hole, revealing Huu. "Communin' with nature," He answered. "It takes a while to collect this much seaweed." He quickly covered the hole when a ball of fire came at him.

A group of komodo rhino carrying miniature catapults fired burning rocks at a group of Water Tribe warriors. The warriors kept moving, the rocks getting overshot. Another group of rhinos charged at them. Sokka didn't focus on what happened to the other warriors; he focused on who was in front of him. He leapt onto the horns of the rhino, sliced the spear the soldier was carrying almost in half and then plunged his jian into the soldier's heart, killing him. He pulled out the jian and pushed the dead soldier off. "Dad, look out!" He cried.

Hakoda had lost his shield due to a fire burst. Another soldier tried to attack him, only to be disarmed and killed by a spear through the chest. Another soldier tried to hit him with a burst of fire, but he blocked him with one spear and stabbed his heart with the other. Two more soldiers came at him. He killed one by throwing one of his spears at him. The other was killed when Akela pulled him to the ground and tore out his throat.

Hakoda joined Sokka on the rhino while Akela ran alongside. Meanwhile, the invasion force was having difficulties. The battlement towers kept aiming for the supply trucks, hitting them in the rock or water. A few of the drivers (like the Mechanist) got lucky and were blown clear by the blast. Others were caught in the explosion. Huu's seaweed creature was also being targeted, making it lose an arm. One of the Earthbending tanks was knocked to its side by one of the battlement towers. Unless they got it upright again, the tank was useless.

"Sokka, we've gotta take out those battlements!" Hakoda told him. "It's our only chance."

He looked at the battlements. "I've got an idea." He said. He urged the rhino back to the invasion force. "Katara, we need a ride!" He called out to his sister. They quickly boarded Appa and he took off and flew at the battlement towers. Hanging from Appa's horn, Sokka drew his jian and cut off the head of the missile launcher at the first tower.

Hakoda was next. He armed two small bombs and threw them into the next battlement. The two soldiers who manned the tower tried to get out, but only one of them got lucky. The other one got caught in the explosion and died.

Katara stood up on Appa's head. Attached to the sky bison's sides was a barrel each, filled with water. She broke open the barrels and coated her arms with the water. They approached the tower and she bent the water into it, freezing its occupants and leaving their heads free so they could breathe.

Appa landed between two towers and Hakoda, Sokka and Katara leapt off. "You two take out that battlement." He told them, pointing at one of the towers before looking at the other one. "I got this one. Watch each other's backs." He ran to his tower and they ran towards theirs.

"Katara, aim to kill this time," Sokka told her.

"What is wrong with you?" She asked him. "You want me to kill people?"

"We're in the middle of invading the Fire Nation capital! Of course we have to kill people!" He sliced through the door and kicked it open. She took over by throwing water at the two soldiers manning the tower, freezing them solid except for their heads. Sokka didn't say anything; he just climbed the ladder and cut the missile launcher in half, causing the half hanging out of the tower to fall off and explode when it hit the rocks below.

They ran out of the tower and saw Hakoda climb over the roof of his tower and leaping in. They heard the sounds of fighting, but also saw an explosion go off. They were scared, but they saw their father stumble out of the tower with smoke billowing out behind him. He staggered forward a few steps, clutching his side and then collapsed.

"Dad?" called Katara, unsure if he would get up.

"Dad!" shouted Sokka as the two of them ran over to him.

(Location: Royal Palace)

Zuko knelt in front of a picture of his mother. "I know I've made some bad choices." He told her. "But today, I'm gonna set things right." He stood up, grabbed a bag and his swords and walked out of his room.

Over in her room, Azula was kneeling in front of the statuette that the Sand Siblings had given her. "I don't know what you thought of me." She told the statuette. "But I'm doing what I think is right. I can only hope that you will forgive me for what I have done to our family." She stood up, took the statuette and the painting that Kori had given her and them away. She reached underneath the bed and pulled out a key.

She walked over to a painting of her and Zuko when they were kids. Swinging it open to reveal a safe, she put in the key in the lock and unlocked it. Inside the safe was her most prized possession: a painting of her and Naruto. "I wish I could've talked to him one last time." She said as she carefully rolled the painting up and tied it up. She placed the painting in the bag she was carrying and closed it.

She walked out of the room and down the corridor. When she turned the corner, she almost ran into Zuko. "Azula," He said.

"Zuko," She replied.

"You're doing the same?"

"Yes."

He walked past her. "Follow me." He told her. They walked away in silence.

(Location: Appa)

Appa flew down next to the subs and landed. Sokka and Katara laid Hakoda down on the ground and Katara started to heal him. "How does that feel, Dad?" She asked him.

"Ah…a little…better." He answered. He sat up. "I need to get back to the troops."

"You're hurt, badly. You can't fight anymore."

"Everyone's counting on me to lead this mission Katara. I won't let them down." He tried to stand up, but the pain stopped him.

"Can't you heal him any faster?" Sokka asked Katara.

"I'm doing everything I can."

He fell silent. He looked back at the fighting and then looked at Akela, who nodded in agreement. "I'll do it." He declared.

"No offense, Sokka, but you're not exactly Mr. Healing Hands."

"No." He stood back up. "I'll lead the invasion force."

"Don't be crazy, Sokka."

"Maybe I am a little crazy but the eclipse is about to start and we need to be up that volcano by the time it does."

"You can do this." Hakoda told him. "I'm proud of you son."

"I still think you're crazy." Katara said. "But I'm proud of you too."

He put his helmet back on and climbed aboard Appa, Akela joined him. "Yip yip," He told Appa and the sky bison took off. They flew back to the battle, where Fire Nation tanks lay around, either smashed or frozen. Appa landed in front of a Fire Nation tank and knocked it away with his head. Sokka jumped onto his back and turned to face the invasion force. "Listen up, everyone!" He called out. "I want the tanks in wedge formation, warriors and Benders in the middle. We're taking that tower and heading for the royal palace." The tanks formed up and the foot soldiers got behind them. The remaining supply trucks were in the rear.

When all was ready, Sokka drew his jian. "Charge!" He cried.

(Location: Aang)

He stood on the edge of the volcano before flying down. He flew down to behind a building, attempting to hide. He looked over the edge and saw…nothing. No one was in the streets; there wasn't a sign of life. "That's strange." He noted. But he didn't ponder it. He ran to the royal palace, kicked in the door and leapt in with the glider staff at the ready. "The Avatar is back!" He declared…to an empty hall. "Hello? Anyone home?" He called out as he walked into the hall.

(Location: Invasion force)

The tanks kept moving forward, regardless of what was thrown at them. Meanwhile, Sokka drove one of the supply trucks that were rigged with explosives at the wall. He leapt off at the last moment before it hit the wall, causing to explode. That left a giant hole in the wall, which the foot soldiers used to charge through and push the enemy back.

"The Fire Nation is falling back!" Tyro declared.

Bato heard Appa landed behind him. "Sokka, we're on our way to victory!" He announced. Sokka only looked up at the volcano.

(Location: Aang)

He leapt through the curtain that led into the throne room. But no one was there either. The empty throne almost seemed to mock him. "No." He said, dropping the staff and falling to his knees. "No, no, no! Fire Lord Ozai, where are you!?"

"I think it's pretty obvious that he's not here, dipshit." A voice rang in the chamber.

"Who's there?" He grabbed his staff and whirled around.

"What? You can't remember my voice? You really are an idiot." Naruto walked out from behind a column.

"You?" asked Aang.

"Me." He answered. "How you've been? When was the last time we saw each other? Was it at Wan Shi Tong's library? Or was it in Old Ba Sing Se? Oh! I know! It was at that school that had the dance party. I'm assuming that was your work?"

"You knew I was there?"

"Yeah, I saw you there. You were the one having the panic attack."

"Why did you let me escape? Why didn't you tell anyone about me?"

"And dash your hope that you might actually emerge victorious in this invasion? Why would I do that when I can just let you find out for yourself?"

"What? What do you mean?"

"Isn't it obvious? Look around. There's no one here. Well, except for us."

His eyes widened. "You knew we were coming."

"Correct. I guess you are gaining IQ points after all. I've been getting reports about what you did. Always about a group of kids and what they did. So I've been tracking you and knew you were coming this way."

"If you knew, why would you let us get this far?"

"To teach you a lesson: there are no easy ways out."

"What are you talking about?"

"You keep trying to take the easy way out every time you face a major situation. Look where it's gotten you. Wandering around the royal palace, demanding the Fire Lord show himself. What, did you think he was just going to stay in one place and wait for you to come to him?"

"Um…kinda," He gave a foolish grin.

He groaned. "About that comment concerning your IQ points, I take it back."

Aang's grin fell. "Well…why don't you tell me where he is?"

"That would be cheating."

"Come on, Naruto, why won't you help us? It's obvious that you don't like things here in the Fire Nation. If you join us, you can help us cha—" He was smashed into a pillar before he could finished. Naruto's hand was gripped around his throat and held it tightly.

"Watch your mouth, brat!" He snarled. "Don't presume you know everything about me!"

"_He's gonna kill me!"_ Aang thought in fright. But to his surprise, his neck was released and he fell to the ground. As he tried to regain his breath, he looked up at Naruto.

"I might not like a couple of things, but I can deal with them." He told the Airbender. "However, all of the things I hate are because of you. Don't ever think it would simple for me to join you when you can't see what you did!"

"I didn't do anything to the Fire Nation." He protested. "They're the ones who are doing horrible things!"

"Don't be so naïve! It is because of you that places like the river town you visited became like that. It is because of you that people like Hama have so much hatred. It is because of you that the schools here teach their students to think what they're doing is right and just. It is because of you that men like Zhao are able to get more and more power. This entire war is your fault, yours and that bastard Roku!"

"You're wrong!" He shouted, leaping up. "This isn't Roku's fault! It's Sozin's!"

"And who told that? I guess Roku himself? Did he show you his past?"

He nodded. "Yes he did. He showed me what happened and how Sozin started the war." He then noticed Naruto was trembling. Before he could ask what was wrong, the Fire Nation Paragon began to laugh, loudly. His laughter echoed through the throne room and the entire palace. "What's so funny?!"

He stopped laughing and began to walk. "A little tip for you, Avatar Aang," He said the last part mockingly. "Even your past lives can lie to you."

"What do you mean?" He asked. Naruto didn't pay him any attention; he just walked through the entrance to the throne room. "Wait! Come back!" He raced after him, but once he burst through the curtain and back into the hallway, there was no sign of the Paragon. "Where did he go?" He asked aloud. "Argh, I don't have time to worry about that!" He flew down the corridor.

Naruto watched him go in silence, hanging from the ceiling. _"Like it would be that easy for me to join you…"_ He thought to himself.

"**It could be that easy, kit."** Kyuubi told him.

"_It's not, Kyuubi. I have a duty here in the Fire Nation."_

"**And what if that duty was not aligned with the Fire Nation anymore?"**

He didn't reply.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Personally, there was one thing that bothered me about this episode. Why would the writers ruin an epic moment for Aang? The kid gets very few in this series, despite what people would like to believe. Here he is and he has the chance for an epic moment, only to have it ruined by a koala sheep! Why!? That's why I left the koala sheep out.

I know I left Sokka's nervous rant out. I did that for two reasons. Number 1: Never liked that part of the episode. Number 2: That would not happened with the way he's matured. It would've been more believable if he had simply froze.

So I gave you a little background on where Akela got his name from. Truth be told, I hadn't really thought about it much until I wrote this chapter. I just made sure to give you enough and not go into details. The reason I said he was _a_ spirit of war instead of _the_ spirit of war is because there are many aspects to war. It's not just one big thing. There's the honor of war, the ruthlessness of war, the thirst of blood in war, etc. etc.

Also, I do believe that the Water Tribe warriors pray to Akela (the original one). I mean, sure, they acknowledge the Moon spirit and the Ocean spirit. But they're not Waterbenders, so why would they pray to them? If that's all they prayed to, the helmets the Southern Water Tribe warriors wear would be in the shape of a fish. That's _real_ frightening to your enemies, having your helmet in the shape of something that's easily eatable.

I know that the show was meant for kids, but come on. They invade the Fire Nation capital, they push the enemy and _not_ person is shown killing another person!? No, instead, they just knock them down and leave them there. Can you say stupid?

That comment that Naruto said before he left was a reference as to why I didn't write The Avatar and the Fire Lord. However, that will be explained much later in the story. I still have to get through this invasion and other whatnot.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	29. Stand offs and Falling back

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 29: Stand offs and Falling back

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Invasion force)

As the moon slowly crawled in front of the sun, the battle raged on. Huu and a few others stood guard over the subs while the others were trying to make their way up the volcano. For now, the movement had come to a standstill. Fire Nation catapults were hurling flaming rocks at the invasion force, trying to destroy the invasion tanks while a few of their own tanks gave support.

The invasion tanks had been put end-to-end, creating a protective wall. The sides opened and Earthbenders would bend rocks at the enemy. If they didn't have a rock handy, they could still move the earth to unsettle any enemy heavy equipment. They used that tactic on a few of the enemy's tanks.

Behind the wall of tanks, Sokka coordinated with Bato and the leader of the Earth Kingdom soldiers. A rock from one of the enemy catapults smashed down nearby. He raised his hand halfway to his head in order to protect it if any big rocks came down. When he opened his eyes, he saw something that was both a surprise and a relief. "Dad!" He said with a smile. Hakoda was coming through the gate, supported by Katara. "You're on your feet again." He came over to them, Toph joining them.

"Thanks to your sister." Hakoda told him as he sat down. "I'm in no shape to fight, but maybe there's some way I can help."

"Everything's going smoothly." He told his father, kneeling down. "And the eclipse hasn't even kicked in yet."

"Let's hope our luck holds out." He noticed Katara had stepped away. "Katara, you seem distracted. Is something wrong?"

She looked up at the sky, tracking a flying object. "Yeah, is that…is that Aang?"

"What?" Sokka asked, looking up. Sure enough, Aang was flying towards them, dodging rocks and fireballs before landing in front of them. "Please tell me you're here because the Fire Lord turned out to be a big wimp and you didn't even need the eclipse to take him down."

"…He wasn't home." Aang finally said. "No one was. The entire palace city is abandoned. The only person I met there was Naruto."

A look of both shock and surprise passed over the Paragon's face. "He knew. They knew."

"It's over. The Fire Lord is probably long-gone; far away on some remote island where he'll be safe during the eclipse."

"No. my instincts tell me he wouldn't go too far. He would have a secret bunker; somewhere he could go and be safe during the siege but still be close enough to lead his nation."

He wasn't sure why, but what Sokka said reminded him of Naruto's words.

"_What, did you think he was just going to stay in one place and wait for you to come to him?"_

"If it's an underground secret bunker we're looking for, I'm just the girl for the job." Toph declared, pointing at herself.

"The Mechanist gave me this timing device." He pulled out said device. "It looks like we've got about ten minutes until the eclipse. Ten minutes to find the Fire Lord"

"We can still do this." Aang said with conviction. "We can still win the day."

"Wait." Katara said. "If they knew we were coming, it could all be a trap. Maybe we should use the time we have left to make sure we all get out of here safely." She told Sokka.

"That might be the best choice." He agreed. "Especially if Naruto knew we were coming."

"Everyone who's here today came prepared to risk everything for this mission." Hakoda told them. "They know what's at stake. If there's still a chance and there's still hope, I think they would want Aang to go for it."

"What do you think?" He asked Aang. "You're the one who has to face the Fire Lord. Whatever you decide, I'm with you."

He stood up and faced the volcano. "I've gotta try." He declared.

"I guess that settles it." He stood up. "Toph and I will go with him in Appa. Katara, you stay here with Dad. Akela, stay with them and protect them." The wolf nodded in agreement. Aang, Sokka and Toph quickly boarded Appa and took off, flying to the volcano. But instead of landing in the city, they landed on the side of the volcano.

"Do you feel anything down there?" Aang asked Toph as she felt the earth.

"Yep," She answered. "There are natural tunnels crisscrossing through the inside of the volcano."

"Anything else?" asked Sokka. "Is there a structure somewhere?"

She slammed her hands into the earth, getting an extra feel. "There's something big, dense and made of metal deep in the heart of the volcano."

"Sounds like a secret bunker to me." She didn't reply, she simply bent open a hole that led into one of the tunnels.

"Stay safe. We'll be back soon." Aang told Appa and Momo before the humans went into the hole.

She checked the earth again. "This way, that one's a dead end!" She told them, running down the tunnel.

"What would we do without you?" Sokka asked her.

"Perish in burning hot magma."

"Yeah, pretty much." He agreed after looking a small amount of magma flow slowly down a current. They kept moving until they enter a chamber that magma erupting from several spots on the ground.

"The tunnel continues on the other side. And it leads right to the bunker." She told them.

"We'll have to be fast, but careful." He started to move forward, but was caught off when magma erupted right in front of him.

Aang quickly cooled the magma with a blast of air. "How is that careful?" He asked Sokka."

"I was wrong." He amended. "We need to be fast, careful and lucky." They charged through the chamber, dodging magma that shot up from the ground. They made it through, but what was in the next chamber stopped them. "There's no floor." Sokka stated. "It's just a river of lava."

Aang simply opened his gilder. "Climb aboard and hold on tight." He ordered the other two. While he flew across the river of lava, dodging the bubbles that would pop and spray lava, the others were holding on for dear life and screaming for dear life too. But in the end, they managed to make it to the other side and just kept on running.

They soon came across something that got their attention. "That's some door!" Sokka declared. Said door was big and attached to what looked to be a metal sphere half-buried in the rock.

Toph walked up to the door and knocked on it, testing out the metal. "Not a problem." She stated before backing up. She lunged forward and bent the metal, first using her elbows to dent it and them using her fingers to bend the dent open, creating a hole in the door. She stepped and pointed forward before charging off.

"I am so glad we added you to the group!" Sokka told her as he and Aang followed.

(Location: Invasion force)

The battle was pushed forward. The invasion force was slowly, but surely making their way up the mountain path that led into the volcano. The Fire Nation forces tried to stop them, but they weren't having much luck. The battlement towers tried to hit the foot soldiers, but they were carrying shields over their heads and letting them overlap. The Boulder and the Hippo took care of the battlement towers by slamming their hands on the side of the mountain and bending the earth underneath the tower to collapse, making it fall. Other Earthbenders repeated the idea.

The captain who was in command of the defense took a look back at the sun. "Retreat! Everyone, move to the secondary positions. Retreat!" He ordered. The soldiers did as they were ordered.

"The eclipse is only minutes away." Bato addressed the invasion force. "We should able to make up the hill by the time it starts, and secure the entire palace when it's finish!" The soldiers cheered at that declaration.

"We can wait here, if you want." Katara offered Hakoda.

"No." He replied. "I wanna press forward with the others." She helped him walk. Akela kept close to their side.

(Location: Tunnels)

War Minister Qin walked through the tunnels, whistling. When he saw the Avatar and his friends come out of the other tunnel, he let out a gasp of surprise. They heard the gasp, turned around and readied themselves for a fight. He raised his hands in surrender. "The Fire Lord's chamber is that way, down the hall, to the left and up the stairs, you can't miss it!" He told them.

They crowded around and gave him a glare. "Thanks!" Aang told him with a small smile. They took off, leaving War Minister Qin alone. He put his hands down, took a quick look around and walked away, taking part in a time-honored tradition: he pretended not to see a damn thing.

As they ran down the tunnel, Sokka checked the eclipse timer again. "Only thirty seconds until the total eclipse." He warned everyone. They soon came to the door that led to the Fire Lord.

Aang took a deep breath. "I'm ready." He declared. "I'm ready to face the Fire Lord." He blasted the doors open with his Airbending. They came into the chamber, but it wasn't Ozai on the throne.

"So you are still alive." Yāo Jing mused. "I guess my aim was a little off."

"Wait, you were the one who shot me in Ba Sing Se?" Aang asked, stunned.

"Well, I had meant to kill you."

"Who the hell are you?" Sokka demanded.

"What? You mean to tell me that my little brother and sister didn't tell you about me? I'm hurt."

"…You're their older sister. No, wait." He said, cutting her off before she could speak. "You look different from them. You're not their actual sister, are you?"

"Oh, the little peasant from the chunk of ice they call the South Pole seems to think he's clever. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Yāo Jing, eldest child to Fire Lord Ozai and half-sister to Zuko and Azula."

"So that would make you the illegitimate one then."

"You have quite the mouth, don't you? But it doesn't matter now, I've known about the invasion for months."

He actually laughed at that. "No you didn't, Naruto knew and somehow, I don't think he would've told you." All three of them saw the flash of rage in her eyes when she heard that.

(Location: Zuko and Azula)

They stood outside a door in the tunnels. _"I'm ready to face you."_ Zuko thought to himself. "Let's get on with it." He said aloud.

"Yeah," Azula agreed. He slid the door open and they walked in.

Ozai sat behind a line of Imperial Firebenders carrying pikes. He was about to take a sip of tea when his children walked into the room. "Zuko, Azula, what are you doing here?" He asked them.

(Location: Invasion force)

As they climbed up the volcano, the Mechanist took notice of the sun. "The eclipse is starting." He announced. "Put on your eclipse glasses!" Everyone did as they were ordered. They continued climbing upward, while Katara and Hakoda looked at the eclipse. The moon covered the sun, truly making it black.

(Location: Royal bunker)

"Why are you two here?" Ozai repeated.

"We're here to tell the truth." Zuko told him.

"Telling the truth during the middle of an eclipse," He said. "This should be interesting." He waved the guards away. They turned and quickly left through side exits and closed the doors behind them.

"First of all, in Ba Sing Se, it was Yāo Jing who took down the Avatar, not me or Azula."

"Why would she lie to me about that?"

"Because the Avatar is not dead," Azula told him. "He survived."

"What?!" asked Ozai with shock.

"He's probably leading this invasion."

"He could be on his way here right now." Zuko agreed.

"Get out!" Ozai roared, standing up and pointing at the door. "Both of you get out of my sight if you know what's good for you!"

"That's another thing. I'm not taking orders from you anymore."

"Neither am I." Azula said.

"You will obey me, or this defiant breath will be your last!" He began to walk down the steps, only to stop when Zuko drew his Dao swords and Azula drew her daggers.

"Think again. I am going to speak my mind and you are going to listen." Ozai knew that he would be defeated if he tried to attack his children now. So he sat back down.

(Location: Team Avatar)

"Where is he?" Aang demanded. "Where is the Fire Lord?"

"You mean I'm not good enough for you?" Yāo Jing asked as she stood up. "You're hurting my feelings."

"Stop wasting our time and give us the information." Sokka ordered, pointing his jian at her. "You're powerless right now, so you're in no position to refuse."

"And stick to the truth." Toph told her. "I'll be able to tell if you're lying."

"Are you sure? I'm a pretty good liar." Yāo Jing said, walking forward a few steps. "I am four-hundred foot tall purple platypus-bear with pink horns and silver wings."

"…Okay, you're good, I admit it." She bent the floor to rise up and trap her. "But you really ought to consider telling the truth anyway!"

Without any warning, the hold she was in started to crack and collapse, surprising the other three. "When I left Ba Sing Se, I stole a few toys from my sister and convinced them to my way of thinking." She told with nonchalance, wiping the rock dust off her armor. From above, two men in very familiar clothes landed. "I believe you know the Dai Li agents."

"How in the name of the Spirits did you do that?" Sokka asked in disbelief. "The Dai Li are among the toughest people out there."

"I'm _very_ persuasive."

After being initially surprised, Aang bent a gust of wind at them. The Dai Li stopped it by bending an earth wall together.

(Location: Invasion force)

They had made up the mountain and now stood on the edges. "Surround the periphery!" Bato ordered. "We have to secure the palace by the time the eclipse is over! Otherwise, we'll be in for the fight of our lives."

The tanks and the foot soldiers came down into the city quickly. However, there were still Fire Nation soldiers trying to defend their home. "Stop!" ordered Tyro. "Surrender peacefully and we won't harm you."

"We'll never surrender!" One of the soldiers declared. He tried to bend fire at them, but only got a puff of smoke. "Okay, we surrender."

"There it is, the Fire Nation Royal Palace." Hakoda said as he and Katara walked to the edge of the volcano. 'We've come so far."

"It's not over yet." Katara told him as they walked down the rim.

(Location: Royal bunker)

"For so long, all I wanted was for you to love me, to accept me." Zuko told Ozai. "I thought it was my honor I wanted. But really, I was just trying to please you. You, my father, who banished me just for speaking out of turn. My father, who challenged me, a thirteen year-old boy, to an Agni Kai, how could you possibly justify a duel with a child?"

"It was to teach you respect!" Ozai told him.

"It was cruel! And it was wrong."

"Then you've learned nothing!"

"No, I've learned everything! And I had to learn it on my own. Growing up, we were taught that the Fire Nation was the greatest civilization in history. And somehow, the war was our way of sharing our greatness with this side of the planet."

"What an amazing lie." Azula remarked.

He nodded. "The people from this side of the planet are terrified by the Fire Nation. They don't see our greatness. They hate us! And we deserve it."

"We've created an era of fear for this side of the planet." She told Ozai. "And if we don't want it destroyed, we need to replace it with an era of peace and kindness."

The Fire Lord laughed. "Your uncle has gotten to you both, hasn't he?"

"Yes, he has." Zuko told him with a proud smile.

"Not only him, but Naruto too." Azula said. What they said made Ozai only angrier.

(Location: Team Avatar)

Aang rushed forward, destroying the wall the agents made. They responded by bending the stone to rise up into another wall. He jumped up and leapt off a steel column, landing on the other side. The agents bent up a chunk of rock each and threw at him, which he destroyed with two heavy kicks. As this happened, Toph burst through the wall and landed, sending the agents into the wall via two rock columns.

They reacted by landing on the walls and sending their own columns at her. She blocked them by bending two slabs up to protect her. She then sent a rock line at Yāo Jing, who leapt off in a backflip, using the rock line as her jumping point. She landed in front of the throne and Aang went after her. One of the Dai Li agents noticed and followed. He leapt off the wall and bent another wall to come up from the floor. Aang leapt into the air and kicked through, making a hole. As he sent the agent flying into the ceiling (and taking him out of the fight), he bent a blast of air at Yāo Jing, who dodged it and let it destroy the throne.

She ran off to the side, where he sent another air-blast at her. She dodged it by running up one of the columns and back-flipped off it. She then ran past the second wall and towards the first. Aang chased after her, with Toph joining in the chase. The remaining Dai Li agent realized what she was going to do and helped her by bending a column underneath her feet, giving her the extra momentum to jump through the hole in the wall. What she didn't expect to see was Sokka waiting for her when she landed.

He lunged forward, trying to catch her as she landed. But even though she was caught off guard, she reacted with ease. She twisted herself away from the lunge and landed in a crouch. Sokka realized what she was about to do and tried to back away, but she knocked his legs from underneath him, sending him to the ground. She took off, running to the door. The agent had followed her through the hole as did Toph and Aang.

"I can't pin her down!" Aang told Toph as they ran. "She's too quick!" Toph faded off to the side when she heard that. Yāo Jing ran through the door and the agent followed, bending the earth to block the door. Aang broke through with ease and continued chasing the two. The agent was knocked to the side by column jutting out of the wall and Toph coming out of a hole in the wall. He was sent flying into a crevice of a metal beam. He tried to get out, but Toph blocked him and ensured he'd stay there by bending the metal tightly against him.

"_Now that only leaves her."_ Sokka thought.

"**You need to stop and think!"** A voice in his head commanded. **"Think about what she's trying to make you do."** Although he didn't know who the voice was, he realized what he was talking about.

"Wait, Aang, Toph!" He cried out, making everyone stop. "Stop attacking. Don't you see what she's doing? She's just playing with us. She's not even trying to win this fight!"

"Oh, that's untrue." Yāo Jing said. "I'm doing the best that I can."

"You're trying to keep us here and waste our all time!" Toph declared, pointing her finger.

"I believe your friend just said that, genius. And since you're blind, I'll tell you that I'm rolling my eyes." She said with a smirk.

"I'll roll your whole head!"

Sokka stopped her from attacking. "She's just baiting you again."

"Okay, so what do we do? Just ignore her?" Aang asked him.

"We don't have a choice. We just have to get out of here and find the Fire Lord on our own somehow." The three of them turned around and started walking away.

"It's a trap. Don't say I didn't warn you." Yāo Jing said.

"Ignore!"

"…So, Sokka's your name, right? My favorite prisoner used to mention you all the time." This made him stop and looked back at her. "She was convinced you were going to rescue her. Of course, you never came and she gave up on you. You can't believe how much fun it was torturing her. Beating her, giving her burn wounds, making her go days without food, it all gave me such a…rush." She said that last part with a half-crazed grin.

When he heard all this, Sokka began to shed tears. The voice in his mind spoke again, this time with fury in its voice. **"She dares to think she can do all of that to our mate and thinks she can get away with it?! PUT HER ON HER KNEES! MAKE HER BEG FOR MERCY!"** It roared. He roared as well, charging at her.

"Come and get it." She said to herself, flicking a knife into her hand. However, she forgot that Toph could sense such things. She bent a rock up from the ground and pinned her to the wall with it attaching itself to her wrist. Before she could even try to struggle, Sokka was already on her.

"Where. Is. Suki?" He growled at her. Though she looked on the outside, inside she was scared. Behind Sokka, she saw an image of a black wolf looking at her with the promise of a painful and a gory death.

(Location: Royal bunker)

"After we leave here today," Zuko told Ozai. "I'm going to free Uncle Iroh from his prison and I'm gonna beg for his forgiveness. He's the one who has been a real father to me."

"Oh, that's just beautiful." Ozai replied with a chuckle. "And maybe he can pass down to you of tea and failure."

"We've also come to a more important decision." Azula said. "We're gonna join with the Avatar and we're going to help him defeat you."

"Really?" asked the Fire Lord. "Since you're both full-blown traitors now and you want me gone, why wait? I'm powerless. You've got your swords and your daggers. Why don't you just do it now?"

"We know our own destiny. Taking you down is the Avatar's destiny." Zuko said as he sheathed his swords and Azula sheathed her daggers. "Goodbye." They turned around and started to walked away.

"Cowards!" spat Ozai. "You think you both are brave enough to face me, but you'll only do it during the eclipse." He stood up. "If the two of you have any real courage, you'll stick around until the sun comes out. Don't you want to know what happened to your mother?" That question made the two of them stop and turn back around to face him, making him smile.

"What happened that night?" Azula asked him.

"My father, Fire Lord Azulon, commanded me to do the unthinkable to you, my own son." He said, looking at Zuko. "And I was going to do it. Your mother found out and swore she would protect you at any cost. She knew I wanted the throne and she proposed a plan, a plan in which I would become Fire Lord and your life would be spared."

(Location: Team Avatar)

"Where's Suki?!" He demanded of Yāo Jing. She didn't say a word. "Answer me!"

"Sokka, she won't talk." Aang told his friend.

"Where are you keeping her?" He yelled at her, the black wolf behind him bared its fangs and began to snarl. She smiled smugly and kept her mouth shut. But it was all she could do not openly panic and beg them not to let the wolf get her. In her mind, she kept thinking about Chun's photo, holding on to it like a lifeline.

(Location: Royal bunker)

"Your mother did vicious, treasonous things that night." Ozai told his children. "She knew the consequences and accepted them. For her treason, she was banished."

"So she's alive?" Zuko asked with relief in his voice, tears of happiness falling down his face.

"_Thank you, Agni."_ Azula thought with gratitude. _"If she's still alive, then we can find her."_

"Perhaps," Ozai admitted. "Now I realize that banishment is far too merciful a penalty for treason." He closed his eyes. "The penalty for the both of you will be far steeper." As he felt the eclipse ending, he generated lightning and threw at Zuko.

He caught it and was pushed back. **"How dare him!"** A voice in his head, one didn't sound like the Blue Spirit or his younger self, said in outrage. **"He would dare to throw the wrath of the heavens at his own child!? Return it to him in full force!"**

"_Believe me."_ He answered silently, not even wondering who the voice was. _"I was planning on it."_ He redirected the lightning back at Ozai, sending him flying back into the Fire Nation banner behind him and created a fire.

"You would dare do this to your own father!"

"Father?" asked Azula in growing outrage. "What father? What father would raise his children to believe that power is the only thing that matters in the world? What father would willingly attempt to murder his own son and banish his wife just so he could obtain the throne? What father would burn a woman, leaving her scarred beyond any help of healing, just because she wanted to see her daughter for one day? What kind of father is that!?"

"I had always thought you were the stronger of my children, Azula. Will you prove me right and do your duty, as the daughter of the Fire Lord?"

Her response was to reach up and undo the headpiece, letting her hair fall down. She grabbed most of it in a tight grip and with the other hand, drew a dagger and sawed it off. She took the cut hair and threw into the fire. Her hair was now in the rough shape of a bob cut "You are not my father anymore." She declared. "I am no longer the daughter of Fire Lord Ozai." As Ozai just looked at the burning hair in stunned shock, both she and Zuko ran out of the room.

(Location: Team Avatar)

"Oh, it sounds like the Firebending is back on." Yāo Jing remarked. She forced Sokka back with a sweep of her leg bending an arc of fire. She sent another fireball at him; Toph pushed him out of the way, saving both of them. She black-flipped onto the cuffs and broke free of them using her Firebending. She flipped forward and made Aang jump away with a flaming kick. "Dad's all the way at the end of the hall then down a secret stairway on the left. I'm sure he'd be more than happy to see you now." She ran away; glad to be away from that black wolf.

"I fell for it!" Sokka realized. "I used up all our time."

"It's not your fault, Sokka." Toph told him. "She was ready for us. She had every move planned out."

"And now it's too late."

"Maybe it's not too late." Aang said. "The eclipse is over. But I can face the Fire Lord anyway."

"No. That's not a good idea."

"But I'm ready! I came here with a job to do and everyone's counting on me."

"Naruto knew we were coming and so did the Fire Lord." Toph said. "We thought we had surprise on our side but we didn't. It just wasn't our day. What we need to do now is go help our friends."

"I guess you guys are right."

"You'll have another chance." Sokka told him. "I know you will." They quickly made their way through the tunnels, trying to get out the way they came. **"I am sorry about what I did back there."** The voice told him. **"I gave her enough time to delay."**

"_Who are you?"_ Sokka asked silently.

"**You still can't hear my name?"** The voice seemed to sigh. **"It's not important now, you need to focus."**

(Location: Invasion force)

All was silent as they waited for…something. Katara helped her father lean against one of the tanks, taking off the eclipse glasses. "What should we do, Hakoda?" Bato asked. "Shouldn't something have happened by now?"

"I don't know." Hakoda answered. "But now that the eclipse is over, I expect we're going to see some Firebenders any minute." Bato took a quick look up and was surprised at what he saw. Katara saw his surprise and turned in the direction he was looking. Behind the royal palace, several hot air balloons were rising up in the air.

"My own invention!" cried the Mechanist in horror. "Oh, this is terrible!" But the worst had yet to come. Behind the war balloons, five airships with bronze dragon heads at the helm rose up behind them. They were much, _much_ bigger than the two man crew of the war balloons.

Katara then heard a familiar sound. "They're back!" She cried, pointing at the incoming Appa. His passengers (the one who could see anyway) looked at what was in the air with dismay. The sky bison landed in front of Katara.

"It was all a trap." Sokka told his sister as he and Toph got off of Appa. "Naruto had planned every move! We've just got to get the beach as fast as we can. If we can make it to the submarines, maybe we can get away safely."

"They've got air power, but so do I!" Aang said, opening up his glider. "I'm gonna do what I can to slow them down." He took off into the air.

"Appa, you and I can help too." Katara told the sky bison, jumping on. They took off after him and they both flew up at the war balloons.

"Everyone, let's get to the subs!" Sokka ordered, making everyone start running.

Aang approached one of the war balloons. After dodging most of the fireballs sent at him, he closed the glider and went through the balloon itself, tearing a hole in it and making it lose altitude. Katara approached another one on Appa. She bent her water to slice the balloon in half, making that one fall as well. They tried to get close to the airships, but the Firebenders stationed out on the outside platforms of said airships sent a continuous barrage of fire at them, forcing them back.

"We can't keep them all back!" Katara shouted at Aang. "There are too many of them!"

"Let's join the others!" Aang shouted back. They flew towards the invasion force.

(Location: Zuko and Azula)

They ran into the prison, which looked like it was the sight of a battle. They went past several guards who cowered in fear as they ran by them. "Uncle!" cried Zuko as he stopped in front of Iroh's cell. It was empty, save for the unconscious guard. The cell looked like something had burst it open. "Where's our uncle?" He demanded of the guard, grabbing hold of his shirt.

"He's gone." The guard answered as a look of fear came onto his face. "He busted himself out. I-I've never seen anything like it. He was like a…one-man army." Zuko let go of the guard and he and Azula ran out of the cell.

"We need to get out of here." Azula told him. "Ozai's not going to take our defection lightly."

"Especially if Yāo Jing is there to spur him on," Zuko agreed. "I've got a war balloon nearby. We can use it to go follow the Avatar when he runs."

"How do you know he's going to run?"

"He always does. Anyway, I don't when soldiers are going to arrive, but we need to…" His words stopped as he and Azula stepped out of the prison. "Leave right away." He finished weakly. Standing in front of the prison, were hundreds of soldiers waiting for them.

"Seems like Ozai wants to make sure we stay." She remarked.

"Detain the traitors!" The captain of the soldiers ordered.

"Jet propulsion?" suggested Zuko quietly.

"If you're up to it," She answered.

"We jump at the gate."

"Then call it."

"3…2…1…GO!" They charge at the soldiers, who prepared themselves for a fight. What they got instead was Zuko and Azula leaping over them, using their Firebending to push them further. They landed on the other side of the soldiers. They kept running and they could hear them coming after them. It wasn't until they heard the sound of two swords clanging against each other did they stop and turn.

"Lord Naruto, what are you doing?!" The captain cried in shock. Naruto had his jian out and had blocked one of the soldiers who had a sword drawn. That in turn, made everyone stop.

"My job," He answered before disengaging the soldier and leaping away, landing next to Zuko and Azula. "You two, get out of here. Go follow the idiot."

"How did you know?" Azula asked.

"I know you two." He replied. "Now go. I'll hold them off for as long as I can."

"No! You can come with us. We can get out of here, all of us."

He just turned and looked at her. "When did you cut your hair?" He asked.

"Don't change the subject, Naruto! You don't have to…" She was interrupted when Naruto kissed her on the lips.

"Don't worry; I won't be gone for long. We'll talk once I'm back, alright?" He told her before looking at her brother. "Zuko, you two have to leave, now." He nodded in agreement, took Azula's hand and ran. After stumbling a few steps, she regained her balance, yanked her hand out of his and ran alongside him. "Now then," Naruto said, turning back to face the soldiers. "Where were we?"

"Please, Lord Naruto, don't do this." The captain begged. "If you continue, I'll have no choice but to arrest you! I've served under you, sir. I don't want to do that!"

"You have your duty, captain, and I have mine."

"**You know, you should be glad that Iroh isn't here."** Kyuubi commented.

"_And why is that?"_ He asked silently.

"**He would be laughing his ass off at the irony."**

"_No, he'd be sitting on his ass, drinking tea and _then_ he would've been laughing."_

"**Fair point, kit," **The fox admitted. They didn't say anything else as Naruto threw himself at the soldiers.

(Location: Invasion force)

They ran down the mountain path, trying to escape. Sokka looked back to see the airships flying over the ridge of the volcano. "Try and find cover!" He ordered the invasion force when he saw that hatches were opening on the bottom of the airships. "I think we're about to see some bombs!" Aang, Katara and Appa landed down next to him. Toph bent a large slab of rock to jut out over their heads to protect them. The action was repeated with other groups.

The bombs began to fall, causing big explosions where they hit the ground. A couple of the bombs hit the slab, causing it to crack. It would've fallen on top of them, had Toph not stabilized it with rock columns. The tanks kept going down the mountain side, despite the bombs. Once they had delivered their payload, the airships kept on flying.

"Why aren't they turning around to attack us again?" Katara asked.

"They're headed for the beach." Aang noted, before realizing what that meant. "They're going to destroy the submarines."

"How are we all going to escape?" Sokka asked.

"We're not." Hakoda answered, being helped forward by Bato.

He turned to face his father. "Then our only choice is to stand and fight. We have the Avatar, we could still win."

"Yes, with the Avatar we could still win…on another day." He took his hand off of Bato's shoulder, standing on his own. "You kids have to leave. You have to escape on Appa together."

"What?" Katara asked. "We can't leave you behind. We won't leave anyone behind!"

"You're our only chance in the long run. You and Sokka have to go with Aang somewhere safe. It's the only way to keep hope alive."

"The youngest of our group should go with you." Bato suggested. "The adults will stay behind and surrender. We'll be prisoners, but we'll all survive this battle."

"I've got some experience with Fire Nation prisons." Tyro said, joining the conversation. "It's not going to be easy, but we'll get by."

"They're at the beach already!" Sokka exclaimed, getting everyone's attention. The airships flew over Huu and the others and began dropping bombs. Tho and Due tried to destroy the bombs using their Waterbending. Huu tried to bend his monster to catch the bombs and throw them away. But one of the bombs hit his left arm destroying it. Another landed on its head and went through. The swamp monster exploded and sent seaweed everywhere. Both Tho and Due had a giant clump land on them. While they were stuck, the clump also had Huu, who was unharmed, save for a few burns. The rest of the bombs struck the submarines, completely destroying them.

Everyone on the mountain path could only watch as it happened. They then decided to go with the idea of the kids escaping. Toph helped the Mechanist put Teo in Appa's saddle. "Bye, son," The Mechanist said.

"Bye, Dad. I'm really proud of you." Teo said. Toph dropped the earth column the Mechanist was standing on back into the rock, taking the Mechanist with it.

The Duke tried to climb up Appa himself. He was holding onto Appa's horn and was going to fall had Pipsqueak helped him up. "I'll miss you, Pipsqueak." He said.

"Take care, The Duke." Pipsqueak replied.

"We'll be back for you, Dad." Haru told Tyro after hugging him.

"If we don't escape on our own first," Tyro said.

"We lost today." Hakoda told his children before kneeling down to them. "But we've never been this close. We tasted victory and that counts for something."

"We'll miss you, Dad." Katara told him, giving him a hug.

"Bye, Dad." Sokka joined in the hug. "We won't be apart for too long this time, I promise."

"Hey, can someone do me a favor?" Toph asked.

"What is it?" Bato asked her.

"If you guys see the Hippo or the Boulder, tell them…" She looked away, so no one could see the tears glistening in her eyes. "Tell them I was happy to see them again."

"We will, Toph." He told her. Sokka and Katara got aboard Appa.

Katara walked up to Aang, who was crying. He looked at her, sniffed, wiped his tears away and stood up to address the ones who were staying behind. "Thank you all for being so brave and so strong." He told them. "I'm gonna make this up to you." He sat back down on Appa's head while Katara got back in the saddle. The sky bison took off, leaving the adults behind.

As they flew away, an airship appeared behind them. "Should we follow them, my Lady?" A soldier asked Yāo Jing.

"No, they're too fast." She answered. "Besides, just let the cowards run. They'll be back."

Everyone on Appa took notice of the airship behind. When it didn't follow them, Aang turned to face the others. "I know just the place to go where we'll be safe for a while, the Western Air Temple!" He told them. He urged Appa on. He tried to focus but in his mind, Naruto's words kept repeating themselves.

"_There are no easy ways out."_

Unbeknownst to them, a war balloon followed them. Its passengers were Zuko and Azula.

(Location: Naruto)

Naruto stood in the middle of the soldiers. They were all lying on the ground, groaning in pain. "Why are you all complaining?" He asked them, like there was nothing wrong with what he did. "I only beat your asses into the ground, I didn't kill you." Hearing the sounds of footsteps charging towards him, he looked and saw an even larger group of soldiers standing before him.

"Please, Lord Naruto, stand down." The captain of the new group ordered him, his tone was almost begging.

He looked at the new group of soldiers and then at the ones who were getting back onto their feet. The silence was so thick with tension that you couldn't even cut through it with a knife. "I might as well." He finally said, shrugging his shoulders. "I surrender." He dropped his jian to the ground and raised his hands over his head.

"Arrest him." The captain ordered. A couple of the soldiers ran forward and forced him to his knees.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Do you really think I would have Naruto join Team Avatar that easily? Where's the fun in that? When it comes to this kind of stuff, easy is boring.

Personally, I always found it odd that Toph never tried to say goodbye to the Hippo and/or the Boulder. I mean, they have fought against each other in Earth Rumble, but I'd like to think they and the rest of the Earth Rumble members got along fine once the match was over.

I had Azula cut off her hair because it was a symbolic move. By telling Ozai that she is no longer his daughter, it takes care of the problem of who got the throne I might've had later on. Plus, I always wondered what she looked like with short hair. Not when she pins it up with a headpiece, but actually short, like a bob cut.

As for the voices that Sokka and Zuko heard, do you really need to ask who they are?

I'll see you all next chapter!


	30. Regroup and Offers

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 30: Regroup and Offers

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Avatar)

They were walking on the ground, Appa (still in armor) walking behind them. No one said a word. No one wanted to. "This is humiliating." Katara finally said.

"You mean getting thoroughly beaten by the Fire Nation or having to walk all the way to the Western Air Temple?" Sokka asked her, half-sarcastically. Akela (still in armor as well) rolled his eyes.

"Both."

"Sorry, guys." Aang said. "But Appa gets tired carrying all these people." He gave the sky bison a scratch. They kept walking.

"I wonder how the rest of the troops are doing." Teo said.

"They're probably on their way to a prison." Haru told him. "Seems like my dad just got out and now he's going back in," He said bitterly.

"I miss Pipsqueak." The Duke declared.

"I miss not having blisters on my feet." Sokka replied.

"Hey, we're here!" Toph declared, stopping at the edge of a cliff. "I can feel it."

Everyone else saw the edge of a cliff. "Uh…I think your feet need their eyes checked." Katara told her.

"No, she's right." Aang said. "We are here." Sokka looked around, but still didn't see it.

"Wow, it's amazing!" Top declared. The Air Nomads who built the Western Air Temple were quite possibly an odd bunch. Instead of finding a mountain to build their temple, they decided to build it in a cliff-side, putting the actual buildings of the temple _upside-down_! Thankfully however, the floor plan and statues were built correctly and in the right direction.

What the team didn't know was that Zuko and Azula were there as well. Zuko threw a rope down and they slid down it. Once they were close to the platform, they swung off the rope and landed on the platform, one at a time.

Zuko looked up at the statue of the female Airbender before looking out over the edge. He had been here before, three years ago.

(Flashback: Three years ago)

"What a stunning view." Iroh said as he looked out over the edge.

"The only view I'm interested in is the Avatar in chains." Zuko told him, a bandage was over his eye, covering the new scar he had 'received' from his father.

"You know, the Avatar hasn't been seen for a hundred years. The chances of finding him here are very slim."

"First we'll check each of the air temples, then we'll scour this side of the planet, searching even the remote location until we find him."

"Prince Zuko, it's only be a week since your banishment. You should take time to heal and rest."

He turned to face him. "What else would I expect to hear from the _laziest_ man in the Fire Nation?" Iroh sighed in defeat. "The only way to regain my honor is to find the Avatar, so I will."

(End flashback)

He groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. _"I was such an idiot."_ He thought to himself.

"What is it, Zuko?" Azula asked him.

"Just embracing the irony," He told her. "I started my search for the Avatar here."

"I see." They both heard the lowing of a familiar beast. Moving quickly to hide behind the statue, they watch as the sky bison landed. "Should we show ourselves?"

He looked at her and shook his head. "No, for now, let's go and set up a camp in the woods." They moved away towards the nearby stairs.

(Location: Team Avatar)

"It's so different from the Northern Air Temple." Teo said as he and The Duke looked around. "I wonder if there are any secret rooms."

"Let's go check it out." Haru said. He went further into the temple with Teo and The Duke. Aang tried to follow but was block by his staff in Katara's hands.

"You guys go." She told them. "I think we need to talk about some things." They nodded and went off, helping Teo up the stairs.

"I'll race you, Duke." Haru offered as Teo took off.

"I told you, it's _The_ Duke!" He replied as they ran after the wheel-bound person.

"Why can't I go?" Aang asked Katara.

"We need to decide what we're going to do now." She explained. "And since you're the Avatar, maybe you should be a part of this."

He walked over to block of stone and sat down. "Fair enough, so what's the new plan?"

"The new plan is the old plan." Sokka told him. "You just have to master all four elements and confront the Fire Lord before the comet comes."

"Oh yeah, that's great. No problem. I'll just do that." He replied sarcastically, fiddling with a pebble.

"Aang, no one said it was going to be easy." Katara said.

"Well, it's not even going to be possible! Where am I supposed to get a Firebending teacher?"

"We could look for Jeong Jeong." She suggested.

"Yeah, right, like we'll ever run into Jeong Jeong again."

"Who's…?" Toph began to ask, "Oh never mind, if it's important I'll find out."

"Oh well, guess we can't come up with anybody." He jumped off the block. "Why don't we just take a nice tour around the temple?" Before anyone answered him, he opened up the glider and took off. Momo was right behind him.

"What's up with him?"

"I don't know." Sokka answered before getting up from his block of stone as well. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to find someplace quiet. Akela, stay put." He walked away.

"Where is he going?" Katara asked suspiciously.

Toph leapt down to the ground. "You wanna go find out?"

"Just to make sure he doesn't do anything stupid." They went after him, Akela stayed where he was. They made sure to follow quietly (or, at least, as quietly as they could) as Sokka walked through the temple.

Finally, he stopped at a door. He opened it and looked inside. "Good enough." He finally said. He walked into the room, closed the door behind him and locked it. Before the girls could even get close to the door, Sokka started yelling. "YOU ARE A SPIRITS-DAMNED IDIOT! YOU LET THIS GUY OUTSMART YOU TWICE. TWICE! YOU SHOULD'VE FIGURED OUT THAT HE WOULD'VE KNOWN ABOUT THE RULES CONCERNING THE DAI LI AND YOU SHOULD'VE REALIZED HE WOULD'VE KNOWN ABOUT THE DAY OF BLACK SUN. HE'S BEEN IN THAT LIBRARY MORE THEN WE HAVE. BUT DID YOU THINK IT THROUGH? NO! YOU JUST THOUGHT YOU HAD AN ACE AND YOU NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT IF SOMEONE ELSE MIGHT'VE POSSIBLY KNOWN ABOUT IT! DAMN IT! WE LOST BA SING SE AND OUR DAD BECAUSE OF YOUR ACTIONS! YOU HAVE GOT TO USE YOUR HEAD MORE, YOU DUMBASS!"

Both the girls just stood in silence as they heard the rant go on. "Come on, Toph." Katara finally said. "Let's go."

"Who's he yelling at?" Toph asked as they walked away.

"He's yelling at himself. He always beats himself up when he thinks he did something incredibly stupid." She answered. "Once, I would've found it funny. But it's not funny anymore."

(Location: Zuko and Azula)

"So, how do we approach them?" Zuko asked aloud as they set up the camp.

"You're asking me?" Azula replied sarcastically.

"It's better than just talking to ourselves."

"Well…maybe we should just introduce ourselves."

"What? You mean just walk up and say 'Hello, Zuko and Azula here?'"

"What else should we do? It's not like we have Uncle here to help us." That comment made him stop and think. He started pacing. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to be Uncle," He answered before putting on what he thought was a thoughtful. "Zuko, Azula, you have to look within yourselves to save yourselves from your other selves. Only then will your true selves reveal themselves." He stopped walk when he realized what he had just. "Even when I'm talking for him I can't figure out what he means."

"That's sounds like Uncle. Incredibly cryptic and maddeningly unhelpful," She remarked.

"Tell me about it, I had to live with it for three years, and his tea." He groaned. "Both the crew and I got scared when he wanted to try a new kind of tea that had to be made with 'high temperatures'. We made him do it on the deck and made sure the rest of us were below deck and behind locked doors."

"Why would you do that?"

"The last time we let him use the kitchen for it, we had to dock for repairs because the ship had a hole in its side the size of a komodo rhino. The smell, however, lasted for weeks."

(Location: Team Avatar)

Once Sokka was done yelling at himself, he rejoined Katara and Toph. The three of them helped both Appa and Akela out of their armor, then got on Appa and took off after Aang, who was still flying around the temple and acting like nothing was wrong with the world (or at the very least, that side of the planet).

"Aang, can we talk about you learning Firebending now?" Katara asked him.

"What?" He called out, pretending not to have heard her. "The wind is too loud in my ears! Check out this loop!" He executed a big loop in the air.

"Aang, either you land right now by your own violation, or you land after I brain you in the head with the boomerang!" Sokka shouted at him, making him flinch.

"_I don't think he's ever threatened to hurt me before."_ He thought to himself. "Okay!" He said aloud as they landed. "We can do that while I show you the giant Pai Sho table! Oh, you're gonna love the all-day echo chamber!"

"I probably could've used that earlier." Sokka muttered to himself.

"It'll have to wait." Toph suddenly stated. When they looked at her, she pointed behind her. "We have company." Akela sniffed the air and became alert.

"Toph, that's Appa." Katara told her.

"It's whose behind Appa I'm talking about." The sky bison moved away and revealed Zuko and Azula.

"Hello, Zuko and Azula here." Zuko said, making Azula groan.

"You had to go with that?" She asked him.

"Not the issue right now." He replied, jerking his head at Team Avatar, who were preparing for a fight. "We heard you guys flying around down there, so, we'd thought to wait here." Appa stepped up next to him, roared and then gave him a big lick. "I'm sure you're surprised to see us here." He said, wiping the spit off.

"Not really, since you've followed us all over this side of the planet." Sokka told him.

"Right, well…uh…"

"Want me to explain?" Azula asked him.

"Please, by all means."

She turned to face the team. "We've defected from the Fire Nation. We wish to join your group and teach the Avatar Firebending."

"You want to _what_ now!?" Toph asked.

"You can't possibly think that any of us would trust you, can you?" Katara demanded, incredulous. "I mean, how stupid do you think we are?!"

"You've had your moments." Azula remarked. "I mean, there was that time where you led an Earth Kingdom army to a Fire Nation colony and didn't realize that they were going to destroy it."

"Katara, stop," Sokka ordered his sister. "Don't open your mouth or this will get worse." He looked back at the siblings. "It is hard to believe you, all the two of you ever done is tried to capture Aang."

"I've done some good things!" Zuko protested. "I mean, I could've stolen your bison in Ba Sing Se, but I set him free. That's something!" Appa gave him another lick.

"_I'm glad it's not doing that to me."_ Azula thought to herself.

"Appa does seem to like him." Toph noted.

"I can understand why you wouldn't trust me." Zuko said. "And I know I made some mistakes in the past."

"Like when you attacked our village?" Katara asked. "Or when you stole my mother's necklace and used it to track us down and capture us?"

"Katara, close the mouth!" Sokka barked.

"Nice going, Zuko." Azula told him with a small amount of sarcasm.

"You're not helping." He told her before looking back at the group. "Look, I don't know about Azula, but I will admit I've done some awful things. I was wrong to try and capture you, and I'm sorry that I attacked the Water Tribe. And I never should've sent that Fire Nation assassin after you." That last piece of information got everyone's attention.

"You sent an assassin after them!?" Azula repeated, looking at her brother.

"It seemed like the right idea at the time!" He defended himself.

"That guy locked me and Katara in jail and tried to blow us all up!" Toph told him angrily.

"…Why don't we let the Avatar speak for once?" Azula suggested. Everyone's attention fell to him.

"You once said you thought we could be friends. You know I have good in me." Zuko tried to convince him.

"There's no way we can trust you two after everything the two of you have done. We'll never let you join us." Aang answered firmly.

"We're trying to help you, get it through your thick heads!" Azula snapped at them. "We're not the same people anymore."

"If you won't accept us as friends, then maybe you'll take us as prisoners." Zuko knelt down and offered them his hands. His offer surprised his sister.

"No we won't!" Katara shouted, bending her water out of the pouch and hit him like a sledgehammer, knocking him down. Azula moved into a Firebending stance, ready to attack.

"Azula, don't!" He told her.

"Katara put that water away!" Sokka ordered.

She did as she was told, but she didn't like it. "The two of you get out of here and don't come back! And if we ever see either you again…well…we'd better not see either of you again!"

"I've heard five year olds give better threats." Azula commented.

"GET OUT!" She screamed. Zuko stood back up and walked away, soaking wet. Azula was right behind him (thought, not as close as to get wet). Together, they climbed out of the Western Air Temple and back to their camp. By the time they had arrived, Zuko had been able to dry his clothes via minimal Firebending.

"I can't believe how stupid I am!" He said as they walked into the camp.

"I can't either." Azula said. "Why did you send an assassin after them and not tell me?"

"I told you, I thought it was the right idea at the time!"

"But why hide it from the rest of us?"

"What was I supposed to say? 'Hi Azula, how's it going? By the way, I sent an assassin to kill the Avatar, who's still alive'? It probably would've been believable if I had said you sent him."

"Oh, thank you very much."

(Location: Team Avatar)

"Why would they try to fool us like that?" Katara wondered aloud before turning to face Sokka. "And why were you not agreeing with us to make them leave?"

"Because I was willing to give them the benefit of doubt," He answered. "No one stays the same over the years. Look at the Sand Siblings. They were our allies in Ba Sing Se, but now there was a possibility of fighting them in the invasion."

"Well, it felt just like when we were in prison together back in Ba Sing Se. He starts talking about his mother and making it seem like he's an actual human being with feelings."

"He _is_ an actual human being with feelings." He remarked sarcastically. She just glared at him.

"I kind of have a confession to make." Aang said. "Remember when you two were sick and I got captured by Zhao?"

"And you made us suck on frozen frogs? How could I forget?"

"When Zhao had me chained me up, it was Zuko who came in and got me out. He risked his life to save me."

"No way!" protested Katara. "I'm sure he only did it so he could capture you himself!"

"That was then, but this is now, Katara." Sokka told his sister.

"Now isn't any different from then. Besides, what's with all that crazy stuff about setting Appa free? What a liar!"

"Actually, he wasn't lying." Toph spoke out.

"Well, at least he's not cruel to animals. That's a plus." Sokka remarked.

"I'm just saying that, considering their messed-up family and how they were raised, the both of them could've turned out a lot worst."

"You're right, Toph. Let's go give them a medal. The 'not as much of a jerk you could have been award' award," Katara said with blatant sarcasm.

"All I know is that while they were talking to us, they were sincere. Maybe you're just letting your hurt feelings keep you from thinking clearly."

"That's easy for you to say! You weren't there when he had us attacked by pirates, or when he burned down Kyoshi Island!"

"Or when he tried to capture me at the Fire Temple!" agreed Aang.

"But she was there at Tu Zin and at the Outer Walls of Ba Sing Se." Sokka defended.

"Well, why would she even try to defend them?" Katara asked.

"Because, Katara," Toph said walking forward. "You're ignoring one crucial fact: Aang needs a Firebending teacher!" She poked him on the chest. "We can't think of a single person on this side of the planet to do the job! Now not just one, but two, show up on a silver platter and you won't even think about it?!" She stomped on the ground, shaking the ground slightly. Katara fell silent after she heard this.

"I'm not having Zuko _or_ Azula as my teachers!" Aang said firmly.

"Aang, we don't have any other options." Sokka told him.

"I don't care! They're not teaching me Firebending."

"Well, I guess that's settled." Katara told Toph.

She turned around with a frustrated growl. "I'm beginning to wonder who the blind one around here really is." She walked away from them.

"Toph, wait!" Sokka called after her.

"Leave her alone, Sokka." Aang said. "If she wants to be alone, then let her."

"Fine, there's just one thing that's bugging me."

"And what is that?" Katara asked.

"If Azula was here, where is Naruto?"

(Location: Zuko and Azula)

Night had fallen and they were asleep around the campfire. **"You must wake up."** A voice rang in Zuko's head. It was the same voice he had heard during the eclipse.

"_What?"_ He asked groggily.

"**Wake up! There's an enemy nearby."** The voice said. That, along with something cracking in the forest, woke him up.

"Who's there?" He called out.

"What is it?" Azula asked quietly.

"Keep quiet." He told her. "Stay back!" He yelled out, bending fire at the unknown person walking into the light of the fire.

That person turned out to be Toph. "It's me!" She tried to him. She bent up a shield of rock to block the fire, but the fire curved around it. She took a step and her feet stepped into the fire. "OW!" She cried, dropping the shield and falling to the ground. Zuko rubbed his eyes and saw who it was. "You burned my feet!" She said. The bottoms of her feet were a bright pink.

"I'm sorry!" He tried to apologize, standing up. "It was a mistake!" He ran over to her.

"Get away from me!" She told him, turning around and throwing big rocks at him, which he easily dodged. She crawled away, trying to escape.

"Let me help you." He told her, dodging more rocks. "I'm sorry!" He grabbed her shoulder.

"Get off me, get off me!" She screamed. She tore herself out of his grip and bent the earth beneath her into a rock column, hitting him in the chest and sending him flying. He crashed back into the ground in front of the fire.

"I didn't know it was you! Come back!" He shouted at her disappearing form. He threw himself back with a shout of frustration. "Why am I so bad at being good?!" He demanded aloud.

"Poetic irony?" suggested Azula.

"Shut up, Azula. I didn't see you helping!"

"You were across the camp before I could stand up. By then, the rocks were flying. Pardon me if I didn't want to get brained in the head."

(Location: Team Avatar)

It was morning. Everyone had woken up and gathered around for breakfast. "Has anyone seen Toph?" Katara asked as she handed out bowls of rice.

"I haven't seen her since she left yesterday." Sokka answered.

"Maybe she's just exploring the air temple." Haru suggested. "There are some pretty fun spots to practice Earthbending."

"…I think we should go look for her." Katara decided.

"She'll show up when she shows up." Sokka said, sitting down.

"We can go check for her." The Duke offered.

"Yeah!" agreed Teo. "I wanna ride that tunnel down to the Hall of Statues again; it will work a lot better now that I've fixed my brakes." He, Haru and The Duke left to go through the temple again.

The others felt the entire temple shake and saw dust shoot out from a corner. Toph bent a hole in the wall and crawled out of it, falling down the rubble she made and landing on the ground, grunting in pain as she went. "Toph!" said Katara as she, Sokka, Akela and Aang ran over to her. "What happened?"

"My feet got burned!" She answered.

"Oh no, what happened?" She asked, looking at the feet.

"I just told you, my feet got burned!"

"I meant how."

"Well, I kinda went to see Zuko and Azula last night." That shocked everyone.

"You WHAT!?" asked Aang.

"Zuko and Azula!?" asked Katara.

"I just thought they could be helpful to us." She tried to explain as Katara got to work on her feet. "And if I talked to them, maybe we could work something out."

"But he attacked you instead?" Sokka asked.

"Well, he did and he didn't. It was sort of an accident."

"But he did Firebend at you?" Aang tried to clarify.

"Yes." She answered with a sigh.

"It's gonna take a while for your feet to get better." Katara told her as she put the water away. "I wish I could've worked on them sooner."

"Yeah, me too," She agreed.

"You should've waited until this morning to go see them." Sokka told her.

"I figured most of you would say no and would throw a fit if we went through with it anyway."

"You do have a point." He agreed.

"Shouldn't we come up with a plan to stop them?" Aang asked as he and Sokka picked up Toph.

"Why? This was just an accident. Besides, what do you me want to say? That we'll let them come back as our prisoners, jump them and then _really_ make them our prisoners?"

"You are the idea guy." Katara said. They carried Toph back to the pool of water and placed her feet in it.

"Ahhh, that's the stuff." She said. "Now I know how the rest of you guys feel. Not being able to see with your feet stinks."

(Location: Zuko and Azula)

They made their way down to the temple. "Why exactly do we have to do this?" Azula asked. "They said no already."

"This is not asking to join them." Zuko told her. "This is apologizing for last night."

"I can't believe you're doing this. It was an accident."

"It was my fault."

"She snuck up on us. Why was she even trying to do that in…?" She trailed off when she saw something. "Who is that?" She asked.

"Who is what?"

"Him," She pointed down at the person. "Who is that?"

He looked at where she was pointing. His eyes widened in both shock and panic. "That's a problem."

(Location: Team Avatar)

Everyone still helped Toph out as her feet were being cooled in the pool of water. Unbeknownst to them, the assassin was standing on a ledge, watching them. As he saw the Avatar come back into his sights, he inhaled. It was that point Zuko swung down and kicked him, just as he was firing a blast. His shot was off, hitting the rock above them and getting their attention.

Sokka and Aang grabbed Toph. They were about to run when Zuko's voice rang out. "Stop, I don't want you hunting the Avatar anymore!" He told the assassin, surprising said Avatar. "The mission is off. I'm ordering you to stop." He stood in front of the assassin. He was shoved out of the way the assassin inhaled and fired again.

The blast destroyed the cover of the pool of water, showering the team with rocks as they hid below the wall. "If you keep attacking, I won't pay you." Zuko told the assassin, trying to Firebend at him. The assassin didn't even look at him, he just held him there with a hand, letting the fire die away. "Alright, I'll pay you double to stop." He tried to kick the assassin, but that only succeeded in pushing him away. He still fired off another shot, making Aang duck his head back down.

"_This is why he is the dum-dum."_ Azula thought to herself as she tried to get a good angle on the assassin without hurting her brother.

The assassin turned to face Zuko and fire a quick blast at him. Zuko tried to defend himself by bending his fire into a wall in front of him. The blast hit the wall and exploded, but the force pushed him back. When the smoke cleared, the assassin did not see him. But what he didn't know was that Zuko had grabbed onto a root and was climbing back up.

Azula saw that he was safe and tried to generate lightning. _"What is wrong with me?"_ She wondered. _"It shouldn't be this difficult!"_

Aang decided to take action. He moved out of the safety (or at least, relative safety) of the pool wall. He leapt up into the air just as a blast impacted on where he just was. In the smoke, he bent a tornado and threw it at the assassin. He leapt over the tornado and while he fell, he fired another blast at the Airbender, who dodged it by flipping back away.

As the assassin fell towards another ledge, he slowed himself down by grabbing the ledge above him. His metal arm tore through the stone and he landed safely (unfortunately) on the ledge. He rolled forward as he landed and fired another blast.

It hit the pool of water, harming no one. Katara decided to take action. She bent the water out of the pool and leapt up, taking the water with her in a giant wave. With a shout, she swung her arms down and the wave quickly turned into ice and fired spikes at the assassin. He defended himself by bringing his metal arm and leg together, making them act like a shield. When the spikes stopped, he lowered them and looked around. He didn't see his target anywhere.

They had run to around the corner, getting out of his range of vision. He fire off another blast, destroying a column. "He's going to blast this place right off the cliff-side!" Toph said as she felt the place shake.

Katara took a quick peek around the corner, only to get a blast close by. "I can't step out to Waterbend at him without getting blown up." She said. "And I can't get a good enough angle on him from down here."

"I know how to get an angle on him!" Sokka said. He pulled out his boomerang and pulled his sister out of the way. He stuck his head out and pulled it back when another blast hit nearby. He looked out again and another blast hit. He held out his boomerang at where the blasts were coming and swung it down to where the last shot had struck, measuring out the angle. "Alright boomerang, don't fail me now." He told the thing. He threw it with all of his might.

It spun around and around, curving towards the assassin. Just as he inhaled and was about to fire off another blast when he noticed the thing, but it was too late. It struck him in his third eye and knocked him to the ground. _"I'll give him points for creativity."_ Azula admitted to herself as she still tried to generate lightning.

"I got him!" Sokka cheered as they moved away from the corner and he caught the boomerang. Their joy soon disappeared when the assassin stood back up. "Oh come on!" Sokka groaned. They ran back to the corner for cover.

"_I've got it!"_ Azula thought as she successfully manage to generate lightning. Once it was primed, she aimed at the assassin and discharged it. Meanwhile, the assassin's vision had turned blurry, but he couldn't see his target. In an effort to clear his vision and lure his target out, he inhaled and tried to fire off another blast. But the same thing in Fire Fountain City happened. The blast turned inward on him. The moment that happened was the same moment Azula's lightning struck him.

The resulting explosion was big and destructive enough to take out two of the temple buildings. The two buildings fell down the cliff, the assassin's metal arm spinning through the air, following them. As Haru, Teo and The Duke looked on from relative safety, Aang, Sokka and Katara looked over the edge. While Sokka wore a neutral look on his face, Aang and Katara shared looks of surprise. They then looked up and saw that Zuko was still alive. He climbed up from the root onto the safety of the ledge.

"Why exactly did I attack him again?" He asked.

"Because you're a dum-dum," Azula answered after leaping onto the ledge.

"And where were you?" He asked her.

"I was trying to find a good angle on him without hitting you. Sorry if it took a while." She replied with sarcasm.

"Whatever." He was silent for a few seconds. "That wall I bent up should've stopped the blast dead. Instead, it sent me over the edge. It was weaker than normal."

"I know. It took me longer than normal to generate lightning. The only time I've struggled like that was when I had just started trying to generate lightning."

"Something is happening to our Firebending."

"Agreed, but now is not the time to worry about it." She helped him stand up. "We should probably go down to talk to them."

"Yeah, you're right."

"I'm always right."

"No you're not." They made their way off the ledge and down to where Team Avatar was waiting.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but…thanks, Zuko, Azula." Aang said.

"Hey, who threw the boomerang?" Sokka asked.

"Hey, who threw the lightning?" Azula asked back.

"Azula/Sokka," Aang and Zuko said at the same time. Zuko looked at the team. "I know we didn't explain ourselves very well yesterday. I have been through a lot in the past few years."

"I've changed since Ba Sing Se." Azula chimed in.

"It's been difficult for us. I thought I had lost my honor and that somehow, my father could it return to me. But I know now that no one can give you your honor. It's something you earn for yourself, by choosing what's right to do." Naruto's words went through his mind.

"_You've restored your honor back at Akawan." _

"All we want to do now is play our parts in ending this war. I know my destiny is to help you restore balance." He finished.

"The same here," Azula agreed.

He looked over at Toph. "I'm sorry for what I did to you." He apologized, bowing his head. "It was an accident. Fire can be dangerous and wild. So, as a Firebender, I need to be more careful and control my bending, so I don't hurt people unintentionally."

Aang was surprised at he said. He looked at both him and Azula. "I think the two of you _are_ supposed to be my Firebending teachers." He declared, surprising the others (minus Sokka). "When I first tried to learn Firebending, I burned Katara and after that, I never wanted to Firebend again. But now I know you understand how easy it is to hurt the people you love. I'd like the both of you to teach me." He bowed to them both.

They bowed back. "Thank you." Azula said.

"I'm happy you've accepted us into your group." Zuko told him.

"Not so fast." He said, catching them by surprise. "I still have to ask my friends if it's okay with them." He turned to Toph. "Toph, you're the one Zuko burned. What do you think?"

"Go ahead and let him join." She answered. "It'll give me plenty of time to get back at him for burning my feet."

"Sokka?"

"All I want is to defeat the Fire Lord. If they want to help, then I say let them join. There's just one question I have for them."

"And what is that?" Azula asked.

"Where is Naruto? He is never far from you and yet, we haven't seen him."

"Naruto…stayed behind." She answered; a sad expression on her face. "He gave us time to escape by holding off the soldiers coming for us."

"Oh…I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It was his choice."

"Katara?" asked Aang, looking at her.

She looked at the two like she wanted to drown them right then and there. She closed her eyes and took a breath. "I'll go along with whatever you think is right." She finally said, making Aang smile. Akela padded forward and sniffed them, making sure he got their scents.

"We won't let you down! I promise!" Zuko told them. They walked away, he and Azula followed them. Later, Sokka led Zuko to a spare room.

"Well, here you go." He told him. "Lunch will be soon." He walked out of the room and met up with Aang, who had shown Azula where her room was. "It'll take some getting used to." He admitted.

"I know." Aang replied as they walked away.

Zuko put his bag on the bed and started unpacking. He pulled out a picture of Iroh and looked at it.

(Flashback: Three years ago)

"If I have to," Zuko declared. "I'll spend the rest of my life hunting the Avatar. I know it's my destiny to capture him."

"You know, Prince Zuko," Iroh told him. "Destiny is a funny thing. You never know how things are going to work out. But if you keep an open mind and an open heart, I promise you will find your own destiny someday."

(End Flashback)

He smiled at what his uncle had said. _"That's just like Uncle."_ He thought. "_Incredibly cryptic, maddeningly unhelpful…and usually right in the end,"_ He gave a small laugh and shook his head. Then he noticed that Katara was standing at the door, leaning against its frame. He stood up and turned to face her.

"You and your sister might have everyone else here buying your…transformations." She told him. "But you and I both know you've struggled with doing the right thing in the past." She walked into the room and into his face. "So let me tell you something, right now. Either of you make one step backward, one slip-up, give me one reason to think you might hurt Aang, and you won't have to worry about your destiny anymore. Because I'll make sure your destiny ends…right then and there, permanently." She threatened him with a glare. The glare suddenly turned to shocked surprise when she suddenly felt the tip of a dagger at her back.

"Now that is a better threat." Azula said, standing right behind her. "Now allow me to give you one." She pressed the tip down slightly, making her stiffen. "You make one more threat against me or Zuko; you try to kill either of us. I don't care what the others will think; they will never find your body. Is that understood?" When she didn't get an answer, she pressed down harder on the tip, making Katara whimper slightly. "Is. That. Understood?" She repeated, saying each word carefully and clearly. Katara nodded her head. "Good. Now leave." She ordered, withdrawing her dagger.

Katara walked back to the door, stopping to glare at them one last time, before walking through it, slamming the door behind her.

Zuko turned to his sister. "That was not necessary, Azula." He told her.

"Yes, it was." She replied, sheathing the dagger. "She doesn't believe what we say. Why else would she make that threat?"

"So you gave her one as well?"

"You may be a dum-dum, Zuko. But you are my brother. Anyone tries to harm you in any way, they _will_ regret it."

"…Thank you, Azula. I never thought I'd hear you say those kinds of words."

"People change. Besides, there's a first time for everything, right?"

"Right," He agreed. "Now, if you don't mind, I'm still unpacking."

"Then I'll leave you to it." She walked out of the room and made her way back to her own. She walked back in and looked at her own bag, which was still in the midst of unpacking as well. She resumed putting the stuff away, when she pulled out her prized possession. As she held it, tears began to form in her eyes. _"No." _She declared silently, shaking her head and wiping away the tears. _"I am not going to cry."_

(Location: Royal Prison)

Naruto sat in the middle of the cell, his hands bound. It had been a week since he had been arrested. Each day, Yāo Jing would visit him. She would take him to a room where they "taught" unruly prisoners how to behave. She then tried to "educate" him, but he had acted like her "lessons" didn't do anything.

"Come on, sir." Ming said, walking into the cell. "Lady Yāo Jing wants to see you again."

"Is it time for another lesson?" He asked with sarcasm, standing up. "I can't wait."

"I am sorry, Lord Naruto." She said, opening the cell and leading him out of the room.

"Why are you apologizing?" He asked her as they walked through the corridors. "You're not the one whose lessons involve trying to beat me black and blue. And stop calling me Lord Naruto or sir, Ming. I'm a prisoner, remember?"

"I'm afraid I can't do that, sir." Every soldier who had served with Naruto or under him was both loyal and respectful to him. If they had been given the order, they were try to storm the prison, bust him out and made sure he escaped. Ming was one of those soldiers. "We're here." She said as they stood in front of a door. She opened it and he stepped through. The minute he did, the door was closed and his feet were knocked out from under him.

He fell to the ground. "The last time I checked, you are not eight, Yāo Jing" He said calmly, like he didn't care what was going to happen.

"Are you enjoying your stay?" She asked him, kicking him in the stomach. Ever since she had that one dream that left her aroused and ashamed, she poured all her efforts and focus into torturing him. She would prove to herself that she had nothing to fear from him, or the one from her dreams.

He sat up. "Well, the food could be better." He answered and was slapped across the face. "Are you serious? You're actually slapping me? Could you get anymore pathetic?" Her response was to shove her foot into his back, sending him to the floor. "A little better, but I'd still fail you."

"Do you think this is entertaining?"

"Do you mean your horrible attempts to torture me, or me making fun of you for said attempts?" His voice was muffled due to his face being in the ground. "If you want an honest answer, it's the latter. What's next? Are you going to hit me with lightning? Can you even do it?"

She pulled him up and slammed him into the wall. "Let me show you!" She snarled at him. She attached his hands to chains above him, holding him there. She began to generate lightning when there was a knock on the door. "Who dares to interrupt me?" She demanded, yanking the door open.

A soldier stood outside. "Lady Yāo Jing, I have a message from Fire Lord Ozai." He said.

"What is it?"

"He wants to see Lord…" He stopped when he saw the glare on her face. "I apologize; he wants to see the prisoner right away." He bowed to her and quickly left.

"So the Royal Flaming Asshole wants to see me, huh?" Naruto asked, sounding bored. "It took him long enough."

"You will be respectful of my father." She told him as she punched him in the stomach and unchained him from the wall, letting him collapse to the floor.

"No chance in hell." He was forced to his feet and was marched out of the room.

(Location: Sokka's dream)

"Okay, where am I?" Sokka wondered, looking around. The place was a forest at night and in the middle of winter. He stood in a small clearing, watching the snow fall all around him. Above the pine trees, a full moon shined down on him.

"**You did well yesterday."** A voice said to him.

"Who's there?" He demanded. He reached for his boomerang, only to find that it wasn't there. He knew that voice, it was the same one who told him to stop and think in the tunnels at the Fire Nation capital.

"**You know who I am." **

"That may be, but I still don't see you." He looked around, but he still didn't see who was talking.

"**That's because you're not looking in the right direction. I'm right here."** The voice now came from behind him. He turned around and saw a great, black wolf laying on a rock overlooking the clearing.

"Who are you?"

"**I am…"** The rest sounded muffled, like the wolf was trying to speak to him through a wall.

"What was that?"

The wolf sighed. **"How disappointing, I would've thought you would've heard me by now."**

"I can hear you just fine right now."

"**But you cannot hear my name and so, you cannot hear me."**

"So tell me your name."

"**I have tried. You do not listen."**

"Well, I'm trying to listen now!"

"**You think do, but it is still the same."** The wolf rose from where it lay and padded away. **"How long will you keep plugging your ears? How long must I remain silent?"**

"Wait!" He called after the wolf, but he woke up instead. Akela raised his head and looked at him. "It's nothing, Akela." He said. "It's just an odd dream." The white wolf looked at him for another minute before putting his head back down. _"It's strange."_ He thought to himself as he put his head back down. _"But it feels like I should know that wolf."_

He fell asleep and didn't dream of the clearing in the forest or the black wolf.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

A reviewer pointed this out and it's a good comparison, so I'll use it. If you have trouble imaging Azula with short hair, think something like future Jade from _Jackie Chan Adventures_.

I felt that Sokka's chewing himself out was necessary. He thought he had the advantage over Naruto twice, only to find out he was pretty much being led around by the nose. Each time, it proved to have dire consequences.

Also, he would've given Zuko and Azula the benefit of doubt. He's grown up enough that he realizes that they might actually want to change sides and join them. That's why he never really agreed to what Katara and Aang were saying.

I'm not going to show the meeting that Naruto has with Ozai, but I will talk about it.

As for Azula taking a long time to generate lightning, do you really need to ask?

I'll see you all next chapter!


	31. New Students and Old Creatures

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 31: New Students and Old Creatures

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Western Air Temple)

Zuko, Azula and Aang stood on a balcony. "I know you're nervous." Zuko told Aang. "But remember, Firebending in it of itself is _not_ something to fear."

"Okay." Aang said, taking a breath. "Not something to fear."

"But if you don't respect it, it'll chew you up and spit you out like an angry komodo rhino!" He shouted, making Aang flinch back.

"Was that really necessary, Zuko?" Azula asked her brother.

"Hey, our teachers did it to us. We might as well do it to our student."

She rolled her eyes before looking at Aang. "Show us what you got. Any amount of fire you can make."

He took a couple of deep breaths, took a stance and tried to bend fire. What he got was a puff of smoke. "Maybe I need a little more instruction." He said apologetically. "Perhaps a demonstration?"

She sighed. "If you insist," She said. "You might wanna take a few steps back." He did and she took a stance. She breathed in deep and threw out a punch, trying to bend fire. She did Firebend; it was just a very small fire, which wasn't even blue. Aang applauded at her attempt until she glared at him.

"What was that?" Zuko asked her. "That was the worst Firebending I've seen!"

"I thought it was…nice." Aang offered.

"You think yours is any better?" She asked her brother, ignoring the Airbender. He took his stance and tried three times, getting the same results as her.

"Why is this happening?!" He demanded.

"Maybe it's the altitude?" Aang suggested, rubbing his head.

"Yeah, could be." He agreed. They went lower in the temple. When they found a suitable spot, both Azula and Zuko tried to Firebend again, only getting small flames. Azula's flames still weren't blue, they were orange. Aang sat on a broken pillar and yawned in boredom.

"Just breathe and…" Zuko said as he tried again. Once again, he only got a small flame.

"That one kinda felt hot." Aang said, sitting up.

"Don't patronize me!" He snapped. "You know what's supposed to look like!"

"Sorry, Sifu Hotman," He apologized.

"And stop calling me that!"

"Why should he?" Azula asked. "It works."

He turned to face his sister. "You do realize that means you're Sifu Hotwoman, right?" She returned her focus to trying to bend.

Sokka came walking by, eating an apple. "Hey, guys." He said. "How's it coming?"

"Go away." Azula told him.

"I was just wondering."

"Get out of here!" Zuko snapped at him.

"Alright, alright, sheesh," He walked away.

"Aang, that's it for today." Azula told him.

"Are you sure?" He asked.

"Go, Zuko and I need to talk."

"Okay, bye!" He was gone quicker than they could blink.

She turned to face her brother. "What in the name of Agni has happened?" She asked.

"Why are you asking me? I don't know." He answered.

"Well, we need to figure it out." They walked off. Nobody saw them until that night, at dinner. They stood at the edges, looking back at the campfire the others had going.

"Listen, everybody, I've got some pretty bad news." Zuko told them as he walked over to the fire. Azula walked beside him. "Azula and I have lost our stuff."

"Don't look at me!" Toph declared. "I didn't touch your stuff."

"He's talking about our Firebending." Azula explained with a small amount of annoyance. "It's gone." Somehow, that struck Katara as funny, making her laugh.

"I'm sorry; I'm just laughing at the irony." She told the two as they glared in unison at her. "You know, how it would've been nice for us if you both had lost your Firebending a long time ago."

"Well, it's not lost." Zuko told her. "It's just weaker for some reason."

"Maybe you're just not as good as either of you think you are."

"Ouch." Toph commented.

"I'll be sure to say that to you when your Waterbending has diminished to the point it just looks pathetic." Azula told her.

"Ouch again," Toph said.

"I bet it's because we changed sides." Zuko said.

"That's ridiculous." Katara said.

"I don't know." Aang disagreed. "Maybe it isn't. Maybe your Firebending comes from rage and neither of you don't have enough anger to fuel it the way you used to."

"So all we have to is to make them angry?" Sokka asked. He looked at Zuko and Azula. "Do you guys want me to poke you with my sword?" Akela rolled his eyes when he heard that.

"Don't even think about it." Zuko warned him. "Look, even if you're right, I don't want to rely on hate and anger anymore."

"There has to be another way." Azula agreed.

"You're gonna need to learn to your Firebending from a different source." Toph said. "I'd recommend the original source."

"How are they supposed to that? Just jump into a volcano or something?" Sokka asked.

"No." She answered. "Zuko and Azula needs to go back to whatever the original source of Firebending is."

"And what is that?"

"I don't know." She put her bowl of food down. "For Earthbending, the original Benders were Badgermoles. One day, when I was little, I ran away and hid in a cave." She told them. She could still remember being scared of being lost in the cave. "That's where I met them." She remembered being terrified of something she couldn't. That feeling turned to laughter when she felt a big tongue licking her and when she licked back. "They were blind, just like me. So we understood each other. I was able to learn Earthbending, not just as a martial art, but as an extension of my senses. For them, the original Earthbenders, it wasn't just about fighting. It was their way of interacting with the world." She remembered copying what they did and the joy she felt when she could bend the earth.

"That's amazing, Toph." Aang told her. "I learn from the monks, but the original Airbenders were the sky bison." He turned his head over to Appa. "Maybe you can give me a lesson sometime, buddy." The sky bison gave a roar and turn his attention back to his dinner.

"This doesn't help us." Azula said.

"The original Firebenders were the dragons." Zuko said. "And they're all but extinct."

"What do you mean?" Aang asked. "Roku had a dragon, and there were plenty of dragons when I was a kid."

"Well, they aren't really around anymore, okay!?" He shouted.

"Okay, okay. I'm sorry."

"Maybe there's another way." Azula said, getting their attention. "The first people to learn from the dragons were the ancient Sun Warriors." She walked away from the fire.

"Sun Warriors?" repeated Aang as he stood up and joined her. "Well, I know they weren't around when I was a kid."

"They died off a thousand years ago." Zuko told him, joining the two. "But, their civilization wasn't too far from where we are now. Maybe we can learn something by poking around their ruins."

"It's like the monks use to tell me. Sometimes, the shadows of the past can be felt by the present."

"So, you're going to go the ruins of an ancient civilization and hope to get some super Sun Warrior energy?" Sokka asked for clarification.

"Do you have a better idea?" Zuko asked him pointedly.

"Either we find a way to Firebend." Azula said. "Or the Avatar has to find a new teacher."

(Location: Appa)

The next morning, the two resident Firebenders and the Airbender left the others on Appa. They flew out over the ocean. "We've been flying for hours." Zuko said, sitting in the saddle. "I don't know why, but I thought this thing would be a lot faster." Appa roared in reply.

"Appa's right, Zuko," Aang said. "In our group, typically we start our missions with a more up-beat attitude."

"I can't believe this." He groaned.

"Of course you can't." Azula remarked.

"Don't worry, you two." Aang told them. "You'll get the hang of it."

"Why do I have a hard time believing that?" She wondered.

"You're asking me?" Her brother asked.

"No, I wasn't." They fell silent for the next hour, until they saw the island they were looking for. They flew inland and found the ruins of the Sun Warriors, which filled them with awe. They landed and got off Appa.

"This place is amazing." Aang declared as they walked through the ruins.

"Yeah," Zuko agreed. "Even though these buildings are ancient, there's something eerily familiar about them. I can tell the Fire Sages' temples are somehow descended from these."

"And how, exactly, does that help us?" Azula asked him.

"Well, we learned something about architecture." Aang told her. "Hopefully we'll learn something about Firebending too. The past can be a great teacher." He was about to say something else when he walked through a tripwire, pulling it and stumbling forward. The ground in front of him dropped, revealing spikes. He might have killed himself, had he not used his Airbending to get him over to the over side. "Zuko, Azula, I think the past is trying to kill me."

Zuko knelt and looked at the tripwire. "I can't believe it." He said, picking it up. "This booby trap must be centuries old and it still works."

"There's probably a lot more. Maybe this means we shouldn't be here."

He took a few steps back and then ran forward. But instead of trying to leap over the spikes, he ran across the wall. "Where's that upbeat attitude you were talking about?" He asked.

"He's right." Azula agreed, landing next to them (she was the one who jumped across the spikes). "Besides, people don't make traps unless they got something worth protecting."

"So…we keep going?" Aang asked.

"Just keeping walking," Zuko told him. They kept walking forward and soon started climbing a long flight of stairs. At the top of the stairs, they found a mural of two dragons breathing fire around a Sun Warrior.

"Look, this seems promising." Aang said. "Though, I'm not sure what this tells us about the original source of Firebending."

"They look angry to me." Azula commented.

"I thought the dragons were friends with the Sun Warriors."

"Well they had a funny way of showing it." Zuko commented as he started to walk away.

"Zuko, Azula…something happened to the dragons in the last hundred years, right? Something you two aren't telling me." He said.

The siblings shared a look with each other. "Our great-grandfather Sozin happened." Azula told him as they walked away.

"What do you mean?"

"He started the tradition of hunting dragons for glory." Zuko explained as they crossed a bridge. "They were the ultimate Firebenders. And if you defeat one, your Firebending talents would become legendary, and you would earn the honorary title, Dragon." They stood in front of another flight of stairs, with a statue of a dragon on each side. One of the statues' head had fallen off and now lay on the ground. "The last great dragon was defeated long before either of us was born, by our uncle." He placed a hand on the dragon's eye.

"But I thought your uncle was…I don't know, good?"

"He had a complicated past. It seems to be a family tradition." Azula remarked. "And besides, the last person to earn the title of Dragon was you." She told Zuko.

"But I technically didn't defeat it." He replied before chuckling. "How much do you want to bet that Dad's trying to use that to strip me of that title?"

"No bet."

"Wait." Aang said, looking at Zuko. "You defeated the last dragon alive?"

He shook his head. "No, I let it go free. Bao-yu still gave me the title of Scarred Dragon anyway." He made his way to the stairs. "Let's just move on." They went up the stairs and at the top; they saw a big door that was closed shut.

Aang ran over to the door and tried to open it, with no success. "It's locked up!" He told them.

"We gathered as much." Azula told him, the sarcasm blatant in her voice. She turned around and noticed the column with the sunstone embedded in it. Turning back around, she saw that it was shining down, but was being blocked by Zuko. "Zuko, move," She ordered him. He did so, revealing the light shining down on a particular spot on the ground. "It's a celestial calendar, just like the Fire Sages have in their temples." She looked up above the door and saw another sunstone embedded there. "I bet that sunstone opens the door, but only when sunlight hits it at just the right angle, in other words, on the solstice."

"Monkey feathers!" swore Aang. "The solstice again? We can't wait here that long."

"No we can't." Zuko agreed. "But we might be able to speed time up." He drew one of his Dao swords and held against the light on the ground, making it shine on the wall around the door. "Let's see if we can outsmart the sunstone." Moving his sword carefully, he reflected the light onto the sunstone over the door.

"Nothing's happening."

"Come on." He muttered. He held the sword at the angle, keeping the light on the sunstone. His efforts paid off when the door opened.

"You know guys." Aang said as he picked up his staff from the ground. "I don't care what everyone else says about you to. You're pretty smart." He walked into the room. Both Zuko and Azula shared a small smile as Zuko sheathed his sword. Then they realized what he meant. He tried looked the room and the first thing he saw was a scary-looking face, looking right at him, making him gasp and flinch back.

"Would you relax?" Azula asked him. "They're just statues." They walked into the room and started looking around. The statue they had first seen was just one of two sets. The two sets had several statues, each in a different position.

Aang read the inscription on one of the first two statues. "It says this is something called the Dancing Dragon." He said aloud. Putting his staff down, he took a step back and copied the pose the statue held. When he did, his foot pressed a button, causing it to go into the floor a bit. He came out of the pose and looked at the button, which came back up. He then looked at the other statues in the set. "Zuko, Azula, get over here! I want you two to dance with me." He told them, grabbing Zuko's arm.

"What?" They said in unison.

"Just do it." He dragged Zuko over to the first statue of the second set. "Okay, you stand there. Azula, stand behind him." He went over to his statue. "Let's follow the steps of the statues." He told them. They had no idea what he was thinking, but when they did the first pose and moved into the second, they heard the click of a button. "Don't you guys see?" He asked them as they went through the poses. "These aren't dance moves. These statues are giving us a lesson. I think this is some kind of Sun Warrior Firebending form."

"This better teach us some really good Firebending." Azula said. The three did the last pose and they heard the sound of something moving. Turning to face the front, they saw a pedestal holding a big golden egg-like stone coming out from the middle of the floor.

"Hurray!" Aang cheered. "Wait, what exactly is that?"

"Looks like some sort of gemstone." Zuko noted as he went over to it.

"Well, don't touch it!"

"Why not?" asked Azula, walking over to the stone.

"Remember what happened out there with those spikes? I'm just very suspicious of giant glowing gems sitting on pedestals."

"Of course you are."

"It feels…almost alive." Zuko said, after picking it up to look more closely at it. When he tried to put it back, a geyser of green slime shot out, sending both him and Azula flying upwards, hitting a grate in the roof.

"Oh no, it's another trap!" Aang said as he saw the doors close.

"What gave it away?" Azula asked sarcastically.

"Not the time, Azula." Zuko told her before returning his attention to Aang. "We can't break free. It's like some sort of glue."

Aang ran back to his staff, picked it up and leapt onto one of the statues' head. He swung the staff, bending the air to try and get Zuko and Azula free. All it did was flipped them over so their faces saw the sky. As he looked at that, he realized too late that the slime had gotten his staff. He tried to pull it free with no success. Seeing as the slime was about to get him, he leapt up to the grate and grabbed hold. But he had forgotten that the slime was there as well. "I can't move!" He said, trying to break free. "Zuko, Azula, do something!"

"Me? I can't move either!" Azula said.

"Same here!" said Zuko. The slime continued to rise up until it pressed into their backs. For a moment, it looked like it would overflow the grate, but it didn't.

"It stopped." Aang said.

"Way to state the obvious." Azula said.

"At least we have air." Zuko noted. "Maybe if we stay calm, we can figure a way out of this." They did try to stay calm. But as the day wore on, and eventually turned into night, the calm started to get worn away.

"You _had_ to pick up the glowing egg, didn't you?" Aang asked Zuko.

"At least I made something happen!" He snapped. "If it were up to you, we'd never made it past the courtyard."

"HELP!" He bellowed, using Airbending to enhance the shouting.

"Who are you yelling to?" Azula asked. "Nobody's lived here for centuries."

"Well, what do you think we should do?"

"…Think about our place in the universe?" Zuko offered.

"No way, I am not talking about that with you guys." His sister said. "And whichever one of you is making my leg cramp; I'm kicking your ass when we get out of this."

"Who is down there?" A voice demanded. Standing over the grate was a Sun Warrior, an actual living Sun Warrior.

"Um…hi?" offered a nervous Aang, making the other two groan. Others soon joined the warrior, who they soon figured out was the chief. He had them pull the grate free and the three dug out. They were carried down to the celestial calendar, where the remaining slime was slowly being licked off by aardvark sloths.

"For trying to take our sunstone, you must be severely punished!" The chief declared, surrounded by his people.

"We didn't come here to take your sunstone." Zuko told them. "We came here to find the ancient origin of all Firebending."

"Yeah, right," The Sun Warrior holding the sunstone said. "They are obviously thieves, here to steal Sun Warrior treasures."

"Please," Aang said. "I don't normally play this card, but…I'm the Avatar." No one said a word at his proclamation. "Just hear us out." He asked them, standing up.

"My name is Zuko, Crown Prince of the Fire Nation." He introduced himself, standing up. "Or, at least, I was."

"And my name is Azula." She introduced herself as she too stood up. "I am his sister, but I am not the princess of the Fire Nation, not anymore."

"I know my people have distorted the ways of Firebending, to be fuel by anger and rage. But now I want to learn the true way, the original way.

"I do as well. When we came here, we did not know that the Sun Warriors' civilization was still alive. I am both honored and humbled to be in your presence." She bowed her head, her brother and Aang copying her movement. "Please, teach us."

The chief was silent as he looked at them. "If you wish to learn the ways of the Sun, you must learn them from the masters Ran and Shaw."

"Ran and Shaw?" repeated Aang. "There are two of them?"

"When you present yourself to them, they will examine you." He told them, walking closer. "They'll read your hearts, your souls and your ancestry. If they deem you worthy, they'll teach you. If they don't, you'll be destroyed on the spot."

"No pressure or anything." Azula commented, making everyone looked at her. "Sorry, I was channeling Naruto."

"Finish cleaning them up and then give them places to sleep." The chief ordered before walking away. The aardvark sloths continued their slow cleaning (they are part sloth, after all). When they were finally done, the three were led to an empty room. They were told not to leave it for the rest of the night. They were too exhausted to even think about going past the doorframe. They practically fell to the ground, already out.

When morning came, they were roughly woken up and given a light meal for breakfast. Once they had finished eating, they were led out of the room and taken to another temple building, where the chief and the Sun Warriors waited in front of a fire.

"If you are going to see the masters, you must bring them a piece of the Eternal Flame." The chief explained. "This fire is the very first one. It was given to man by the dragons. We have kept it going for thousands of years."

"I don't believe it." Zuko said with surprise.

"You will each take a piece of it to the masters, to show your commitment to the scared art of Firebending."

"Umm, Mister Sun Chief, sir?" said Aang nervously. "Yeah, I'm not a Firebender yet. Couldn't one of my friends carry my fire for me?" He felt a hand slap the back of his head, making him yelp slightly.

"Don't be lazy." Azula told him.

The chief turned to the fire and bent two small flames from it. "This ritual illustrates the essences of Sun Warrior philosophy." He handed the two flames to Zuko and Azula, before bending a third out from the Eternal Flame. "You must maintain a constant heat. The flame will go out if you make it too small. Make it too big, and you might lose control." He offered the third to Aang.

"I'm sorry. I'm just a little nervous." He took the flame from the chief and he was surprised at how it felt. "It's like a little heartbeat."

"Fire is life, not just destruction." The chief told him. "You will take your flames up there." He pointed to a nearby mountain. "The cave of the masters is beneath that rock."

The three of them bowed to him and made their way down the steps and into the forest. Azula and Zuko took the lead while Aang walked slower, still unsure of maintaining his flame. As the day wore on, they got closer and closer to the mountain.

Zuko stopped and looked back at Aang. "Hurry up." He told him.

"I can't." Aang replied. "If I walk too fast, my flame will go out."

"Your flame is going to go out because it's too small." Azula told him. "You're too scared. Give it a little more energy."

"But what if I can't control it?"

"You can do it." Zuko answered. "I know you can. You're a talented kid."

The rest of the walk was silent as they continued up the mountain. By the time they had reached the caves, which were two rocks with a hole in the middle of them and connected by a bridge and a staircase. The rest of the Sun Warriors had already arrived.

"Is anyone else wondering how they got here first?" Azula whispered to the other two as the chief and two other Sun Warriors approached.

"I'm not focusing on it right now." Zuko whispered back.

"Facing the judgment of the Firebending masters will be difficult for you." The chief told them as he approached them. He looked at Zuko and Azula. "Your ancestors are directly responsible for the dragons' disappearance."

"The sins of our ancestors are not ours." Zuko replied.

"That might be, but the masters might not see it that way. They also might not be so happy to see you."

"I know I wouldn't be." One of the warriors said.

"But once they find out that I'm the Avatar…" Aang began to say.

"Have you forgotten that you vanished, allowing the Fire Nation to wreak havoc on this side of the planet?" The chief asked, cutting him off. "The decline of the dragons is your burden, too." He looked away in shame. The chief slammed his staff into the ground and took a part of the flames from the three. He then split it into two and gave one to both warriors. They took it and sent down the line, each Sun Warrior would bend a small piece of the fire into a burning circle before handing off to the next person.

As the chief walked away, Aang, Azula and Zuko had a hushed conversation. "We could turn back now." Aang suggested quietly. "We've already learned more about fire then we'd hoped."

"No." Azula answered. "We're seeing this through to the end. We're gonna meet these masters and find out what's so great about them."

"What if they judge us, and attack us?"

"Well, we're the Fire Prince, the Fire Princess and the Avatar." Zuko said, drawing one of his swords slightly. "I think we can take these guys in a fight, whoever they are."

"I'm not the Fire Princess anymore, Zuko." Azula told her brother.

"Right, sorry." He turned to face the chief. "Bring them out!" He declared.

"Chanters!" shouted the chief. The Sun Warriors who didn't hold a ring of fire began to drum out a beat and chanters started up while also genuflecting. The three made their way to the stairs, stopping in of the chief and the two warriors, who then stepped out of the way. The stairs loomed over them, almost looking like a mountain itself.

Aang, Azula and Zuko all shared a look, took a deep breath and started walking up the steps. Aang looked back once as they climbed, but kept on going. They reached the top of the stairs and stood at the top, looking at the bridges as the setting sun looked down on them.

"Those who wish to meet the masters, Ran and Shaw, will now present their fire." A Sun Warrior announced through a horn that amplified his voice. The three shared one more look together and turned to face the cave entrances, Aang faced one while the siblings faced the other. They bowed their heads and raised their hands, holding their fire in an offering position.

"Sound the call!" The chief ordered. A Sun Warrior standing on a ledge took a deep breath and blew a horn, making nearby birds fly and caused the sounds of something crashing in the caves.

When Aang heard that, he began to tremble. "What's happening?" He asked, turning around to face Zuko and Azula, who kept their positions. Only Zuko spared him a look when he peeked under their shoulders to see what was going on their end. When he turned back around and brought his hands back up, he realized too late that he had extinguished the small flame he had been given. "Guys, my fire went out." He told the other two.

"What do you want us to do?" Azula asked.

"Give me some of yours." He tried grabbing Zuko's fire.

He held back with his free arm. "No, just make your own."

"I can't."

"Then get some from those warriors. Hurry! Stop cheating off me!"

"Don't be stingy!"

"Will you two knock it off?" Azula asked them as she looked them. What the three had forgotten was the Sun Warriors could still see them and could still hear them. As they watched what happened, every single Sun Warrior shared the same thought. _"That kid cannot be serious."_

As Aang struggled to get some of Zuko's fire, he accidently extinguished it as well as Azula's by knocking their arms down. The noises that came from the cave were getting louder and the floor beneath them began to shake. "Uh oh," Aang said as he looked back at the other cave.

A pair of eyes briefly glowed before a red dragon flew out of the cave, roaring for all to hear, catching the three by surprise. As Zuko looked back at the other cave, he saw a blue dragon fly out and joined the red dragon. The two dragons flew around the platform, circling them. Sometimes the blue one would fly above; sometimes the red one flew above.

"These are the masters." Azula said in awe.

"Still think we can take them?" Aang asked Zuko.

He shushed. "I never said that!" He said.

Meanwhile, the Sun Warriors went down to their knees and the ones who weren't holding fire bowed their heads. "Oh, here it comes." The warrior to the chief's left said. "Any moment now, it'll be dinnertime for the masters."

"Quiet, Ham Ghao!" The chief told him.

"What?" He looked away. "Everyone's thinking it."

Still the dragons flew through the air and around them. They were flying in a pattern, like they were trying to say something. Aang watched them and was struck with a realization. "Zuko, Azula." He whispered to the other two. "I think we're supposed to do the Dragon Dance with them."

"What?" Zuko asked. "What about this situation makes you think they want us to dance?"

"Well, I think they want us do something. Let's just try it."

"We might as well." Azula agreed.

"Fine," Zuko agreed. "But if we die because of this, I'm going to kill the both of you." He and Azula stood next to each other with their backs to Aang.

All three of them took the first position of the Dancing Dragon. When they saw this, the two dragons flew upward. They went through the positions and the dragons followed. No one was sure if the dragons were copying the humans or the humans were copying the dragons. When the humans moved into a position, the dragons twisted, moved or turned in the same way. The blue dragon followed Aang while the red one followed Zuko and Azula.

When the three of them moved into the last position, holding their fists out to each other, they saw that the dragons had stopped moving. They just hung there in the air, looking at them. "Judgment time!" declared the chief, his head still bowed.

The dragons looked straight into the three's eyes. They held themselves in the air, not moving a single muscles, save for their lips which they had pulled back somewhat into a growl. Azula and Zuko looked at the blue dragon. Both nervous and scared as all hell, but were doing their best not to show it. Aang stared at the red dragon. He was also scared, but unlike the other two, he was trembling visibly. Finally the dragons moved. They landed on both sides of the staircase. For a brief moment that somehow managed to take forever, nothing happened. Then the dragons opened their mouths and breathed fire, engulfing the three in a tornado of flames.

The three screamed and covered their faces, trying to protect them. But they realized that the fire wasn't burning them. They uncovered their eyes, looked up and saw a wondrous thing. The tornado was made of fire; that much was true. But it wasn't the fire they were looking at; it was the many different _colors_ of fire they saw. Orange flickered into red, green twisted into blue, purple came forth from yellow. They saw all of that and so much more. And that was when they realized this tornado _was_ a lesson. It was a lesson done in the form of a demonstration.

"I understand." Zuko whispered. The dragons somehow heard him as the tornado dissipated. The dragons, having shown what Firebending was all about, flew upward. They executed a loop and flew back into their caves. And just like that, as quickly as it begun, it was over. The Sun Warriors holding the circles of fire let them die and bowed their heads in a salute.

"Their fire was beautiful." Azula admitted with a voice full of awe as they walked back down the stairs.

"I saw so many colors." Zuko told them. "Colors I've never imagined."

"Like Firebending harmony." Aang stated.

"Yes." The chief agreed as they met him at the bottom. "They judged you, and gave you visions of the meaning of Firebending."

"I can't believe there are more living dragons." Zuko said in surprise. "Before Akawan, I had thought that my uncle Iroh faced the last dragon and killed it."

"So Uncle lied," Azula told him.

"Actually, it wasn't a total lie." The chief said, surprising them. "Iroh was the last outsider to face the masters. They deemed him worthy and passed the secret onto him as well."

"He must've lied to protect them." Zuko realized. "So no one else would hunt them."

"All this time, I thought Firebending was destruction." Aang admitted. "Since I hurt Katara, I've been too afraid and hesitant. But now I know what it really is. It's energy and life."

"Yeah, it's like the Sun, but inside of you. Do you guys realize this?" He asked the chief.

'Well, our civilization is called the _Sun_ Warriors…so yeah." He answered.

"And once again, you've proven why I call you dum-dum." Azula told Zuko, a small teasing in her voice. He glared at her half-heartily before realizing something.

"That's why my Firebending was so weak before." He turned to face Aang. "Because for so many years, hunting you was my drive…it was my purpose. So when we joined you, I lost sight of my inner fire."

"You're right." Azula said, seeing where he was going with this. "For as long as I could remember, my drive was to be the perfect princess of the Fire Nation that everyone thought I was. When I said that Ozai wasn't my father anymore and I joined you." She told Aang. "I had lost my drive too and I didn't even know it."

"But now, we have a new drive. We have to help you defeat my father and bring balance back to this side of the planet." Zuko declared, looking at Aang. He took a stance and tried to Firebend once more. This time, he got a big burst of flame. He did another one just to make sure it wasn't a fluke. Azula did the same thing. She was happy not just to see her Firebending was actually working, it had turned back to its blue color. Aang tried it too. He bent a fireball and he was happy to see that he could do it.

"Now that you have learned the secrets," The chief said, walking towards, his face serious. "And you know about our tribe's existence, we have no choice but to imprison you here forever." His statement surprised the three. "Just kidding," He said, making them breathe a sigh of relief. "But seriously, don't tell anyone."

"Don't worry, we won't." Azula promised him. She then saw something against the glare of the sun. "What is that?" She asked aloud.

"What are you talking about?" Aang asked her.

"That." She pointed. But before anyone could turn and see what she was looking at, it had already landed.

"You?!" said Zuko in surprise. He knew the creature that was standing over him.

"You know him?" Both the chief and Aang asked him.

"Do you remember how exactly I got the title of Dragon?" He asked Aang and Azula, who nodded in acknowledgment. "Meet the dragon I freed." He pointed to the creature, which was indeed the same dragon he had freed from imprisonment. He had grown bigger and it looked like his whiskers and horns had fully grown.

"Yes, we were quite surprised when the young dragon had arrived." The chief explained. "He had arrived in the middle of a storm. When the masters came out to see who it was, they looked into the storm. We did as well. I am not sure about the other warriors, but I briefly saw a pair of solid gold eyes flash through the storm clouds. To the surprise of everyone who was there, the masters had _bowed_ their heads to the storm. They took the young dragon in. Although I am glad to see another dragon alive, I still do not know what those eyes were."

"It's alright; I know who brought him here." Zuko told him.

"Who was it?"

"His king," He answered shortly.

The chief's eyes went wide. "You mean…?"

"Yes."

"But do you…?"

"I met him myself." That simple statement made every single Sun Warrior bow their heads to him.

"Um…am I missing something?" Aang whispered to Azula. "Who are they talking about?"

"Even before dragons became rare to see, there was one dragon that almost never showed itself." She explained quietly. "This dragon was the first, said to be created by Agni himself. He wanders the world. Many have actually gone looking for him, most to challenge him, but they never found him. My father and grandfather were among these people. He only shows himself to those he finds worthy and even then, he has never truly revealed himself. He is the King of all Dragons, Bahamut."

"And Zuko met him?"

"It seems so."

"So do you still want to fight?" Zuko asked the dragon. The dragon shook his head and, to the surprise of everyone there (save for the chief), he lowered his head. "What…what's he doing?"

"When he first came here, the young dragon would have gladly fought you, had you come looking for him." The chief explained. "But the masters taught him and he realized that by freeing him, you had saved his life. He owes his life to you and would gladly be in your service."

"You…want to serve me?" He asked the dragon, who nodded his head. "…No, I won't take you as a servant." His words surprised everyone there. But before they said anything, his next words calmed them down. "But I'll take you as a friend." He held his hand out. "What do you say?"

Everyone fell silent as they waited for the dragon to answer. He raised his head and roared, breathing fire into the air. Once he was done, he brought his head down and pressed his nose up against his hand. Every single person knew that the dragon had accepted his offer.

"It's good to know you…Fǎn Yìng." He told the dragon, giving him a name.

"Fǎn Yìng," Azula repeated. "That's an appropriate name for him."

"I know."

(Location: Western Air Temple)

They had flown back to the temple (Aang and Azula on Appa, Zuko on Fǎn Yìng). When everyone saw the dragon, they were shocked, surprised and intimidated all at the same time. But their attentions were diverted when Aang told them that they could Firebend again.

"With this technique the dragons showed us." He explained as he, Zuko and Azula went through the movements and bending fire. "The three of us will be unstoppable." They finished the movements, earning applause from the others.

"Well, it's a great dance, I'll admit." Sokka said.

"It's not a dance, it's a Firebending form." Zuko told him.

"Sorry, for a minute, I thought we would be tap-dancing our way to victory over the Fire Lord."

"It's a sacred form that happens to be thousands of years old!" Azula stated, walking over to them.

"Oh yeah?" asked Katara, acting like a bit of snot. "What's your little form called?"

"…The Dancing Dragon." She answered, making the others start to laugh. "Oh sure, laugh it up because we're using a form with an odd name. How much do you want to bet there's an ancient Waterbending form called the Flopping Fish or an Earthbending form called the Blundering Badgermole?"

"That's sounds stupid." Toph declared.

"And yet, it's possible."

"Anyway," Zuko interrupted the conversation. "Sokka, do we have any meat to cook?"

"Yes, we do." He answered. "But why are we cooking meat?"

"I'm feeding Fǎn Yìng." He pointed back at the dragon. "I figure if one of you doesn't want to become a snack for him on accident, we feed him."

Everyone heartily agreed on that idea.

(Location: Royal Prison)

"Sir, you have a visitor." Ming said from the door.

"How many times do I have to tell you to stop calling me sir?" He asked, facing the wall . "I'm a prisoner."

"That may be," A new voice said. "But you're still my commanding officer."

He stood up and faced the visitor. "Bao-yu," He greeted the head of the Yuyan archers.

"My lord," He greeted back, saluting.

He chuckled. "Normally, I'd chastise you for saying that. But you'll keep doing it even if I'm in here. So, what's up?"

The archer looked back at Ming, who nodded and closed the door. "My lord, I am here to inform you that soldiers who are loyal to you are currently planning to break you free."

His face, which held a carefree look, hardened immediately. "What?"

"Yes sir. Both I and Ming are involved in this plan. We will free you the day they will move you to—"

"Lieutenant Bao-yu!" He roared unexpectedly, surprising Bao-yu. "If you were in this cell with me and if my hands were free, I would punch you for even thinking of doing something like that! Then I'd have you bring in Ming so I could hit her too!"

"But sir," He protested. "We're trying to set you free. Once you're free, we'll be able to have you smuggled out of the Fire Nation."

"And if the prison break is foiled or they catch you before I'm out of the Fire Nation? You know as well as I do that every soldier who had a hand in this plan will be killed, _if_ they're lucky. If they're not, Yāo Jing will get her hands on them."

"Sir, we're doing this for you!"

"And I don't want you to! No soldier is going to sacrifice his life just so I _might_ escape! That's an order! You will tell every single member of this plan to cease and desist. No escape plans will be made and they will most certainly not be carried out!"

"Sir, you'll never be able to escape once the Fire Lord has sent you to—"

"I know where I'm going, lieutenant." He cut him off. "I also know what I'm doing. Have I ever let you down before?"

"Do you really want me to answer that, sir?"

He laughed. "Okay, fair point. Let me rephrase it: Have I ever let you down when it counted?"

"…No, sir, you have not."

"I'll be fine, Bao-yu. Look at it this way, where I'm going, at least I'll be out of Yāo Jing's hands."

"I see the point, sir." He turned around and made his way back to the door. "It's been an honor serving with you, sir."

"You're making sound like I'm already dead. Don't worry; you know I always pull through. You and the others will know when I'm okay, I promise you that."

He stopped at the door. He turned back around and gave him a salute. "Yes sir." He turned around and walked through the door, leaving Naruto alone.

(Location: Zuko's dream)

He looked around to see where he was. It looked like he was standing on a mountain ledge. If he looked above, all he saw were clouds. If he tried to look down, he couldn't see the bottom. There was enough room for him to walk around, but if he wasn't careful, he would fall off.

"**I see you've recovered your spark."** A voice spoke.

"Who's there?" He asked, looking around.

"**I'm right here, dum-dum."** The voice said, coming from his right. He turned to see another human. He was dressed in a plain traveler's cloak, covering his entire body, except for his head. His skin had the paleness of people who hailed from the Fire Nation. But it was his eyes and hair that got your attention. His eyes were a bright blue and his hair was a fiery red.

"Who are you?"

The person groaned. **"Are you kidding me? You still can't hear my name? It's…"** At that point, a wind came through and muffled his voice.

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that."

"**Of course you didn't, dum-dum."**

"Don't call me that!"

"**Why? You are one."**

"What gives you the right to insult me?"

"**What gives me the right?"** He repeated. **"I have more than the right to insult you, Zuko. I am still pissed off at you!"**

"How do you know my name?"

"**We've know each other for quite some time and you have the audacity to ask me that?"** He growled, before turning his back. **"Go away; don't come back until you can hear me."**

"Hold on!" He reached out to grab the person, only to wake up in his bed. He sat up. _"What in the name of Agni was that all about?"_ He silently asked himself. _"He made it sound like I did something to offend him."_ He shook his head. _"It's been a rough couple of days; I just need to get some sleep."_

He put his head down and tried to fall asleep. When he did, he did not meet the blue-eyed, red-haired person again.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Yes, the dragon from Ch.8 is back. What? Did you think I was just going to let him go? And for the record, Fǎn Yìng means "Mirror" or "Reflect".

You're probably betting that Naruto is going to have a similar dream soon, right? Wrong! He'll be going through something like this much later in the story.

He also has a point about the soldiers planning his escape. Would you allow people, who might die if they failed or worse, be given to a psychotic bitch, to try and rescue you? I know I wouldn't. If that kept them safe, I would gladly stay put. And don't tell me that there are always risks to this kind of thing. When it comes to be given to psychotic bitches, all bets are off.

And if you have to ask where Naruto is going, then you're an idiot. However, I will tell you how he got there. I just won't do it right now.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	32. Getting in and Disguises

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 32: Getting in and Disguises

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Western Air Temple)

They sat around the fire at night. "No one can make tea like Uncle." Zuko declared as he poured tea into cups. "But hopefully, I learn a thing or two."

"You lived with him and his tea for three years." Azula told him. "You probably would've learned something."

"Would you guys like to hear Uncle's favorite tea joke?" He asked the others.

"Do you remember the entire joke?" She asked.

"Just the punch line," He admitted.

"Then please don't." He didn't say anything; he just started handing out the tea.

"It's nice to get a chance to relax a little." Toph commented. "It hardly ever happens." She took the cup he offered her.

"Hey, can I talk to you for a second?" Sokka asked as he offered a cup of tea. "Akela, stay put." He told the wolf as he stood up and walked away. Zuko put down the tea tray and followed him. Unbeknownst to either one of them, Azula took notice and kept a close ear on them.

"So what's up?" He asked.

"If someone was captured by the Fire Nation, where would they be taken?"

"What do you mean? Who was captured?"

"When the invasion plan failed, some of our troops were taken. I just want to know where they might be."

"I can't tell you."

"What? Why not?"

"Trust me. Knowing would just make you feel worse." He turned around to walk away, but Sokka stopped him by grabbing his shoulder.

"It's my dad. He was captured too. I need to know what I put him through."

"It's not good, Sokka."

"Please."

He turned back to face him. "My guess is…they were taken to the Boiling Rock."

"What's that?"

"The highest security prison in the Fire Nation," He told him. "It's on an island in the middle of a boiling lake. It's inescapable."

"So, where is this place?"

"Why do you need to know? What are you planning?"

"Nothing," He answered. "…Boy, you're so paranoid."

"It's in the middle of a volcano between here and the Fire Nation. You guys actually flew past it on the way here."

"Thanks, Zuko." He yawned stretched his arms. "Just knowing makes me feel better." He walked past Zuko to the others.

"Yeah, I'm sure it does." He said sarcastically to himself, going back to the fire. They ate their dinner and everyone soon went to bed.

Later in the night, when everyone was asleep, Sokka walked carefully away from the group, being very careful not to wake up Akela or Fǎn Yìng. He made his way over towards Appa and started climbing up his leg, waking the sky bison up. He shushed him, which made him put his head back down. Sokka kept climbing up the side. When he was about to climb into the saddle, he saw that Zuko was already there.

"Not up to anything, huh?" Zuko asked him. He yelped in surprise and fell down to the ground.

"Fine, you caught me." He admitted, getting up. "I'm gonna rescue my dad. You happy now?"

"I'm never happy."

"Look, I have to do this. The invasion plan was _my_ idea. It was _my_ decision to stay when things were going wrong." He told Zuko as he leapt down from the saddle. "It's _my_ mistake and it's _my_ job to fix it. I have to regain my honor. You can't stop me, Zuko." He pushed him out of the way and began to climb up Appa again.

"You need to regain your honor?" He repeated. "Believe me, I get it. I'm going with you."

"No. I have to do this alone."

"How are you going to get there? On Appa? Last time I checked, prisons didn't have bison daycares." That stopped him, realizing he made sense. "We'll take my war balloon." He hopped off Appa and followed him. They made their way over to where Zuko had parked the war balloon.

"It took you long enough." Azula said surprising them from she learned against the side of the balloon.

"What are you doing here?" Sokka demanded.

"I'm joining you. You're going to the Boiling Rock, right?"

"How did you know that?"

"I listen to what people say."

"Why are you coming with us, Azula?" Zuko asked his sister. "I know you don't really care about who Sokka's trying to free."

"You're right, I don't. I'm coming with you to free Naruto."

"What do you mean, Naruto?" Sokka asked.

"It's the one place Ozai would send him if he was pissed enough."

"Why would the Fire Lord get pissed?"

"You really don't know Naruto, do you? He can be vastly annoying when he wants to."

"Why are you doing this, Azula?" Zuko asked her.

"It's my fault he was forced to stall for us. I have to get him out."

"And…?"

"Because…"

"Because what?" Sokka asked a little impatiently.

"Because I love him," She answered.

He was surprised at that. "Um…okay, I wasn't expecting that."

"I was." Zuko answered. "Let's go, you two."

(Location: Western Air Temple)

The Duke brought Appa his breakfast, which he threw into his mouth. As Katara walked up, she noticed that a sleeping Momo held a note. "Was that a note?" Toph asked as she and Aang joined her.

"Yeah," Katara answered.

"What does it say?"

"'Need meat. Gone fishing. Back in a few days. Sokka, Zuko and Azula.'" She read. Aang yawned and went back to get reacquainted with his sleeping bag. "One more thing. 'Aang, practice your Firebending while we're gone. Do twenty sets of fire fists and ten hot squats every time you hear a badgerfrog croak. Zuko and Azula.'"

At that exact moment, a badgerfrog went off. "Nobody else has homework." He groused, standing up.

"There's something else." She said. "'If he starts to complain, his workout is doubled. Azula.'"

"What? Why?"

"'If he whines, it's tripled. Zuko.'" She read.

"How do they know what I'm going to say?"

"'You've never taken lessons from Naruto. Get to work. Azula.'" She flipped the paper over, still reading.

"They have got to be joking about all that work."

"'They're not joking. You'd best get to work. Zuko has Fǎn Yìng keeping an eye out on you. Sokka.'"

He turned to look at the dragon. Fǎn Yìng did seem to be looking at him intently. "Alright, alright, I do it." He muttered aloud as the others walked away. He stood up and went to work. "One hot squat, two hot squat, three hot squat, four hot squat…"

(Location: War Balloon)

They flew through the clouds. It was a bit cramped, but the three of them made due. But the atmosphere was pretty much awkward. As Zuko heated the furnace, Sokka and Azula looked over the side of the balloon. "Pretty clouds," Sokka noted after he and Zuko shared a glance and looked away.

"Yeah…fluffy," Zuko agreed.

"_Could this get anymore awkward?"_ Azula asked herself.

Sokka started whistling, getting Zuko's attention. "What?" He asked.

"What?" Sokka asked back. "Oh I didn't say anything." They fell silent again. "…You know, a friend of mine actually designed these war balloons."

"No kidding."

"Yep, a balloon…but for war," He said.

"_Agni, help me."_ Azula prayed/begged quietly.

"If there's one thing my dad's good at, it is war." Zuko stated.

"Yeah, it seems to run the family."

"Hey, hold on. Not everyone in our family is like that."

"I know, I know. You both have changed."

"I meant our uncle. He was more of a father to me." He admitted. "And I really let him down."

"…I think your uncle would be proud of you. Leaving your home to come help us? That's hard."

"It wasn't that hard."

"It seemed fairly easy." Azula agreed.

"Really?" asked Sokka. "You two didn't leave behind anyone you cared about?"

The siblings shared a look. "Well, I did have a girlfriend. Mai," Zuko said.

"That gloomy girl who sighs a lot?"

"Yeah," He answered. "Everyone in the Fire Nation thinks we're traitors. I couldn't drag her into it."

"My first girlfriend turned into the moon."

"That's rough, buddy."

"I am beginning to regret coming with you two." Azula said. "I'm seriously considering throwing myself overboard."

"Please don't do that, Azula. That means I have to fly this thing down and fish you out of the sea."

"So who did you leave behind?" Sokka asked her.

"…Some friends."

"Like who?"

"Mai…and Ty Lee," She answered.

"You mean the bubbly one?"

"Yes."

"And Naruto, of course," He said.

"We're done talking about this." She growled. Thankfully, he had enough sense not to push it. They kept on flying, the day eventually turning into night. Sokka had fallen asleep, Zuko manned the furnace and Azula kept a look out.

"We're there." She called out, getting Zuko's attention and waking up Sokka.

"There's plenty of steam to keep us covered." Zuko noted. "As long as we're quiet, we should be able to navigate through it without being caught." As they got closer to the rock, he opened the furnace and put more heat into it, making the balloon rise. It cleared the ridge, but once they got into the steam, the fire in the furnace went out, making the balloon to quickly descend. "We're going down! The balloon's not working anymore!" He announced in a whisper as he tried to get the furnace going again.

Sokka looked over the edge. "The air outside is just as hot as the inside, so we can't fly!" He told them.

"So what are we supposed to do?" Azula asked him.

"I don't know! Crash-landing?" The balloon hit the boiling water and skidded along the surface of it. Some of it splashed onto Sokka's hand. Although he did cry out in pain, he covered his mouth before doing so. It hit the surface of the prison, sending the three flying out of it. As they got their bearings back, they saw the balloon was destroyed.

"How are we gonna get off the island if the balloon doesn't work?" Zuko asked.

"We'll figure something out." Sokka told him. "I suspected it might be a one-way ticket."

"You knew this would happen and you wanted to come anyway?" Azula asked him.

"My dad might be here!" He replied as he approached the balloon. "I had to come and see!"

"Uncle said _I_ never thought things through." Zuko said. "But this…this is just crazy!"

"Hey, I never wanted you two to come in the first place! And for the record, I _always_ think things through! But my plans haven't exactly worked, so this time, I'm playing it by ear. So there." He tried to push the balloon into the water, but pulled his hands away due to the heat. Instead, he kicked it into the water.

"What are you doing?" Azula asked him.

"It doesn't work anyway and we don't want anyone to find it." They watched as the balloon sank into the water.

"I hope you know what you're doing." Zuko told him. "There's no turning back now."

"Let's just get inside." Azula said. The other two agreed with her. They spent the rest of the night slowly getting into the prison, making sure they weren't caught. By the time morning had come, they had found a storage room full of spare guard armor.

"I hope these disguises work." Zuko said to the others.

"We just need to lay low and find my dad as soon as possible."

"Naruto too," Azula chimed in. That's when they heard the sound of boots running down a hallway and they soon saw guards coming down the nearby corridor.

"Guards!" One of them called. "There's a scuffle in the yard. Come on." They followed the guards out to the yard. There was already a ring of prisoners stand around two people. When they forced their way to the front, they saw a guard and a prisoner circling each other.

"I didn't do anything!" The prisoner said. "I'm going back to my cell." He turned around and started to walk away.

The guard whipped his fire at the prisoner's feet. "Stop right there, Chit Sang." He ordered. Zuko tried to approach, but was held back by Sokka's grip on his arm.

"We can't blow our cover." He told him, Azula nodded briefly in agreement.

"I have had it with your unruly behavior!" The guard told Chit Sang.

"What did I do?" He asked.

"He wants to know what he did." He repeated. "Isn't that cute?" He asked Zuko and Sokka. When they didn't answer, he lifted his visor and gave them a look.

"Uh, very cute, sir," Zuko said.

"Super cute," Sokka agreed.

"Personally, I don't find it cute at all." A voice from the ring spoke out. He made his way to the inside of the ring. Both Sokka and Zuko heard Azula's small sigh of relief. The person who had spoken out and was now standing in the middle of the ring with Chit Sang and the guard was Naruto.

"This doesn't concern you, _prisoner_." The guard said, spitting out the word prisoner.

"Are you going to make me leave?" He asked pointedly. "What did he do?"

"He didn't bow down when I walked by."

"What?" Chit Sang asked. "That's not a prison rule."

"Well, it's fairly simple to do, Chit Sang." Naruto told him, walking over to the guard. "You simply get on your knees and bow your head, like this." He demonstrated the bow, making the guard smug.

"What is he doing?" Sokka asked.

"Just watch." Azula told him.

"And then," He continued. "As you stand up, you do this." He stood up and then rammed his fist into the guard's stomach, making him double over and fall to the ground. "That way, he'll bow to you too." That got the other prisoners laughing. Seeing that his work was done, he walked away.

The guard, embarrassed at what happened, stood back up and threw a fireball at his retreating back. But before it could even get halfway, Chit Sang stepped in and knocked it aside with his own Firebending. The guard smiled smugly at the prisoner. "Firebending is prohibited. You're going in the cooler. You," He pointed at Sokka. "Help me take him in! And you two!" He pointed at two different guards. "Take him back to his cell, now!" He pointed at Naruto, who had turned around to see what was going on.

"Meet back here in an hour." Sokka told both Azula and Zuko. He ran over to the guard and helped him take Chit Sang to the coolers.

"The warden will deal with you soon." The guard told him before throwing him into a cooler. "Can you believe this guy?" He asked Sokka as he closed both the doors.

"Prisoners!" He said, playing along. "Am I right?"

"Ugh. Tell me about it."

(Location: Lounge)

Both Zuko and Azula were grabbing lunch. "Hey, new guys," Another called out, grabbing their attention. "I know it's the rule to have your helmet on at all times, but this is the lounge. Relax."

"But what if there's an incident?" Azula asked.

"Yeah, if we're not prepared, we could get hit on the head." Zuko agreed as they walked over to the group. His comment got the other guards laughing.

"Give it a week." A female guard said. "They'll loosen up."

"So, hear anything good lately?" Zuko asked them.

"You mean you haven't heard? It's been the talk of the prison as well as the rest of the Fire Nation." The male guard said.

"Heard what?"

"The Fire Lord legitimized Lady Yāo Jing. She's now the heir to the throne."

"What?" Zuko and Azula said at the same time.

"Wow, you really didn't hear about it."

"What happened?" Azula asked. "I thought Prince Zuko or at least Princess Azula was to get the throne."

"Did you hear about the invasion?"

"Only the official version, that the capital was attacked, but the invaders were defeated."

"That much is true." The female guard said. "But what you don't know is that both Prince Zuko and Princess Azula turned traitor and ran away. The Fire Lord sent troops after them, but Lord Naruto held them off long enough for the two to get away. Once he was sure they were gone, he allowed himself to be arrested."

"The Fire Lord didn't kill him?" Zuko asked him.

The male guard shook his head. "From what I heard, he was given to Yāo Jing, who tried to torture him. After a week of that, he was brought to the Fire Lord. He was told that Yāo Jing had become the Crown Princess and it was now his job to protect her."

"If that's true, then is he here?"

"He refused to do it." The female guard answered. "Lord Naruto said, and I quote 'I swore to protect the Princess of the Fire Nation. Not the end result of what happens when you can't keep it in your pants.'"

"How do you know he said that?" Azula asked.

"My brother was there in the throne room when the Fire Lord and Lord Naruto had that meeting. Both the Fire Lord and Yāo Jing were furious at his refusal and the Fire Lord threatened to kill him. He replied that if he was killed, they would be spontaneously sprouting arrows in the forehead. So the Fire Lord sent him here, with instructions for to be beaten regularly."

"The guards actually did that?" Zuko asked.

"Some of them tried." The male guard said. "But Lord Naruto was the one who beat them into a bloody pulp. Since then, no guard has ever followed the instructions. Is there anything else you want to know?"

"Yeah, about those invaders…"

(Location: Coolers)

"It sure looks cold in there." Sokka remarked as he looked inside the cooler at Chit Sang.

"That's why we call it the cooler. He won't be Firebending in there." The guard said. He saw someone coming down the hall. "It's the warden! Look alive!" They stood at attention as the warden came to stand in front of the door. One of the warden's guards opened the doors.

"So Chit Sang, I hear you used Firebending to try to escape." He said. "You should know better."

"I wasn't trying to escape." Chit Sang protested, shivering in the cold.

"He's lying!" The guard said. "I saw him with my own eyes."

The warden ignored him and kept his eyes on the prisoner. "No one has ever, ever escaped from here. I'd sooner jump into the boiling lake myself then let that record fall. Don't forget it. Now go back to your shivering." He walked out of the cooler and the door closed.

(Location: Yard)

Sokka stood at a railing, looking down at the prisoners in the yard. "Hey there…fellow guard," Another guard said, coming up to him. "How goes it?"

"Zuko?" He asked, lifting his visor.

He shushed him. "Listen, I asked around the lounge. There are no Water Tribe prisoners." He said, lifting his own visor. "I'm afraid your father's not here."

"What? Are you sure? Did you double check?"

"Yeah, I'm sure."

"No. No!" He banged his hands against the wall.

"I'm really sorry, Sokka."

"So I came all this way for nothing?" He asked. "I failed…again."

"Ah, what would Uncle say?" He asked himself. He looked up and saw the clouds. "Sometimes, clouds have two sides, a dark and light and a silver lining in between. It's like a silver sandwich! So…when life seems hard…take a bite out of the silver sandwich!"

As he was speaking, Sokka noticed something in the yard. "Maybe we haven't failed after all!" He declared, running over to the rail.

"That's the spirit!" He said. "I can't believe that worked. I didn't even know what I was saying."

"No, what you said made no sense at all. But look…" He pointed down to a prisoner sitting on a rock. "It's Suki!"

Before Zuko could really ask who Suki was, a bell rang off. "Prisoners, back in your cells!" ordered a guard. All the prisoners began to move back inside.

(Location: Naruto)

The door to his cell opened, making him look over to see who it is. "How lucky for me, the warden's come to visit me." He said sarcastically. "I'd greet you, but I don't like you."

"I hear you humiliated one of my guards this morning, _Lord_ Naruto." The warden said, making the lord sound like it should be in the garbage heap.

"Don't bother calling me lord; I know you hate saying it. As for your guard, you heard right. They just give me _so_ many opportunities, it's hard to resist."

"It's too bad this prison doesn't have solitary confinement. You would spend the rest of your life there."

"In case you haven't notice, this entire prison _is_ solitary confinement. We're in the middle of a boiling lake, how more confined do you want to get?"

"You should know that you will be properly punished for your actions."

"What? You're gonna have the guards try to beat me black and blue again? You do remember what happened last time, right?"

The warden gave him a cruel smile. "Oh, don't worry, you'll find out soon enough." He turned around and walked out of the cell, the door closed behind him.

"_What did he mean by that?"_ He asked himself.

"**I don't know, kit."** Kyuubi said. **"But you should probably be careful. Whatever your punishment it, I have a feeling it won't be good."**

"_Yeah, I have that same feeling."_

(Location: Suki)

She lay on the bedding, staring up at the wall. When she heard the door open and saw a guard come in, she sat up. "What is it? Did I do something wrong?" She asked.

"You mean you don't recognize me?" The guard asked.

"You people all look the same to me."

"That's funny. I would remember the guy I had kissed and felt up at the same time." He said with a smirk.

"How do you know…?" She started to say, standing up from the bed, when she remembered where she had seen that smirk before. "Sokka?" She asked hesitantly. His reply was to simply take off the helmet. "Sokka, it's you!" She rushed over and gave him a tight hug.

He returned it with equal measure. "I'm so sorry I made you go through torture, Suki." He whispered.

"It's okay, I got through it. I knew you would come for me."

"The other Kyoshi Warriors, are they here?"

"No. I don't know where they are. They locked me in here because I'm the leader."

"Well, you won't be here for long. I'm busting you out."

"I'm so glad to see you, Sokka." The two of them shared a kiss. Meanwhile, Zuko stood guard outside. When he saw a guard coming, he tapped on the door, alerting Sokka. When the guard came up to the cell, he stood in her way.

"Excuse me." She said. "I need to get into that cell."

"No, you can't go in there!" He told her. "The lights are out. The prisoner could sneak up on you."

"Step aside, fool." She ordered, putting her hand on his shoulder. He grabbed the arm and used it to slam her into the door. "Hey, hey, what are you doing!?" The two of them began to struggle with each other. As that went on, Sokka put his helmet back on and snuck out of the cell. The guard saw him. "Guard, help! I think he's an imposter! Arrest him!" She ordered. "Get him off me and arrest him!"

He walked over to the two, grabbed Zuko by the arm and threw him down to the ground. "You're under arrest!" He declared. "Don't worry, I'll find Azula and we'll figure it out." He whispered as he pulled him up off the ground.

(Location: Azula)

"What is going on now?" She asked herself as nearby guards all seemed to be in a rush. Finding Sokka, she went over to him. "What happened?" She asked him.

"Zuko got caught." He told her in a whisper.

"What?" She repeated, incredulous.

"You heard me."

"Just what we need, a complication," She groaned quietly.

"Well, where were you?"

"I was trying to find Naruto."

"Any luck?"

"None," She answered.

(Location: Zuko)

He had been forced into prison garb and was now standing in an empty room. It had felt like an hour when the door finally opened, showing the warden. "Well, well, well. I never thought I'd find you in here, Prince Zuko." He said with an evil smile.

"How did you know who I am?" Zuko asked.

"How could I not? You broke my niece's heart."

"You're Mai's uncle?" He asked, surprised. "I never meant to hurt her."

"Quiet! You're my special prisoner now. And you'd best behave. If these criminals found out whom you are, the traitor prince who let his nation down, why they'd tear you to shreds."

"I think I'd have one person who would back me up."

"Don't be so sure about that."

"So what's in it for you?" He asked, crossing his arms. "Why don't you just tell my father and collect a reward?"

"Oh, in due time, believe me, I intend to collect. I just have one question for you. Where is Princess Azula?"

"We went our separate ways after we escaped from the Fire Nation." He lied.

He said nothing in return. He simply walked out of the room, leaving Zuko alone. Later, he was let out of the room and was handed a mop. When Sokka and Azula found him, he was mopping the floor next to Suki.

"Oh good, you guys have met." Sokka said.

"Actually, we met a long time ago." Suki said.

"We did?" Zuko asked.

"Yeah, you…kinda burned down my village."

"Oh…sorry about that…nice to see you again," He said.

"He is such a dum-dum." Azula muttered to herself. They made sure to remain unseen as they talked. Fortunately, the side of the stairs they were mopping ended in a corner.

"So, listen, I think I have an escape plan." Sokka told everyone. "I checked out the coolers again. The point of them is to keep Firebenders contained, right?"

"Yeah…" Zuko answered.

"So, they're completely insulated and sealed to keep the cold in. Well, to keep the cold in, it also has to keep the heat out, right?"

"Just get to the point, Sokka." Suki told him, Azula nodded in agreement.

"It's a perfect boat for getting through the boiling water."

Zuko, Suki and Azula all shared a look. "The cooler as a boat?" asked Zuko. "Are you sure?"

"I'm telling ya, it'll work. I walked around the perimeter. There's a blind spot between two guard towers. It's the perfect launching point. I already tested it out. We'll roll the cooler into the water and just float with the current. It'll take us straight across. As long as we don't make a sound, no one will notice. And bing-bang-boom, we're home free."

"But how are you going to get the cooler out?" Suki asked.

"Yeah, how are you going to get the cooler out?" asked Chit Sang. He stood on the stairs looking down on them, before jumping over the rail and joining their meeting.

"We didn't say that." Sokka lied.

"Yeah, you heard wrong." Zuko agreed.

"I heard you're hatching an escape plan, and I want in."

"There's nothing to get in on."

"Leave now or you won't like the outcome." Azula threatened him.

"Well, I can come with you, or the warden finds out."

"…I guess we have no choice." Suki admitted.

"Okay, you're in." Sokka told him. He gave Zuko a wench. "Now, first we need someone to unbolt the cooler, from the inside."

"Oh, I can get you inside." Chit Sang promised. He stood up, walked in full view of the guards and just stood there. A few seconds later, Zuko backed into him, mopping the floor. "Hey! What are you, stupid? Watch where you're going!" He grabbed Zuko and shoved him away.

"Hey, you watch who you're shoving!" He pushed him into the middle of the room, getting people's attention.

"I think you mean _whom_ I'm shoving." The two of them began to fight or at least, fake a fight. As the prisoners began to cheer and urge the fight on, Sokka ran over to it.

"I need back-up over here!" He shouted. Chit Sang tossed Zuko to the ground. He leapt into the air and tried to do a flying elbow on him, but he rolled away and bent fire at him, which he avoided by hopping into the air.

"No Firebending." A guard told him. "Into the cooler!" As he was led away, Sokka shared a quick look with Suki, who was still mopping the floor, before walking away. Azula walked away as well, still intent on finding Naruto's cell.

Later, Sokka made his way to the cooler Zuko was here and opened the doors. "I can take you back to your cell if you've learned your lesson." He told him.

He raised his head and breathed a little fire, warming himself up. "Yes, I have…completely." He said, standing up and revealing all the bolts and screws the cooler was supposed to have.

He smiled. "I got Suki and Chit Sang out of their cells a few minutes ago." He whispered. "They'll be waiting for us at the shore, Azula too."

"Someone's coming!" He yanked Sokka into the cooler and closed the door.

"Yeah, new arrivals coming in at dawn." One guard told the other as they walked through past the coolers.

"Anybody interesting?" asked the other guard.

"Nah, just the usual," He answered. "Some robbers, a couple traitors, some war prisoners, though I did hear there might be a pirate."

"No fooling!"

Both Zuko and Sokka looked at each other. "War prisoners," Zuko repeated. "It could be your father."

"I know."

"Well, what should we do? Are you going ahead with the plan or are we waiting another night?"

"I don't know. Is it right for me to risk Suki's freedom, all of our freedom on the slim chance that my dad is gonna show up?"

"It's your call, Sokka."

(Location: Shore)

That night, Chit Sang, Azula and Suki were waiting on the shoreline. They heard the sound of something scraping on rock. Turning around, they saw that Sokka and Zuko were rolling the detached cooler down the slope. "Took you long enough," Chit Sang told them as he and Suki helped with the rolling. "This here's my girl and my best buddy, they're coming too." He looked down at the two extra people there.

"Fine," Sokka said. "Everybody in the cooler, let's go." They moved the cooler into the water, ready to go.

"I'm not coming." Azula stated, surprising Sokka and Zuko.

"Why not?" asked her brother.

"I came here to free Naruto. I just only found where his cell is. I'm not leaving this rock without him."

"That's your choice." He turned to face Sokka, who had uncovered his Water Tribe and put on his jian. "But are you sure you wanna go? You're the one who said you wanted to redeem yourself. Redeem your honor. Rescuing your dad is your chance."

"Your dad?" repeated Suki.

Sokka turned to face them. "If I had just cut my losses at the invasion, maybe we wouldn't be in this mess." He told them. "Maybe sometimes it's better to call it quits before you fail."

"No, it's not." Zuko told him. "Look, Sokka, you're going to fail a lot before things work out."

"That supposed to make feel better?" He asked, standing up and walking away.

"Even though you'll probably fail over and over and over again…"

"Seriously, not helping," He told him, stopping.

"You have to try every time." He walked forward and grabbed his shoulder. "You can't quit because you're afraid you _might_ fail."

"Hey, if you two are done cuddling, can we get a move on?" Chit Sang asked pointedly.

"…No. I'm staying." Sokka declared, earning a nod of approval from Azula. "You guys go. You've been here long enough." He told Suki.

"I'm not leaving without you, Sokka." She replied.

"I'm staying too." Zuko said.

"Not me, I'm out." Chit Sang declared. He pushed the cooler into the water and hopped in. "Let's roll, baby."

"We gave up our only chance of escaping." Sokka stated as they watched the cooler float away. "I hope we haven't made a huge mistake."

The cooler floated away on the current. The problem was the current was a slow one. By the time morning had come around, the passengers were sweating and still in view of the prison. "This current is so slow." Chit Sang groused. He stood up and ripped a piece off the cooler. "I can use this to paddle." When he put the makeshift paddle into the water, some of it splashed onto his hand. He dropped the paddle; stared at his hand and then screamed loudly in pain (he would later claim it was a manly yell).

His scream managed to attract the attention of a guard. The alarm bell rang and the warden showed up on the wall. "Guards, secure the perimeter and lock down the prisoners! Now!" He ordered. The guards maintained control over the prisoners by use of fire whips.

While this all went on, Sokka, Zuko, Azula and Suki were trying to sneak back into the prison. "The plan failed! They're caught!" Sokka announced as they heard the alarm go off and the guards disappearing from sight. They moved along the outside of the wall faster.

"Get the fugitives and throw them in the cooler!" The warden ordered as he stood next to a large ballista.

"Uh…they are in a cooler, sir." A guard manning the ballista told him.

"One's that bolted down and not floating in the water! This is a lockdown! We have new prisoners arriving! Everything must be completely secure!" The guard got the point. He aimed the ballista down at the cooler and fired the bolt. It hit the cooler and the line tightened up, pulling it back to the prison.

Sokka and the others managed to get back into the prison. "The gondola's moving." Sokka stated as they watched with a clear view of the gondola. The car came into the platform and stopped. "This is it. If my dad's not there, we risked everything for nothing."

"We had to." Suki told him, taking his hand.

"Come on, come on." He urged. One of the guards opened the car door and the first prisoner stepped out.

"Is that him?" Zuko asked.

"My dad doesn't have a nose ring." He turned his attention back to the gondola. "Where is he?" He asked as the prisoners walked out of the car. Finally, the last one got out. "That's it? That can't be it."

"I'm sorry, Sokka." Suki told him.

"Oh, no," He said to himself.

"Hey, you!" said one of the guards, getting their attention again. "Get off the gondola!"

When he heard that, his hope rose. When the last prisoner stepped off the gondola, he was overjoyed. "Dad," He whispered.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Yes, I had Yāo Jing legitimized. How else am I going to get a fight for the crown later on? She is a daughter of a whore. So unless she was legitimized, she has no claim to the throne.

I know that Azula wasn't around a lot in this chapter. She's looking for Naruto, not Hakoda. So she would be doing her own thing.

I'll bet there are some of you who are going to complain about how Naruto wasn't shown enough in this chapter. Please remember, this is a two-part thing.

What the warden has for Naruto will be shown next chapter. I'll give you fair warning, it's not going to be pretty.

I see you all next chapter!


	33. Riots and Getting out

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 33: Riots and Getting out.

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Naruto)

The door to his cell opened. "On your feet," The guard ordered.

"What did I do this time?" Naruto asked, not moving from his bedding.

"You didn't do anything. It's time for your punishment." The guard said as he was yanked off the bed and led out of the cell.

(Location: Gondola tower)

"Line them up for the warden!" One of the warden's guards ordered. The prisoners were moved into a line. They were eight in all, Hakoda included.

Both Sokka and Azula made their way up to the gondola tower. "Dad…" Sokka said as he saw his father standing in the line.

"We don't have all day here, Sokka." Azula told him pointedly.

"Right," He said. They both moved forward towards the guards. "Excuse us, coming through. The warden wants us over there. Sorry." He told the other guards and they made their way into the line of guards.

"Welcome to the Boiling Rock." The warden said to the prisoners, walking down the line. "I'm sure you've all heard the horrible rumors about our little island. Well, I just want to tell you that they don't have to be true, as long as you do everything I say." He stopped in front of Hakoda. "Look me in the eye when I'm talking to you."

"No." He answered.

"Oh? You'd rather take a look at my shoes? Then take a look!" He lifted his foot and brought it down on the handcuffs, making Hakoda fall to the ground. "I know exactly who you are, Hakoda of the Water Tribe. So strong-willed, but don't worry, we'll get rid of that in time. Now look me in the eye!" The captured Water Tribe chief raised his head and looked him in the eye. "See? Isn't that better?" He turned to look at the other prisoners. "You will all do as I say or pay the price. You will all—" He was interrupted when Hakoda lifted one of his hands and tripped him, making him fall to the ground. It also made both Sokka and Azula sniggered behind covered mouths.

"Are you okay, sir?" One of the guards asked.

"I'm fine!" He told them, standing up. "Bring those prisoners to the railing. I have something to shown them." Everyone went over to the railing, even the guards. What they saw made Azula tighten her grip on the rail.

Chained to a whipping post, without a shirt, was Naruto. "I assume you know who that man down there is." The warden said. "For those of you who don't, he was Naruto, Paragon of the Fire Nation and bodyguard to Princess Azula. Now he is a traitor and a prisoner. A few days ago, he had attacked one of my guards. This is his punishment."

The guard standing next to Naruto bent his fire into the shape of a whip. And then, to the horror of the prisoners as well as Azula and Sokka, he whipped Naruto's back, ten times. Naruto had nothing to bite down on, so everyone could hear his screams of pain. Azula began to tremble in rage as she watched it happen. _"Mai's uncle or not, I am going to kill the warden!"_ She thought to herself.

Finally, the whipping was done. Naruto's slumped, unconscious body was carried away. "That was the new punishment for disobedient prisoners, with direct permission from the Fire Lord. I trust you gentlemen understand the ramifications of that?" The warden asked before looking at one of the guards. "Get them out of my sight." He ordered before walking away.

As the guards led the prisoners away, Sokka and Azula slipped away.

(Location: Hakoda's cell)

He sat down on the bedding with his head between his hands. When he heard the door open, he looked up and saw a guard standing against the door. "Thank goodness you're okay." The guard said.

He stood up and took a fighting stance. "If you take one step closer, you'll see just how 'okay' I am." He threatened.

"Dad, it's me." The guard lifted his visor, showing his blue eyes.

"Sokka, my son," He cried, hugging his son, who had taken off the helmet. "You know Sokka, you should be more careful with that guard outfit on. I almost punched you in the gut."

"Yeah, I ran into that problem earlier."

(Location: Naruto)

"_AARGH!"_ Naruto shouted mentally. _"That hurts!"_

"**Well, of course it's going to hurt."** Kyuubi said. **"You were whipped on your back with fire. Be glad I started healing you right after the whipping."**

"_Well, it still hurts."_

"**I just dulled the pain, I didn't kill it completely. I think we both know you would rather deal with the dull pain rather than the full amount."**

He didn't say anything; he just lay on his back. When he heard the door to his cell opening, he turned his eyes onto it. "What have I done now? Did I fart in the warden's general direction and he didn't like it?" He asked the guard. The guard didn't say anything; he just stood at the door, looking at him. "Please tell me they did not send a mute guard here to annoy me." Again, the guard didn't say anything; he walked over to the bedding and knelt beside it. Then, to his surprise, the guard kissed him fiercely on the lips.

He then realized that this _he_ was a _she_. And he knew this particular she, which was why after a stunned moment, he returned the kiss. "Hello, Azula." He greeted her after they broke away.

"How could you tell?" She asked.

"You were the one who kissed me." He told her pointedly. "I don't think I could forget those lips."

(Location: The warden)

He stood in front of a door. Opening it, he walked into the room. Chit Sang was bound to a chair. "Are you comfortable, Chit Sang?" He asked the prisoner.

"If you're trying to get me to talk, forget it!" Chit Sang told him hotly. "I'm not a squealer!"

He walked past the chair. "Chit Sang, I only ask you if you were comfortable."

"Well, yeah, actually I am pretty comfortable." That got him kicked to the ground.

"Are you still comfortable?"

"No."

"I know you and your cronies are not smart enough to come up with that little escape plan. So you're going to tell me who is." He walked out of the cell, leaving Chit Sang alone with two guards.

(Location: Hakoda's cell)

"So, where's Bato?" Sokka asked as he doubled checked the silt in the door, making sure they were alone. "Where's everyone else from the invasion?"

"The others are being held at a prison near the Fire Nation palace." Hakoda told him as he sat down next to him against the wall. "They singled me out as their leader and sent me here. But before I left, I met some young women who said they knew you, the…Oshinama Fighters?"

"You mean the Kyoshi Warriors?"

"That's right."

"Their leader Suki is hear and she gonna escape with us."

"Good, we'll need all the help we can get."

"And you know Prince Zuko and Princess Azula?"

"The son and daughter of the Fire Lord? I don't know them, but I know _of_ them."

"Well, they're here too."

"Sounds like two major problems."

"Actually, they're on our side now." Hakoda looked at his son with a raised eyebrow. "I kinda had the same reaction. After all they did, I knew it would be hard to trust them, but I gave them the benefit of doubt. And I was right. They've proven themselves and I never would've found you without their help." His explanation earned him a nod from his father.

"So, do you have a plan?"

"We had one, but some of the other prisoners got involved and ruined it. I don't know if there's another way off this island."

"Sokka, there's no prison in the world that can hold two Water Tribe geniuses." He told his son, patting his back.

"Then we better find two." His dad laughed and he gave a nervous chuckle. "We might get lucky, if Azula pulls through."

"What do you mean?"

"Do you remember the prisoner you saw when you came in?"

His face turned grim. "Unfortunately, yes I do."

"Azula came with us to break him out. With any luck, she's in his cell right now, talking to him."

(Location: Naruto's cell)

"You know, I was expecting you guys a few days later." Naruto admitted.

"What?" Azula said.

"You heard me. Why do you think I had Ozai send me here? I knew that Sokka would come here looking for his dad."

"And how would you know that?"

He smiled. "One of my last orders was to have the leader of the invasion be sent here. That's why I expected you guys a few days later. You would've been able to get all of us out at the same time." He let out a soft groan. "I just wasn't expecting the whipping. That, I did not enjoy."

She looked at him intently. "Naruto, you shouldn't be able to talk, much less complain about it."

"Ah, it's okay. I heal quickly."

"No one heals that quickly!" She protested.

"I do."

She sighed. "This is one of your secrets, isn't it?" He just nodded. "You're going to have tell me them someday."

"Maybe, but it's not today." His answer made her groan and take off her helmet. "…I guess I didn't imagine you cutting your hair." He reached and brushed his fingers across the edges of her hair. "I kinda like it."

"Naruto, about that night…"

"I'm sorry."

That caught her by surprise. "What?"

"I said I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that to you."

"You don't need to apologize, it was my fault."

"No, it wasn't. It was mine. I could tell you that I did to keep you safe, but that's not the entire truth."

"Then what is?"

"I was scared."

If she had heard before surprised her, this one stunned her. "You…were scared?"

He nodded. "I was scared of you rejecting me."

"I would have never had done that!"

"But I didn't know that. All I had were my past experiences and they're not something I like to remember. Three years ago, there was this girl I liked." He gave a bitter chuckle. "Like is probably too easy a word. I had a huge crush on her. But she thought I was an idiot and kept hitting me every time I came near her."

"Who was it?" She demanded in a growl.

"Relax, you haven't met her. You know the funny thing? I kept coming back and she still kept punching my lights out. That and she had eyes for someone else. When I came here, I had brought the memories of her rejections with me. So I was afraid that you would reject me."

"But I didn't."

"And I'm glad. Because I love you too," He told her, looking straight into her eyes. "I have never met a woman who can keep me on my toes as much as you."

"And I don't know anyone else who can be as irritating as you." She replied with a mock scowl. He laughed, and then rose his head up to kiss her. She didn't resist.

(Location: Sokka)

He walked through the ground level of the prison, making sure he was alone. He approached one cell and lifted his visor. "Zuko, are you there?" He asked.

"I'm here." Zuko answered.

"I just got done talking to my dad. We came up with an escape plan together."

"What are you doing here?" A voice from behind him asked. Turning around (and lowering his visor), he saw two guards standing on the staircase.

"I was just telling this dirty lowlife what I think of him!" He answered, trying to sound gruff.

"Well, you'll have to do that later. He's coming with us."

"Why?"

"Because we have orders straight from the warden, that's why!" The second guard told him.

"Could I just get ten more seconds to rough him up a bit?"

"Fine, ten seconds." He walked into the cell and closed the door.

"Take that…and this!" They heard him shout, the sounds of punching filling the air and Zuko grunting.

"Newbie," The first guard remarked.

Inside the cell, Zuko was holding his bedding in front of him, while Sokka punched it. "We have a new plan, but it's gonna need a big distraction." He whispered as he punched the bedding. "Be in the yard in one hour." They heard the cell door opening, so he grabbed Zuko and tried to strangle him.

"All right, that's enough." The first guard said, separating the two. They grabbed Zuko and led him out of the cell.

"What are you doing? Where are you taking me?" He asked them. They brought him to another cell, which only had a chair, and tossed him in. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

"Come on, Zuko." A familiar voice told him. "We all know that's a lie."

"Mai!" He said in shock as he saw his ex-girlfriend in the corner of the room. However, his mind only had one thought. _"Oh shit."_

(Location: Sokka)

He went to the lounge and sat down at a table. A few minutes later, Azula sat down across from him. "Any luck?" He asked her.

"I found him." She answered. "He actually expected us a few days later."

"…I don't know whether I should be surprised about that kind of stuff anymore or not."

"Just take it in stride, that's what I do."

"Can you get him into the yard in one hour?"

"Yes."

"Good to know." He got up from the table and walked away.

(Location: The warden)

He walked back to the room where Chit Sang was and opened the door. "How is he?" He asked.

The two guards were holding the chair, with Chit Sang in it, upside down, making all the blood rush to his head. "I think he's ready to talk." One of the guards said. They slammed the chair down into its upright position. As the blood left his head, Chit Sang started gasping to get his breath back, sweating all the while.

The warden walked up behind him. "Have you had enough time to think about what I asked?" He asked him.

"Yes." He answered.

"And…?"

"You're right, there was another person involved in the escape plan."

"Who?"

"It's a guy disguised as a prison guard. Only he's not a prison guard. He's the mastermind. He came up with the plan."

He patted his head and walked out of the room, satisfied with what he heard.

(Location: Zuko and Mai)

"How did you know I was here?" Zuko asked Mai as he sat in the chair, his shoulders set in a slump.

"Because I know you so well," She answered, leaning against the wall.

"But…how…?"

"The warden's my uncle, you idiot. The truth is, I guess I don't know you." She showed him the letter that he had left her. "All I get is a letter? You could've at least looked me in the eye when you ripped out my heart."

"I didn't mean to—"

"You didn't mean to?! 'Dear Mai, I'm sorry that you have to find out this way, but I'm leaving.'" She read the letter to him.

"Stop!" He told her. "This isn't about you. This is about the Fire Nation!"

"Thanks Zuko, that makes me feel all better." She threw the letter at him, hitting him in the head.

"Mai, I never wanted to hurt you." He told, getting out of the chair and facing her. "I'm sure Azula didn't either, but we have to do this to save our country."

"Save it? You two are betraying your country!"

"That's not how I see it."

"Do the two of you not realized what you did to me and Ty Lee? Because of you, we were forced to practically become her slaves. We can't do anything against her because our families will get hurt. She's beaten Ty Lee half to death on more than one occasion!"

"What?" He asked, his face holding a look of shock. "I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"Of course you didn't, you and Azula were too busy being traitors."

(Location: Suki's cell)

She went through her forms, practicing her moves. She had lifted her foot into a kick when the door opened and Sokka came in. "Sokka, what's going on?" She asked.

"I don't have much time." He told her as he kept an eye out. "If I'm seen with you the guards might think something's up. I just talked to my dad."

"That's great."

"Yeah, and we're escaping today, on the gondola."

"What?"

"My dad and I came up with the plan together. We're gonna commandeer the gondola and we're gonna take a hostage with us so they won't cut the lines."

"We'll never make to the gondola." She protested. "There are too many guards."

"My dad already thought of that. He said we'll need a distraction. That's why we're going to start a prison riot."

"Okay, let's say by some miracle this all works and we make it onto the gondola. The warden will still just cut the lines, even if we have a captive."

"Not if the warden _is_ the captive." They both heard the sounds of a guard coming. "I have to go." He told her. She gave him a quick hug. "I'll find you before we start the riot." He snuck out of the cell and started to walk away.

"Hey, you," A guard behind him called out. "The warden wants to see you."

He turned around and saw the two guards. "Why?" He asked.

"I don't know, I didn't ask."

"Maybe I can schedule another time with him? How's tomorrow?" He asked as he tried to walk away, but two different guards grabbed him.

"He wants to see you…now." They took him up onto the gondola platform. Other guards were waiting in a line there.

"Put him in the line-up." The warden ordered. The guards did as they were told. "One of you is an imposter who thought could fool me." He told the line of guards. "But now…that person is going to be in a lot of trouble." A pair of guards brought Chit Sang forward. "Who is it?"

Chit Sang looked at the line of guards. The silence was making Sokka nervous. He tried to remain calm, but sweat was coming off his brow. "That's him, warden." Chit Sang finally spoke, pointing at the guard who tried to harass him. "He's the imposter!"

"What? I am not!" The guard said. The warden just gave an evil smile and walked away. "He's lying! He's a liar!" The guard shouted as he was dragged away. Chit Sang just turned his gaze onto Sokka, who breathed a sigh of relief.

(Location: The warden)

He stood in front of the traitor guard, who was strapped to the same chair Chit Sang was. "I'm telling you…it wasn't me." The guard protested.

"Save your breath!" He told him as he walked up to him and got in his face. "I know you two were working together. You threw Chit Sang in the very cooler they used to escape. It was all part of your plan."

"That was just a coincidence!"

The door opened and someone walked in. "Sir, there's someone to see you." One of the guards told him.

"Who told you to interrupt me?!" He demanded, whirling around to look at the door. Stunned to see who it was, he and the two guards (who weren't traitors) hit the floor and bowed their heads.

"I did." Yāo Jing said, standing at the door. Ty Lee stood behind, looking uncomfortable. If you were to look closely, you could see the remains of bruising on her face.

"Princess Yāo Jing," The warden greeted her. "I…It is an honor to welcome you to the Fire Nation's most exemplary prison." He stood up. "I didn't realize you were coming."

"Who is this?" She asked, looking at the traitor guard.

"He was a guard who was involved in a recent and feeble escape attempt."

"It wasn't me!" The guard protested.

"Quiet, you!" ordered the warden.

"You're wasting your time." Yāo Jing told him, walking away. "That's not one of them."

"How do you know?" He asked her.

"Because I'm a people person," She answered. She walked out of the cell.

"You know, he might actually be the traitor." Ty Lee said as she walked behind her. She whirled around and slapped her hard across the face, making her fall to the ground.

"Did I tell you to talk?" She asked.

"No, I was just offering my opinion." She said as she tried to stand up. She was slapped again and fell to the floor.

"Did I want your opinion?"

"No, I'm sorry."

She said nothing. She just turned around and kept walking.

(Location: Sokka)

He walked into the control room for the cell doors. "Hey, I just got orders." He told the guard in charge of the controls. "Let the prisoners out into the yard."

"But we're in the middle of lockdown." The guard protested.

"Oh, okay, I'll just go tell the warden you said that." He started to walk away, making the guard nervous. "I'm sure he'll be glad to hear you undermining his authority. What was your name again?" He asked the guard.

"Wait, don't tell the warden." The guard pleaded. "I'm just a little confused."

"Hey, I'm confused too. But the warden's in a bad mood and…irrational. So if you ask me, it's best not to question it and just do what he says."

"Yeah…you're right." He took hold of the controls. "We're letting them out!" He announced, pulling the controls down, opening the cells.

(Location: Naruto)

He heard the cell door open. _"There we are."_ He thought to himself as he stood up from the bed. He walked out of the cell, stumbling a little bit.

Azula was waiting for him outside the cell. "Do you need some help?" She asked him as she caught him.

"Yeah, I do." He answered. "I might heal fast, but the pain is still there."

She took his hand, put it around her shoulder and helped him walked out.

(Location: Yard)

Sokka, Suki and Hakoda met up in the yard. "Where are Azula and Naruto?" Sokka asked, looking around.

"Right here," Azula said, she and Naruto walking up to them.

"Hey, Sokka," Naruto greeted him. "It's been awhile. And you must be his father." He said, turning to Hakoda. "You did a hell of a job raising him, a hell of a job."

"Um…thank you." Hakoda replied.

"And you must be Suki, the Paragon of the Earth Kingdom. I'm sorry we're meeting in a place like this." He apologized to her.

"How do you know I'm a Paragon?" She asked, surprised.

"I read the report Azula had written about capturing you and I saw the part about how the leader was wearing a Paragon Medallion. Out of curiosity, do you still have it?"

"Yes I do, but it wasn't easy." She answered with a small blush on her cheeks.

"Oh." He realized what the blush meant. "Then I won't ask how you did it."

"Thank you."

"Hey, Naruto, is the Paragon of the Air Nomads still alive?" Sokka asked curiously.

"Yes, she is. But the only time you'll meet her when she feels like it or if I call in a favor. But back to more important issues, you're going to break us out, right?" Sokka nodded. "Alright, but I won't be a lot of help."

"What? Why not?" He asked.

"You saw the whipping I got this morning. I heal quickly, but right now, it's taking all of my willpower not to cruel up and whimper like a baby from the dull throb of pain I have."

"…You're not kidding, are you?"

"Plus I like being held by a beautiful lady." Azula blushed when she heard that comment.

Sokka felt a hand grab his shoulder. "Hey you!" Chit Sang said as he stood behind him. "You're lucky I didn't rat you out. But my generosity comes with a price. I know you're planning another escape attempt, and I want in."

"Actually, we're trying to escape right now." He told him. "But we need a riot. You wouldn't happen to know how to start one, would you?"

"A prison riot? Please." He walked to another prisoner, grabbed him and lifted him up onto his shoulders. Naruto brought his fingers to his lips and blew a loud piercing whistle, getting every prisoners attention. "Hey!" called out Chit Sang, holding the prisoner high. "RIOT!"

That set everyone off. Fists were flying and so was the fire.

"Impressive." Hakoda admitted.

Meanwhile, the warden was standing at the railing, watching the riot go. "Who let these prisoners into the yard!?" He demanded. "This is supposed to be a lockdown!" The guard who did open the cells heard and decided to become one with the wall behind him. He also decided to not be near the warden.

(Location: Zuko and Mai)

"Ma'am, there's a riot going on!" A guard told her as he stood in front of the door. "I'm here to protect you."

"I don't need any protection." She replied.

"Believe me, she doesn't." Zuko assured the guard with pride.

"I'm sorry, but I'm under direct orders from your uncle to make sure nothing happens." The guard said. At that point, something happened. Zuko bent fire at the guard's feet and when he backed away, he ran for the door.

"Get off of me!" Mai told the guard as he stood in front of her, tossing him off. She ran for the door, but he had slammed it shut and locked it. They looked at each other through the slit in the door before he turned away and ran into the yard.

"Hey Zuko, how have you been?" Naruto asked nonchalantly.

He threw a guard that tried to grab him into the ground. "I've been decent." He answered.

"Good, we're all here." Sokka said. "Now all we need to do is grab the warden and get to the gondolas!"

"And how do we do that?"

"…I'm not sure."

"**Please tell me he's kidding. Please tell he's kidding!"** Kyuubi begged from within Naruto's mind.

"_I don't think he is."_ Naruto replied. _"Besides, there's nothing wrong with a little bit of improvisation."_

"**In case you forgot. It's usually when you improvise that things go to whack!"**

"_But that's when I'm improvising. This is somebody else improvising."_

"I thought you thought this through!" Zuko told Sokka.

"I thought you told me it's okay not to think everything through!" Sokka replied, his voice reaching a higher octave.

"Maybe not everything, but this is kinda important!" He rubbed his forehead.

"_You know, it's pretty funny when it's not me."_ Naruto silently commented.

"**I know."** The fox replied. **"And I get a front row seat with you.**

"…_Shut up."_

"Hey, uh, fellas," Chit Sang said, getting everyone's attention. "I think your girlfriend's taking care of it."

They looked in the same direction he was looking. Suki was charging towards the masses, but instead of pushing herself through, she decided to run across both guards' and prisoners' heads. Not only did she get the scenic route, she was able to get to the tower much more quickly. She quickly climbed the side of the tower and leapt away from it, her feet somehow grabbing a pipe. She swung herself up onto the railing.

She quickly and expertly knocked aside two guards before leaping at the wall and scaling it. Jumping onto the level as the warden, she kicked the feet from underneath a guard and grabbed the warden, stopping him and holding her other hand in a fist.

"You wouldn't dare." The warden said. She swung his arm around to his back, grabbed the other one and tied them together. She also grabbed his headpiece, turned around and used it as a gag. "Sorry, warden," She told him. "You're _my_ prisoner now." She slammed him against the wall just as the others joined her. "We've got the warden!" She announced. "Now let's get out of here!"

"That's some girl." Hakoda commented as they got their breathing back.

"Tell me about it." Sokka replied.

"Can we do this later, people?" Azula asked. "We are on a schedule here."

"She's right." Zuko agreed. "Let's get moving!" They ran up the tower until they reached the top. From there, they made their way to the gondola platform.

"We're almost there!" Suki announced.

"We noticed." Azula replied.

"Azula, be nice." Naruto told her. The nearby guards saw them and threw fireballs at them. Zuko pushed Sokka aside and essentially swatted the fireballs away. More guards arrived to help.

"Back off!" He ordered. "We have the warden!" The guards saw the warden on Chit Sang and stepped aside. "Let's go!" They walked quickly but carefully past the guards. Once they were safely past, they ran to the gondola car

"Everyone in!" ordered Suki as she opened the door. Everyone got in. Azula laid Naruto against the side of the car. Zuko pushed the handle down, starting up the gondola. Once he was sure that it was moving, he kicked the handle a few times, trying to break it. Seeing that the guards were coming, he gave it one final kick, which broke it. He ran to the gondola and made a running leap for it. Sokka held his hand and he grabbed it.

"What are you doing?" Sokka asked him as he pulled him into the car.

"I'm making it so they can't stop us." He answered.

"Way to think ahead."

"We are on our way." Suki announced.

Hakoda was keeping an eye out the window. "Wait." He said, getting their attention. "What's that?" He pointed at what he was talking about. Both Azula and Zuko looked at what he was pointing.

"That's a problem." Zuko stated. Standing on the platform, with the guards bowing to her, was Yāo Jing and Ty Lee.

"It's our half-sister, and…Ty Lee?" Azula explained, confused at what her friend was doing there.

"She's not here willingly, Azula." He reassured her. But before she could ask what he meant, they saw movement. Yāo Jing had grabbed a pair of handcuffs off one of the guards. While Ty Lee leapt up onto the line and ran across it like a tightrope, she used her Firebending to boost her up to the line. She attached the handcuffs to the line and used her Firebending to move forward.

"This is a rematch I've been waiting for." Suki declared as she watched Ty Lee get closer.

"Suki, wait." Zuko said. "Don't try to beat her, try to force her into the car."

"What?"

"We need to get her away from Yāo Jing. Once that happens, she'll be safe."

"I'll help." Azula said. Both she and Suki climbed on top of the car. Sokka and Zuko joined them, Sokka drawing his jian. As the two approached the car, Ty Lee leapt to the front, facing Azula and Suki.

"Ty Lee, we can help you." Azula told her. She said nothing, she just started attacking. Meanwhile, Yāo Jing landed in front of Zuko and Sokka.

She took her stance and swept a low wall of fire at the two. Zuko broke it his own Firebending. Ty Lee attacked both Suki and Azula. Suki block her strikes while Azula tried to stop the acrobat from attacking. She dodged both of them by jumping to the edge and swung through the car, to the other side before anyone could stop her. She leapt back onto the top and continued to fight.

"Ty Lee, please stop!" Azula begged her. "We want to get you away from Yāo Jing." She didn't listen.

Meanwhile, Zuko and Sokka were fighting in tandem against Yāo Jing. She would bend fire at them, which Zuko would block and Sokka would move in to swing his jian. At one point, they forced her off the top of the car, but she had grabbed the edge and swung back up with a backflip, shooting fire from her feet, which all parties dodged.

In the car, the warden was trying to free himself from his bonds. "There's the warden!" A guard with a telescope announced. "I see him!"

He finally got free from his bonds and ran towards the window. "Cut the line!" He shouted, undoing his gag. Chit Sang pulled him back in but the damage had already been done.

"He wants us to cut the line." The guard told the others.

"But if we cut the line, there's no way he'll survive!" A second guard protested.

"He knows that." They jammed the cable wheel, suddenly stopping the gondola, making it shake. Ty Lee lost her footing and slid down to where Yāo Jing was standing. It looked like she was about to go over the edge when Yāo Jing stopped her by putting her foot on her back. Sokka slid towards the edge and would've fallen off had Zuko not grabbed his hand and pulled him back up.

Yāo Jing looked at the gondola station and saw two of the guards trying to saw through the line. "It's seems they're cutting the line." She noted. She also saw the other gondola coming down, the car filled with guards. "Then I guess it's time to leave." She grabbed Ty Lee by the back of her shirt and, to the horror of Zuko and Azula, _threw_ her at the other gondola.

"TY LEE!" screamed the two siblings. Thankfully, she grabbed the edge of the other car and safely climbed up to the top.

"Goodbye, Zuko, Azula." She told her half-siblings, Firebending herself over to the other car. She watched in triumph as they stood there, hanging in the air.

"They're cutting the line! The gondola's about to go!" announced Zuko as he and the others got back into the car.

"I hope this thing floats." Hakoda remarked.

"Well, it probably can. But we still won't like the outcome." Naruto said.

"You're not helping, Naruto." Sokka told him.

Meanwhile, the guards kept sawing away at the line. They were about to cut through it when they were suddenly pinned against the wall behind them with knives. "What are you doing?" One of the guards demanded.

"Saving my friends and the jerk who dumped me," Mai answered. The two other guards tried to attack her. She pinned one to the wall as well while sliding behind the cable wheel for from the second blast of fire sent at her. She saw two more guards coming at her, who she took care of with her knives and saw the other guard, who had two more with, charging directly towards her.

She grabbed the first and threw knives at the other two, who went flying and knocked one of the jammers out of the cable wheel. She then pinned the first one to the ground with a knife. She knocked the second jammer out of the cable wheel, allowing the line to keep moving and the gondola moving as well.

"Who is that?" Sokka asked as everyone (with the exception of Naruto and Azula) looked out the window.

"It's Mai!" Zuko answered, shocked.

"What?" Azula asked, coming to the window. Sure enough, she saw her friend standing in the middle of beaten soldiers.

"What is she doing!?" Yāo Jing demanded. Ty Lee said nothing to answer her.

The gondola docked at the station on the rim of the volcano. The doors opened and everyone got out. Hakoda noticed that Chit Sang was still holding the warden. He pointed to the car and the warden was thrown in. "Sorry, warden." He said with zero sympathy. "Your record is officially _broken_."

"I want to kill him." Azula growled, glaring at the warden. He had a frightened look when he heard that come out of her.

"Azula, his pride has been damaged." Naruto told her. "For men like him, that's enough."

"Be glad, be very glad." She snarled at the warden, before she helped Naruto walk away.

"Well, we made it out. Now what?" Suki asked Sokka.

He was going to answer when he saw that Zuko had stopped. "Zuko, what are you doing?" He asked.

"Yāo Jing was on that island." He stated.

"Yeah, and she's probably right behind us, so let's not stop!"

"What I mean is she must've come here somehow." He ran to the edge of the rim and looked down. "There! That's our way out of here!" He announced, pointing down to the airship docked below.

"How convenient," Naruto dryly remarked.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but thank you, Yāo Jing." Azula said.

(Location: Gondola station)

Yāo Jing stood across from Mai, who was being held by two guards. "Leave us." She ordered the guards. They saluted and left, leaving Mai with her and Ty Lee, who didn't say a word. "I thought you would never do this kind of thing." She told Mai. "So why would you? You know what will happen."

"I guess you just don't know people as well as you think you do." Mai answered. "You miscalculated. I value my friendship with Azula _and_ I love Zuko more than I fear you."

"No, you miscalculated! You should've feared me more!" She yelled in a rage. Mai readied a knife and she was about to bend fire when both of them got a surprise. Ty Lee turned on Yāo Jing and blocked her chi, making her fall to the ground.

"That was for all you put me through, you BITCH!" She shouted, giving her a vicious kick in the stomach. She walked over to Mai, who still had a stunned expression on her face. "What? You thought I was going to all of that lying down?"

"Apparently not," She answered.

"Come on. Let's get out of here." They tried to run away, but were immediately surrounded by guards.

"You're both fools!" Yāo Jing declared as the guards helped her up.

"What shall we do with them, Princess?" A guard asked.

"Put them somewhere I'll never have to see their faces again and let them rot!" She ordered.

(Location: Western Air Temple)

They had docked the airship right next to the temple, surprising the people there. "What are you doing in this thing?" Katara asked Sokka as he and Zuko got off. "What happened to the war balloon?"

"It kind of got destroyed." Zuko answered.

"Sounds like a crazy fishing trip." Aang said.

"Did you at least get some good meat?" Toph asked.

"I did. The best meat of all, the meat of friendship and fatherhood," Sokka answered. Suki, Hakoda and Chit Sang stepped out of the airship.

"I'm new. What's up everybody?" Chit Sang asked, waving his hand. However, Katara wasn't focusing on him.

"Dad," She said.

"Hi, Katara," He greeted her, giving her a hug.

"How are you here? What is going on? Where did you go?" She asked that last question to Sokka.

"We…kinda went to a Fire Nation prison." He answered. Hakoda just pulled him into the hug.

"Seriously, you guys didn't find _any_ meat?" Toph asked.

"That's what your concern is?" Naruto's voice came out of the airship. "How did you people manage to make it this far?" He asked as he and Azula walked off the airship. During the ride on the airship, the pain had been whittled away by Kyuubi. It had been whittled to the point where he didn't need help walking around (much to both his and Azula's disappointment).

"You?" Aang and Katara shouted in surprise.

"Me." He answered with a straight face.

"What are you doing here?" Aang asked him.

"Well, somebody has to keep an eye on these two so they won't do something stupid." He looked at Zuko and Azula. "And I get the feeling that you would actually encourage it." He looked at Aang.

"You brought him here!?" Katara demanded.

"He is the reason I went." Azula retorted.

"Don't even start, you two!" He barked out when he saw they were about to fight. He looked over at Zuko. "What's the matter, Zuko?" He asked.

"I've put Mai and Ty Lee's families in danger." He answered.

"What do you mean?" Azula asked.

"Mai told me that if she or Ty Lee tried to do anything against Yāo Jing, they're families would be harmed."

"Oh don't worry; I'm sure Yāo Jing will be very disappointed when she sends for the families." Naruto said, making everyone look at him.

"What did you do?" Azula asked.

"Nothing much, really," He shrugged. "I just made sure that soldiers who had served with or under me took Ty Lee and Mai's families into hiding when the two of them would try to either escape or attack Yāo Jing."

"When did you give that order?" Sokka asked.

"Just before the invasion," He answered.

Everyone looked at him with surprise. "Just take it in stride." Azula told them. "Take it in stride."

"Well, now that I'm out, I can finally get rid of this." He rolled up his left sleeve, revealing a tattoo, which was the kanji for storage. He placed his fingers on it and channeled his chakra into it, muttering a quick **"Kai."** He got a small cloud of smoke and when that dissipated, he was holding his jian, his Paragon Medallion and the story he was working on. "What?" He asked as everyone was looking at him. "I only had time to seal the bare essentials." He put the Medallion around in his neck, slung his jian across his shoulders in its usual manner and put the book away in a nearby bag.

"What's the book for?" Aang asked, genuinely curious.

"Story I've been working on." He answered shortly.

"Any chance of reading it?" asked Suki.

"Maybe when I finish writing it," He told her.

"So…you're really on our side now?" Katara asked a bit hesitantly.

He looked at her for a minute in silence and then looked at everyone else. "Alright, everybody listen up." He told them. "I am joining this little team of yours, but it's not because I feel like it. This war has gone on long enough. The Fire Nation has done terrible things, I will admit that. But that is not the Fire Nation's fault; the fault belongs with the Royal Flaming Asshole. If we want this to end, we have to take him out and apparently, only one person can do that." He looked directly at Aang, making the Airbender feel nervous. "People may think you're the solution to their problems. Quite frankly, all I see is an idiot. But if helping you will end this war, I'll put Ozai on his knees in front of you."

He tried to calm down, taking a deep breath. "Thank you, Naruto. We'll be glad to have you on the team."

"Good to know." He turned his attention to the rest of the group. "Now there's just one more question I need to ask."

"What's that?" Sokka asked.

"What the hell are we going to do with _this_?" He asked, turning to face the airship.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

If you thought that Naruto's punishment was a little underwhelming, think about it. He was whipped, with fire. Whipping alone is painful enough, that's why they keep the number of lashes down. Imagine how being whipped by fire feels like. That's why I didn't go into details; I'll just let your brains do the rest for you.

Naruto has confessed to Azula. That means there will be no more avoiding eye contact and being hesitant in admitting feelings. However, if you're expecting him to tell her what happened in his past right off the bat, too bad.

For those of you who are wondering who the Air Nomad Paragon is, you will see her when you see her. No sooner and no later.

There were a few of you who'll be disappointed that I didn't have the group rescue Mai or Ty Lee. As I said before, it would've made the story more complicated than it needs to be. Besides, if Ty Lee wasn't thrown into prison, how else would her vision in the swamp come true?

I'm probably going to make a few people unhappy with what I'm going to say next, but I'll say it anyway. I am not going to write the Ember Island Players. I _hate_ that episode. I never saw the point of it, except for the writers to have a little fun. Oh sure, there were emotional scenes thrown in there, but it was mostly about the play. And I am not going to degrade the characters I have put into this story like that, it's just not going to happen. You don't like? Tough shit, you'll get over it.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	34. Hunting and Blindsided

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 34: Hunting and Blindsided

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Western Air Temple)

Morning had come. Everyone was still sleeping. Today was the last day they were going to spend at the Western Air Temple. It had been three days the Boiling Rock. At dinner last night, Naruto told them that they would have to move somewhere new. Most of the group had agreed with him, so they had bagged their stuff. They were supposed to leave that morning. But, of course, things have never gone that smoothly for them.

Aang woke up first. He drank in the peaceful morning, listening to the birds chirp. However, the birds stop chirping and flew away when a bomb sailed through the air and into the temple. He grabbed his staff and bent the air to shove the bomb back outside the temple. But it was only the first of many.

As the others woke up, airships rose up from the morning mist. They launched more bombs at the temple. Aang and Appa, along with Fǎn Yìng, ran back to where the others were. Using his staff to help, he used his Airbending to close the area up, slamming several ceiling-high, metal doors shut. The bombs still bombarded them, knocking some of the ceiling loose.

"Watch out!" Zuko shouted, pushing Katara out of the way when rocks almost fell on top of her.

"What are you doing?" She asked him as they rolled away.

"Keeping rocks from crushing you." He answered.

"Okay, I'm not crushed. You can get off me now!" She got out from under him and stood up.

"I'll take that as a thank you." He stood up as well.

"Zuko, can you and Katara flirt later? We're kinda busy here!" Naruto told him.

Toph and Haru bent a hole in the back, creating a tunnel. "Come on!" Toph called out. "We can get out through here!"

They all gathered at the tunnel. Aang was trying to pull Appa into the tunnel when he saw Azula hadn't joined them. "What are you doing?" He shouted.

"You guys go ahead." She told them. "I'll hold them off. I think I know who's here." She charged out past the metal doors (which were already being destroyed).

"Azula!" shouted Zuko and Naruto. She didn't stop to listen, she just kept moving.

"Come on, you guys! We've gotta get out of here!" Sokka told them as he and Katara tried to help Aang try to get Appa into the tunnel.

Meanwhile, Azula had gotten to the edge of the temple, just through the blast of a bomb. She threw a big fireball at one of the bomb launchers on the airships. At that point, another airship came up out of the mist. Standing in the crow's nest was Yāo Jing.

"I guess Naruto was right after all. You're here for something, aren't you?" Azula shouted at her.

"Of course I am. I'm here for a celebration." She answered.

"What's the celebration for?"

"Becoming an only child!" She swung her feet, shooting fire from them. Azula backed off, but the force of the blast still sent her flying. Noticing the surrounding rocks were about to collapse, she ran forward, running up a column that was slowly falling down and leapt for the airship. When it looked like she wouldn't make it, she used her Firebending to boost her up onto the airship. Yāo Jing leapt down from the crow's nest to face her.

The rock had collapsed around the others, but Toph was able to bend it into a shield, protecting them. "I can't get him to go in there!" Aang said as he tried to get his sky bison to move. "Appa hates tunnels!"

"Aang, there's no way we can fly out of here." Katara told him.

"We'll have to find a way!"

"We need to split up!" Sokka declared. He turned to his father and the others. "Take the tunnel and get to the stolen airship." He ordered.

"No! The Fire Nation can't separate our family again!" Katara protested.

"It'll be okay." Hakoda reassured her. "It's not forever." She gave him a quick hug before heading back to Appa. Sokka gave him a quick hug as well, then grabbed Suki and headed for Appa too. Zuko climbed onto Fǎn Yìng.

"I'll be able to keep an eye on you guys." Naruto told them, putting his hands into a handseal. **"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"** Another Naruto appeared in a cloud of smoke. "Go with them and report back when they're safe." He ordered. The clone nodded and followed them down the tunnel. The original Naruto climbed aboard Fǎn Yìng as well, right behind Zuko.

Toph placed a hand on the rock, checking the surroundings. "I can clear that away and we can fly out through there." She told them, getting into Appa's saddle.

"Um…there's an awful lot of fire in that general direction." Suki pointed out.

"We'll get through." Aang told her. "Let's go." Appa burst through the rock and flew through the airships, his head covered by couple of rocks before they fell off due to the speed he was flying at. Fǎn Yìng was right behind him. As the dragon and the sky bison flew past, Azula and Yāo Jing (both were in the midst of fighting each other) stopped and looked at them.

"Azula, we are leaving!"" Naruto shouted down at her. Zuko turned Fǎn Yìng around so that Azula could get on. She understood and used her Firebending to send her flying up next to the dragon. Naruto reached out a hand for her to grab. She took it and got on behind him. Fǎn Yìng flew away, following Appa.

They flew hard and long the entire day. By the time the sun had set, they were far away from the Western Air Temple and had already set up camp. "Wow, camping…it really seems like old times again, doesn't it?" Aang asked as they sat around the campfire.

"If you really want it to feel like old times," Zuko said as he tossed a piece of meat to Fǎn Yìng. "I could…uh…chase you around for a while and try to capture you."

"I guess that means I'd have to join in the chasing as well." Azula said.

"And that means I'm on babysitting duty again, thank you ever so much." Naruto told Aang. When she heard that, Azula swatted him on the arm. "Hey, it's the truth and we both know it." He defended himself.

The entire group laughed, except for one person. "Ha, ha," Katara said sarcastically.

"To Zuko, Azula and Naruto," Sokka announced, holding up his cup. "Who knew after all those times they tried to snuff us out, they'd be our allies?" Akela barked in agreement.

"Hear! Hear!" The others cheered, minus Katara. Toph gave Zuko a light punch on the arm.

"I don't about you two." Zuko said to Azula and Naruto. "But I'm touched. We don't deserve this."

"Yeah, no kidding," Katara snapped, before getting up and walking away. After a minute of somewhat awkward silence, Zuko stood up and followed her. She was standing on the edge of a nearby cliff, looking down at the waves. When she heard footsteps behind and saw that it was Zuko, she became hostile and walked away.

"This isn't fair!" He protested. "Everyone else seems to trust us now! What is it with you?"

"Oh, everyone trusts you now!? I was the first person to trust you, remember? Back in Ba Sing Se. And you turned around and betrayed me, betrayed all of us!"

"What can I do to make it up to you?"

"You really want to know?" She asked, walking closer to him. "Hmm, maybe you can reconquer Ba Sing Se in the name of the Earth King! Or, I know! You could bring my mother back!" She stomped away from him.

Later that night, he made his way over to Sokka's tent, running into both Suki and Naruto. "Do you guys need to talk to Sokka too?" He asked.

"It's nothing we can't talk about later." Suki told him, walking away.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, Zuko, we're sure." Naruto said. "You go have a talk with Sokka; we'll get to him later." He walked off. Zuko just shrugged and walked into Sokka's tent.

Sokka looked up from where he was writing in his journal, Akela resting at his side. "Hey, Zuko," He greeted, putting his journal down. "What's on your mind?"

"Your sister," He answered as he sat down. "She hates me, and I don't know why! But I do care what she thinks of me."

"Hey, I'm surprise she's able to hate anyone in the first place."

"Listen, I know this may seem out of nowhere, but I want you to tell me what happen to your mother."

"What?" He asked, slightly surprised. "Why would you wanna know that?"

"Katara mentioned it before when we were imprisoned together with Naruto in Ba Sing Se and again, just now when she was yelling at me. I think somehow she's connected her anger at that to her anger at me, Azula and Naruto."

"…It's not a day I like to remember."

(Flashback, Location: South Pole)

Both Sokka and Katara were having a snowball fight against each other. Just as Sokka was about to throw a big snowball at Katara, black snow started to fall. "I'm going to find Mom." Katara told him, running off.

He ran towards the walls, despite being a child. Many of the men were heading that way too. When he climbed up to the wall, he saw the black ships and the bad men, who gave a battle cry and charged forward, cradling fire in their hands. The warriors stood ready and gave their own battle cry. The fight was short-lived, with the warriors winning. Sokka hopped down the wall and grab a boomerang off the snow. Just as he was about to join the fight, the bad men ran away.

(End Flashback)

"Many of the warriors had seen the black snow before and they knew what it meant: a Fire Nation raid." Sokka told him. "We were badly outnumbered, but somehow, we managed to drive them off. As quickly as they came, they just left. I was so relieved when it was over, but that's because I didn't know yet what had happened. I didn't know we had lost our mother."

"Wait." Zuko spoke. "Can you remember any details about the soldiers who raided your village? Like what the lead ship had looked like?"

"Yeah…sea ravens." He answered, remembering the flags on the Fire Nation ships. "The main ship had flags with sea ravens on them."

"The symbol of the Southern Raiders," He realized. "Thanks, Sokka." He stood up.

"No problem." He replied. Zuko walked out of the tent and almost ran into Naruto.

"You're going to do something stupid, aren't you?" He accused.

"Would you believe me if I said I wasn't?"

"No." He sighed and walked away. "Just make sure to take Appa."

Zuko was confused about what he said, but didn't ask what he meant. When morning came, he was sitting on a rock outside Katara's tent. When she came out and saw him, she scowled. "You look terrible." She stated as she walked past him and reached for her bag.

"I waited out here all night." He told her.

"What do you want?" She asked as she brushed her hair.

"I know who killed your mother." She stopped brushing. "And I'm going to help you find him."

She looked back at him. "Are you lying to me?"

"Why would he lie about something like this?" Azula asked as she and Naruto joined them.

"What are you two doing here?" She asked.

"We're coming along with you." Naruto told her. "No arguments and no objections."

"Fine, we better get our stuff together and get on Fǎn Yìng."

"It's probably better if we took Appa." Zuko said. "Fǎn Yìng is not really a long distance people carrier. The more people he's carrying, the more exhausted he is." He looked over at Naruto. "I guess that's what you meant, huh?"

Naruto just nodded his head. They grabbed the things they needed and made their way over to Appa. Aang was feeding him while Sokka was fiddling with a flower necklace. "I need to borrow Appa." Katara told Aang.

"Why? Is it your turn to take a little field trip with Zuko and Azula?" He asked jokily.

"Yes, it is."

He was slightly surprised at that. "Oh. What's going on?"

"We're going to find the man who took my mother from me." Sokka stood up when he heard this. He dropped the flower necklace to the ground.

"Sokka told me the story of what happened." Zuko explained. "I know who did it and I know how to find him."

"Why are they coming?" Sokka asked, gesturing at Azula and Naruto.

"Because we are," Azula answered shortly.

"Um…what exactly do you think this will accomplish?" Aang asked.

"Ugh, I knew you wouldn't understand." Katara said, shaking her head, turning around and walking away.

"Wait! Stop!" He told her. "I do understand. You're feeling unbelievable pain and rage. How do you think I felt when the Sandbenders stole Appa? How do you think I felt about the Fire Nation when I found out what happened to my people?"

"She needs this, Aang." Zuko told him. "This is about getting closure and justice."

"I don't think so. I think it's about getting revenge."

"Fine, maybe it is!" Katara snapped at him. "Maybe that's what I need! Maybe that's what he deserves!"

"Katara, you sound like Jet."

"It's not the same! Jet attacked the innocent. This man, he's a monster."

"**What? You're not going to say anything?"** Kyuubi asked his host.

"_Why should I?"_ He asked back.

"**Kit, please remember I can read your thoughts. You don't think I haven't noticed your feelings about that man?"**

"_That is not revenge. That is justice."_ He said firmly.

"**Why do I have a hard time believing you?"**

"_If it was revenge, would I have stayed here for three years without ever going back?"_

"**It could just mean you took Lesson number 5 to heart."**

"_Enough, we're done talking about this."_

"Katara, she was my mother too." Sokka told his sister. "But I think Aang might be right."

"Then you didn't love her the way I did!" She retorted.

"Katara!"

Before anyone could say anything else, Naruto smacked her on the back of her head. "Apologize." He ordered. "That was uncalled for. Sokka loved your mother as much as you did and you just spat on that love. You will apologize to him."

"Sorry, Sokka," She said half-heartedly.

"Katara, the monks used to say that revenge was like a two-headed rat viper." Aang told her. "While you watch your enemy go down, you're being poisoned yourself."

"That's cute." Azula commented. "But this isn't your air temple preschool. It's the real world. Things are different here."

"Now that I know he's out there…now that I know we can find him, I feel like I have no choice." Katara explained.

"Katara, you do have a choice: forgiveness." Aang told her.

"That's the same as doing nothing!" Zuko protested.

"No, it's not. It's easy to do nothing, but it's hard to forgive."

"It's not just hard, it's impossible." She told him before walking away. Zuko, Azula and Naruto followed her. They waited until night and tried again. They had put black cloaks over their clothes, along with a face-mask. Naruto had tied a bandana over his head to cover his hair and Katara had tied her hair into a ponytail.

As they readied themselves to climb aboard Appa, Aang and Sokka came out from behind a rock. "So, you were just gonna take Appa anyway?" Aang demanded.

"Yes." Katara answered shortly.

"It's okay, because I forgive you." He paused for a moment. "Does that give you any ideas?"

"Aang, shut up." Naruto told him.

"Don't try to stop us." Katara warned.

"I wasn't planning to." Aang replied. "This is a journey you need to take. You need to face this man." Katara climbed atop Appa's head while the other three tossed the packs up into the saddle. "But when you do, please don't choose revenge. Let your anger out…and then let it go. Forgive him."

"Okay, we'll be sure to do that, Guru goody-goody." Zuko said sarcastically.

"Just get in the saddle, Zuko." Azula told him. He climbed up and she followed with Naruto behind.

"Thanks for understanding, Aang." Katara said. She turned her attention to Appa. "Yip-yip," She told the sky bison. He took off and started flying.

"You know, you're pretty wise for a kid." Sokka told Aang.

"Thanks, Sokka." He replied.

"Usually, it's annoying, but right now, I'm impressed."

"I appreciate that." His face fell when he realized what Sokka had said.

"Hey, can I borrow Momo for a week?"

"Why do you need Momo?"

"I have to do something to entertain Akela."

(Location: Appa)

They flew through the air, in the light of the moon. "We need to find a Fire Navy communication tower." Zuko told Katara. "All the navy's movements are coordinated by messenger hawk. And every tower has to be up to date on where everyone is deployed."

"So once we find a communication tower, we bust in and take the information we need." She declared.

"Katara, we're not wearing this stuff as a fashion statement." Naruto told her, gesturing at his cloak and bandana.

"He's right." Azula agreed. "We need to make sure no one spots us. Otherwise they'll warn the Southern Raiders long before we reach them." Katara didn't reply, she was focused on her mission.

They soon found a communication tower. She landed Appa behind a large rock. They got off Appa and ran towards the water. Katara bent the water to form a block of ice. She, along with Zuko and Azula, got on the ice and she bent the sea to push the block of ice towards the tower's wall, which was the island's natural rocky perimeter. She then bent the water to push them up, allowing them to jump into the tower base. While she did that, Naruto simply ran across the water and then up the side of the rocks.

Once they were inside the base, Naruto took the lead. They hid behind a building when they heard the sound of a door opening and a pair of guards walking out. Seeing that the door was left open, they ran in and then climbed into the air ducts.

They crawled through the ducts, using Naruto's knowledge of the tower's layout to get around (you've seen one layout of a Fire Nation communication tower, you've seen them all). They soon found the information room. Noticing that the guard at the desk was writing positions on a map, Katara bent the ink in the nearby pot to spill, covering the guard's hands. The guard walked out of the room to clean them, allowing the four to drop into the room.

While Naruto and Azula covered the door, Zuko and Katara went through the records. "Okay, the Southern Raiders." Zuko announced as he found the scroll for their location. He unfurled it and examined it closely. "Bam," He stated, pointing at a particular spot on the map. "They're on patrol near Whale Tail Island."

"Whale Tail Island, here we come." Katara declared. They put the scroll back and climbed up into the air ducts. They made their way back to Appa and flew off. Zuko, Azula and Naruto had fallen asleep. When they woke up, the sun was raising. They also noticed that Katara had stayed awake the entire time.

"You should get some rest." Zuko told her. "We'll be there in a few hours. You'll need all your strength."

"Oh, don't you worry about my strength." She told him. "I have plenty. I'm not the helpless little girl I was when they came."

(Flashback, Location: South Pole)

"I'm going to find Mom." She told Sokka as they watched the black snow fall. As everyone ran towards the wall, she ran back to her igloo. "Mom!" She cried, running through the curtain, only to see her mother and a tall, scary man with her. The scary man turned to face her.

"Just let her go and I'll give you the information you want." Katara's mother pleaded.

"You hear your mother." The scary man told her. "Get out of here!"

"Mom, I'm scared." She whimpered.

"Go find your dad, sweetie. I'll handle this." Her mother reassured her.

She looked at the scary man one more time before bolting out of the igloo. She ran towards the walls as fast as her little legs would allow her. "Dad, Dad!" She called out as she saw her dad shoved a bad man's head into the ice. "Please, I think Mom's in trouble! There's a man in our house!"

Hakoda realized what that meant. "Kya!" He shouted. Both he and his daughter ran back to the house and pushed through the curtains.

What they saw made them wish they hadn't.

(End Flashback)

"I ran as fast as I could." Katara told them. "But we were too late. When we got there, the man was gone. And so was she."

"Your mother was a brave woman." Zuko declared.

"I know."

Naruto climbed out of the saddle and got onto Appa's head. "Get some rest, Katara." He told her. "I'll take care of the flying."

She handed him the reins, climbed into the saddle and fell asleep. Azula, Zuko and Naruto kept handing off the reins to one another for the rest of the day, allowing her to sleep. By the time night had fallen again, they had found what they were looking for. "There!" Zuko shouted from Appa's head, waking up Katara. "See those sea raven flags?" He asked her, tossing the telescope at her. She looked through it and a Fire Nation ship. But she also saw the flags on the ship. "It's the Southern Raiders."

"Let's do this." She declared, lowering the telescope. Appa went under the water and swam though it, Katara bending an air bubble for him. As they got close to the ship, she bent a water whip to shoot up and grab one of the Raiders. It sent him flying into the ocean and got the other Raiders to run over to the railing.

Appa swam underneath the ship and rose up to the surface. As he did, Katara bent the sea to rise up into a wave and sent it at the ship. Just as one of the Raiders noticed, it hit the ship and sent most of them over the edge. The one Raider who managed to stay aboard was quickly sent overboard as well when Appa landed on the deck and Katara used her Waterbending to send him flying.

Zuko opened a nearby door and they went into the ship. When a Raider came out of his cabin to stop them, Azula grabbed the sword he was holding and shoved him back in. She closed the door and stabbed the sword through the door handles, ensuring the Raider couldn't get out.

They kept moving until they reached the door to the helm. "This is it, Katara." Naruto told her. "Are you ready to face him?"

She simply pulled her facemask down and hurled the water she was carrying at the door with a shout. The water collided with the door and forced it open. Zuko quickly stepped into the room and brushed aside the fireballs sent at him.

"Who are you?" The commander of the Southern Raiders demanded.

"You don't remember her?" Azula asked. "You will, soon enough."

The commander tried to bend another fireball at them, but out of nowhere, his body stopped obeying his commands. "What's…happening to me?" He asked as he was forced down to the ground. As they watched this happened, Zuko, Azula and Naruto realized Katara was making him do this.

"Think back!" Zuko ordered the commander. "Think back to your last raid on the Southern Water Tribe."

"I don't know what you're talking about. Please, I don't know!"

"Don't lie!" He bent down and then pointed at Katara. "You look her in the eye and you tell me you don't remember what you did."

She bent his body up so that she could look at his face, only to realize something important. "It's not him." She said, her expression going from one of hate to one of shock. "He's not the man." She let her control over his body go away, letting him fall to the floor.

"What? What do you mean he's not?" Azula asked her. "He's the leader of the Southern Raiders! It has to be him!" She didn't say anything; she just turned around and started walking out of the room.

Zuko grabbed the commander and slammed him up against the glass. "If you're not the man we're looking for, who is?" He demanded. When she heard this, she stopped.

"You must be looking for Yon Rha." He answered. "He retired four years ago." When she heard that, Katara walked out of the room. She now knew who her target.

Zuko demanded the location of the retired commander. When he got it, Naruto stepped in. "That's enough, Zuko." He said. "You and Azula follow Katara back to Appa. I'm gonna have a quick chat with the commander." The two nodded and left the room.

"Who are you people?" The commander asked again. To answer him, Naruto lowered the facemask and untied the bandana, making his eyes go wide with fear. "Lord Naruto, I thought you were imprisoned!" He said in both shock and fear.

"I had help in busting me out." He answered as he drew his jian slowly. "But now, we have a problem on our hands."

"A…problem?"

"Well, you know I can't really let you live now that you've seen us, especially me."

"The Fire Lord won't know, I swear!"

"…So you and the rest of the Raiders will take part in it?" The commander nodded almost frantically. "Okay then, that's what I was hoping you'd say." He sheathed the jian, put the bandana back on and walked out of the room. He made his way down the corridor, out onto the deck and back onto Appa, who then took off.

"What did you talk to him about?" Azula asked.

"I ensured that the commander and the Southern Raiders would be a part of a time honored tradition."

"And which tradition is that?"

"The tradition of not seeing a damn thing," He answered a small grin. But when he turned to look at Katara, who was holding the reins, the grin disappeared. "That was Bloodbending back there, wasn't it?"

"Yes." She answered shortly.

"…Not gonna ask how I know?"

"I don't care."

"Katara, you need to calm down." He told her. "If you keep going like this, the hatred you hold will consume you."

"What gives you the right to say that?!" She snapped at him, turning her head to face him. "Who did you lose, huh? Probably no one, I'll bet!"

"You're wrong. I told you when I was posing as Shù Yè that my parents were dead. They had died when I was born. But I would like to think I had a grandfather figure when I was young and he died in an attack. So yes, I have lost someone. Don't ever think that you're the only one who's lost somebody."

She didn't say anything back. She just her head back around and kept facing forward.

(Location: Fire Nation)

The man knelt before his garden, raking the soil with his trough. "Yon Rha, you lazy piece of work!" screamed an old woman from the house behind him, standing in the doorway. "I need something."

"Yes, Mother." He answered. "What is it?"

"The tomato-carrots from your garden are too hard for my gums. I need something soft and juicy."

"Would you like something else from the garden?" He offered. "I would be happy to—"

"Forget your stupid garden! Get your grimy hind to the market and get me some real food!" She walked back into the house.

He made his way down to the village and started buying grocery. When he was getting a few things from one store, he felt someone's eyes on him. "Hello?" He called out, turning around. He didn't see anyone. "Did you see someone?" He asked the store owner, who shook his head. Thinking it was just his mind playing around with him, he shrugged it off. Once he had all his groceries, he started to walk back to his house. As he went down a set of stairs, the feeling came back, making him stop. "Hello?" He called out, looking back the staircase. "Is someone there?" When he didn't get an answer, he scowled but he kept on walking.

However, his feelings were right, someone was watching him. "That was him." Katara told the others as they watched him walk away. "That was the monster."

"He's not a monster." Naruto told her. "He's just a man."

The storm clouds overhead had finally opened up and poured down rain. Yon Rha kept on walking home. The feeling of eyes watching him never went away. "Nobody sneaks up on me without getting burned!" He declared, suddenly whipping around and bending fire at a bush. As he watched it burned, he sighed and picked up the groceries he had dropped. He began walking again, only trip over a wire and making him fall down. A burst of fire made him leap back.

"We weren't behind the bush." Zuko informed him as he stood in a Firebending stance. "And I wouldn't try Firebending again!"

"You really shouldn't." Azula said, leaning against the tree behind him and playing with one of her daggers. "It might be good for you."

"Whoever you are, take my money." He told them in a frightened voice. "Take whatever you want, I'll cooperate."

"We're not here for your money." Naruto said as he walked up beside Zuko. "But you will cooperate with us."

Katara walked up to him and pulled her facemask down. "Do you know who I am?" She asked him.

"No. I'm not sure." He answered. The face seemed familiar, he just couldn't place it.

"Oh, you better remember me like your life depends on it!" She told him. "Why don't you take a closer look?"

"…Yes, yes, I remember you now." He recognized the face. "You're the little Water Tribe girl."

(Flashback, Location: South Pole)

"Just let her go." The Water Tribe woman pleaded with him. "And I'll give you the information you want."

"You heard your mother." He told the little girl. "Get out of here!"

"Mom, I'm scared." She told her mother.

"Go find your dad, sweetie. I'll handle this."

He watched as the girl ran out of the igloo before turning his attention to the mother. "Now tell me, who is it? Who's the Waterbender?"

"There are no Waterbenders here." She told him. "The Fire Nation took them all away a long time ago."

"You're lying. My source says there's one Waterbender left in the Southern Water Tribe. We're not leaving until we find the Waterbender!"

"If I tell you, do you promise to leave the rest of the village alone?" He gave a single nod. "…It's me. Take me as your prisoner."

"I'm afraid I'm not taking prisoners today." He told her with an evil smile.

(End Flashback)

"She lied to you!" Katara told him, looking away. "She was protecting the last Waterbender."

"What? Who?" He asked, surprised.

She turned her gaze back on him, her eyes filled with anger and hate. "ME!" She shouted at him before bending the surrounding rain to stop and form a dome over their heads. It held there for a minute before she bent it apart and hurled it at him, changing it into a barrage of ice spikes. He flinched away, covering his eyes with his arms. When he felt no pain, he looked beyond his arms, the spikes just floated in the air, inches away from his face. Closing her eyes, she lowered her hands, turning the ice back into water and letting it collapse to the ground.

"I did a bad thing!" He admitted, getting onto his knees. "I know I did and you deserve revenge. So why don't you take my mother? That would be fair!" He offered with a weak smile.

"…I always wondered what kind of person could do such a thing." She said. "But now that I see you, I think I understand. There's just nothing inside you, nothing at all. You're pathetic and sad and empty."

"Please spare me!" He begged, bowing his head.

"But, as much as I hate you… I just can't do it." She walked away and the others followed her. He stayed there on the ground, glad to be alive. That is, until a shadow fell over him. He looked up and saw Naruto standing over him.

"Be grateful for the fact that she couldn't kill you." He told him in a harsh voice. "Had you killed anyone I loved, there would be no place for you to hide from me." He walked away, leaving the retried commander of the Southern Raiders weeping on the ground, his groceries scattered all around him.

(Location: Ember Island)

They had flown to Ember Island, to the beach house the royal family once used. While everyone shared what happened, Katara went down to the beach. She sat on the dock, kicking her feet back and forth in the water and looking at the sunset. _"I miss you, Mom."_ She thought to herself in sadness. _"I miss you so much."_

"Katara?" said Aang as he, Zuko and Naruto joined her on the dock. "Are you okay?"

"I'm doing fine." She answered.

"Zuko and Naruto told me what you did. Or what you didn't do, I guess. I'm proud of you."

"I wanted to do it. I wanted to take out all my anger at him, but I couldn't. I don't know if it's because I'm too weak to do it or because I'm strong enough not to."

"You did the right thing. Forgiveness is the first step you have to take to begin healing."

She stood up and faced the three of them. "I didn't forgive him. I'll never forgive him." She turned her attention to Zuko and Naruto. "But I am ready to forgive the three of you."

"I'm sure Azula will be glad to hear that." Naruto told her. She gave them both a hug and walked away.

"You were right about what Katara needed." Zuko told Aang. "Violence wasn't the answer."

"It never is." He replied.

"Then I have a question for you." He turned to look at him. "What are you gonna do when you face my father?"

He looked away. "…I don't know."

"I've got a better question for you." Naruto said, looking directly at him. "What do you do when you go up against someone who doesn't deserve forgiveness?"

"Everyone deserves forgiveness, Naruto."

He snorted. "Spoken like a true naïve idiot." He began to walk away. "That's something about the real world you need to learn. Not everyone deserves to be forgiven. Some just deserve to die."

"Naruto," Zuko spoke. "When you told Katara that if she went on like that, the hatred would consume her, you sounded like you knew what would happen. Did something like that happen to you?"

He stopped and then looked back at them. "…Let's just say it was one of the reasons I came here." He kept walking.

"What happened?"

"If you want to know, go ask your sister about Itachi Uchiha." He left them alone on the dock.

"**You're a fucking hypocrite, you know that, right?"** Kyuubi asked him.

"_Yeah, I know."_

(Location: Beach house)

It had been two days since Katara and the others came back to Ember Island. That morning, as Katara and Toph relaxed, Aang and his teachers, Azula and Zuko were practicing their Firebending. Nearby, Naruto was sparing against a clone of his.

Aang, Azula and Zuko finished their sets, breathed in deep and bowed to one another. "Doesn't it seem kinda weird that we're hiding from the Fire Lord in his own house?" Katara asked.

"I told you." Zuko said as he wiped off the sweat. "Our father hasn't come here since our family was actually happy. And that was a long time ago."

"It's the last place anyone would think to look for us." Azula agreed as she splashed water on her face.

"You guys are not gonna believe this!" Sokka announced as he and Suki entered the courtyard.

"Believe what?" Naruto asked as he beat the clone, making it vanish, and walking over.

"There's a play about us."

"We were just in town and we found this poster!" Suki explained as Sokka showed the poster.

"What?" Katara asked as they all gathered around. "How is this possible?"

"Listen to this…" Sokka turned the poster to face him and began reading it. "'_The Boy in the Iceberg_ is a new production from acclaimed playwright Pu-on Tim, who scoured this side of the globe gathering information on the Avatar, from the icy South Pole to the heart of Ba Sing Se. His sources include singing nomads, pirates, prisoners of war, and a surprisingly knowledgeable merchant of cabbage.'"

"'Brought to you by the critically acclaimed Ember Island Players,'" Suki finished reading, making Zuko, Azula and Naruto groan in disgust.

"Our mother used to take us to see them." Zuko explained as everyone looked at them.

"They butchered _Love Amongst the Dragons_ every year!" Azula said.

"I went to go see that play when I was first here." Naruto told them. "Believe me when I say I was glad when the play was over."

"**It wasn't that bad."** Kyuubi argued.

"_Yes it was!"_ He replied silently.

"Sokka, do you really think it's a good idea to attend a play about ourselves?" Katara asked her brother.

"Why not? It's the kind of whacky, time-wasting nonsense I've been missing." He told her.

"Please, let's not," Naruto half begged. "I really don't want to gouge out my own eyes."

"It can't be all that bad." Aang told him.

"**At least give it a try."** The fox agreed.

"Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you."

That night, they went to the theater to watch the play. By the end of it, they were thoroughly depressed and disgusted with it. The so called 'play' was nothing more than Fire Nation (or to be more precise, Fire Lord) propaganda. The 'characters' acted nothing like their real-life counterparts. By the time the second act had started, Naruto was seriously considering leaping onto the stage and murdering everyone there. By the time the third act had started, Zuko and Azula had joined him in the planning. Unfortunately, they didn't actually put any of it into action (might've saved a lot of misery if they had). When the play ended (with the Fire Nation's victory, of course), the rest of audience gave a standing ovation. They, on the other hand, couldn't have left the theater faster.

"That…wasn't a good play." Zuko stated as they walked away.

"I'll say." Aang said.

"No kidding." Katara agreed.

"Horrible." Suki declared.

"You said it." Toph supported.

"But the effects were decent." Sokka commented.

"Oh great, a saving grace," Azula remarked dryly.

"**Kit, I am so sorry for doubting you."** Kyuubi told his host.

"_No problem."_ He replied.

"**I want you to promise me something."**

"_What's that?"_

"**Promise me that that abomination never gets into the hands of one of those movie makers back home."**

"_Kyuubi, if that happens, I will gladly kill the entire movie crew, okay?"_

"**Thank you. Thank you so much."**

The walk back to the beach house was quiet. But when they got back, it was quiet. "That's strange." Aang remarked as they entered the house. "I thought Momo or Akela would greet us."

"You're right." Naruto said, taking the lead. "That is strange. Everyone, be ready for a fight, something tells me we're not alone here." They walked carefully through the house. Sokka and Zuko had their swords out while Azula readied her daggers. Katara, Toph and Aang were ready to move into a Bending stance at a moment's notice, the same as Suki. They didn't see anyone, but the fact they also didn't the animals made them uncomfortable.

"Hey! There they are." Suki said as they entered the courtyard. Sure enough, Appa, Momo, Akela and Fǎn Yìng were all piled up next to each other.

"They look like they're sleeping." Aang noted. "Um…maybe we shouldn't wake them." He said as Sokka and Zuko sheathed their swords and went over to check on them. "I don't know about the others, but Appa gets kinda cranky when he's suddenly woken up."

"Hold on, Fǎn Yìng's not asleep." Zuko announced when he checked his dragon. "He's knocked out!"

"The same with Akela," Sokka said as he looked over the wolf.

"Well, they are asleep." Suki told them as they quickly checked Appa and Momo.

"They're not asleep. They're unconscious!" Zuko explained.

That was when Naruto noticed that paper was attached to stuff in the courtyard. But it wasn't just paper, it was seal tags and there was enough perfectly positioned to cover the entire courtyard. _"Oh no,"_ He thought in realization. "Everyone, get out!" He suddenly ordered, surprising the others. "We need to get out of this house now!" But before anyone could ask him why they had to get out, the seal tags went off. There wasn't an explosion because these were not explosive tags. They held something different.

"**It's knockout gas, kit!"** Kyuubi warned him.

"_I kinda noticed!"_ He replied as he covered his mouth and nose. _"How much did I breathe in?"_

"**Not enough to take you out."**

He looked around and saw that the others were already collapsing. _"I have to get them out of the gas."_ He thought to himself. But before he could even reach for one of them or even create clones, he got a swift punch in the stomach, making him pull his hand away to gasp. The gas flew swiftly into his mouth and nose, making him begin to feel woozy.

He fell to his knees. He tried to stand up but it was impossible. When a shadow fell over him, he looked up. The face was blurry due to the fact he was falling unconscious, but he could still hear the voice. "Hey gaki, how've you been?" It asked him.

He didn't answer. He just fell over, completely knocked out.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Okay, I'm going to give you guys fair warning. I know I've been posting the new chapter within two days or so of the last one. But now, I don't know how long the next chapter will take, considering I'm going to get a little original here.

If you want to know who exactly Naruto hates, you can figure it out yourself or you can wait until it's revealed. Either way, I'm not telling you.

I know I said I wasn't going to write the Ember Island Players, but how else was I supposed to get to this point. I just did the beginning and the ending. And yes, that promise about killing an entire movie crew over the play _was_ necessary. I'm pretty damn sure that anyone who saw the movie (I shamefully count myself among them) probably felt the same way.

I'll see you all next chapter.


	35. Different Places and Same Problems

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 35: Different Places and Same Problems

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Azula)

She slowly opened her eyes, wincing at the light glaring at her. _"What happened?"_ She asked herself silently. _"The last thing I remember is…Naruto telling us to get out."_ That was when she remembered the rest of it. She remembered them finding the animals' unconscious as well as being hit by the knockout gas. She leapt out of the bed and ran over to the nearby window. _"Where in the name of Agni am I?!"_ Just outside the window was a place she had never seen before. It didn't look like it belonged in the Earth Kingdom, the Water Tribes or the Fire Nation.

When she heard something beyond the door that sounded like footsteps walking to the room, she ran over and stood beside it. When it swung open, the door hid her. She heard someone walk in. "Hey, are you up yet?" A voice asked. The voice sounded familiar to her. Then it came to her, it belong to that blond-haired girl that had been with Aang in the drill at the Outer Walls of Ba Sing Se.

Ino walked into the room but when she looked at the bed, she didn't see Azula sleeping there. She barely had time to comprehend this when Azula rushed out from behind the door and slammed into her, knocking them both down to the ground. "Hey, get off of me!" She protested as she tried to get up.

"Where am I?" Azula demanded as she struggled to keep her down. "Where are the others? Where's Naruto!?" She felt someone grab the back of her shirt and pulled her off Ino. "Let me go!"

"Azula, calm down!" ordered a familiar voice. She stopped struggling when she heard that voice.

"Zuko, that's you, right?" She asked, making sure that it was.

"Yeah, it is."

"Then do you mind letting go?"

"As long as you behave," He let go of her.

"Nice to meet you again as well, Azula." Ino said, standing back up.

"The feeling is not mutual." She replied. "What is going on, Zuko? Where are we?" She asked her brother.

"Maybe it's best if you came down to the lobby with us."

"What are you talking about?"

"If you would actually try and listen instead of flapping your mouth." Ino told her. "You're in the top hotel of Konoha, the Tree House."

"Konoha? Where is that?"

"Azula," Zuko said, getting her attention. "We're in Naruto's home village."

(Location: Tree House lobby)

"Damn, Akela! You got big!" Kiba said as he and Akamaru stood in front of the wolf.

"Seriously?" asked Sokka. "You greet the wolf before the rest of us?"

"It's troublesome, but that's just how Kiba is." Shikamaru stated. "He is an Inuzuka after all."

"Well, it's still great to see you all again!" Katara told the members of the Konoha Eleven. "We weren't sure if you had made it out of Ba Sing Se alive."

"We did." Neji said. "But we had thought Aang had died and our mission failed."

"Naruto was so unyouthful to have lied to us!" Lee declared.

"Well, to be fair to Naruto, he thought Twinkle Toes was dead too." Toph told him.

"So Zuko and Azula, who had been chasing you for the better part of a year, turned traitor and joined your team?" Shino asked Aang.

"Pretty much, yeah," He answered with a big goofy grin.

"Why would they do that?" Hinata asked.

"We don't actually know." Suki answered.

"What do you mean you don't know?" Tenten said.

"We never really bothered asking them." Sokka replied.

"It's because we didn't want the future of the Fire Nation to be spas built upon broken homes and orphaned children." Azula declared as she, Zuko and Ino walked into the lobby.

"I would like to say it's nice to see you again." Chōji told her. "But it'd be hard to actually say."

She ignored him and looked around. "Where are the adults? The last time I checked, you were being chaperoned."

A few of them scowled, figuring she was trying to be insulting. The others ignore the tone. "Kurenai-sensei went to the hospital to check up on the baby." Shino told her.

"Asuma-sensei went with her." Ino chimed in.

"How's the baby?" Katara asked.

"It's doing fine." Shikamaru answered.

"And where is the third one?"

"Guy-sensei is…off being Guy-sensei." Tenten answered.

"He said something running up and down the Hokage Mountain two hundred times in under twenty minutes or something like that." Neji said.

"YOSH!" exclaimed Lee. "Guy-sensei is very youthful! I wish I could join him but I wanted to meet our friends!"

"Is that all you want to know, Azula?" Sokka asked her.

"No, I have one more question."

"And what's that?" Hinata asked.

"Where is Naruto?" That question made everyone go silent.

"Um…Naruto is…uh…sleeping." Chōji said, trying to come up with an excuse. "Yeah, he's still sleep—" He didn't finish that sentence due to the fact Azula had grabbed him by the shirt and had slammed him into a nearby wall.

"Don't lie to me!" She snarled, drawing back her fist and covering it in blue fire. "Where. Is. Naruto!?"

"Young lady, could you please put the Akimichi clan heir down?" A man's voice told her. "I really don't want to explain to his parents how he became a piece of barbequed meat."

She turned around to look at who was talking. She saw a tall man with white, spiky hair that fell to his waist. He wore a headband that was different from the others wore; it was horned and had a kanji on it. He wore green shirt and pants with a red vest over it. He wore hand guards and wooden sandals on his feet. On his back was a large scroll. On his face, he had red lines coming out from his eyes, almost as if he was crying blood. "Who are you?" She asked.

He gave a small smile. That was when she got the feeling she should be afraid of this man (to be more precise, she should be _very_ afraid of this man). "I am the man who is asking you nicely to put him down." He told her.

"Alright, alright, fine." She let go of Chōji. "I just want to know where Naruto is."

"Well, I guess it's a good thing I came here to take you and your group to him." He turned away and walked away. "Coming?"

"Who are you?"

"The name's Jiraiya. Now let's go already. Sheesh, I thought I was supposed to be the slow one at my age."

(Location: Konoha jail)

"_You know, it figures."_ Naruto thought to himself. _"I get out of one prison only to wind up in another." _He sat in the middle of the cell, his back to the bars. He had been changed out of his Boiling Rock prison clothes into the prison uniform of the Konoha jail, which was a bright orange. His hands were shackled to his sides so he couldn't form handseals.

"**And you used to have **_**good**_** luck."** Kyuubi commented. **"But still, we both should've realized what he had done before we went into that house."**

"_I got cocky and he used that to his advantage. It was bound to happen, sooner or later. Personally, I had hoped they would try to do this after we dealt with Ozai. We wouldn't have had a deadline then."_

"**When have Konoha shinobi ever been considerate?"**

"_Shouldn't I be asking you that question? You've known them longer."_ The sound of a rod banging on the cell got his attention, although he didn't show it.

"Hey, you little demon brat," The guard said, his voice sounding strangely high pitched. "Can you hear me?"

"Unfortunately, yes. By the way, you really can't call me 'little demon brat' anymore." He replied, not turning to face the guard. "I'm not as little as I used to be."

"You think you're so funny, huh?"

"I don't think. I _know_ I'm funny. You just don't have a sense of humor."

"You little shit!" The guard roared. "I should come in and—"

"What? Try to sodomize me like you tried before? I don't think your balls can take another stomping. What would your wife think of you if you went around, touching teenage boys like that?"

"If it was the Kyuubi brat, I don't think she'd mind." That was when he felt the gaze of the Shinigami on his back. Turning around, he saw who it was. "Lo-lord Jiraiya, I—"

"Get. Out." Jiraiya ordered, his arms folded and his expression angry. Two simple words and the guard fled. The rest of Team Avatar watched this happened. They had felt some of what the guard was feeling and that put them on edge. Clearly, the man in front of them was someone well known and one not easily trifled with. "So, how are you, Naruto?" He asked as he walked up to the cell bars.

"Kicking myself for not seeing something so blatantly obvious," He answered without turning around. "You were under my nose the entire time and I didn't even notice."

"You're good, kid, I'll admit that. But you still have things to learn if you want to beat me." He told him with a big grin. "I was truly impressed with how you played Ba Sing Se. That was very, very good work."

"You heard about it?"

"And I read the report you sent to the Fire Lord. Hell, I was there when he received the report. You should've seen the look on his face. It was priceless."

"Naruto, the two of you are making it sound like this…Jiraiya was there." Zuko pointed.

"That's because he _was_ there, Zuko." Naruto told him. "You should know better than us all right now. He was your servant." He finally turned around and looked Jiraiya straight in the eye. "Isn't that right, _Há_?"

It only made him laugh. "I see you figured it out."

"Wait, how is he Há?" Azula asked. "And how did you figure it out, Naruto?"

"He used the **Henge** **No Jutsu** to disguise himself and used a different name. It should have been so obvious, considering he used that particular name."

"Why's that?" Sokka asked.

"Há means toad, right?" Everyone in the group nodded. "There are many stories here in the Elemental Countries. Quite a few of those stories are about the Sannin, the three students trained by the Sandaime Hokage. This man…" He gestured at Jiraiya with his head. "He's one of those three. His name is Lord Jiraiya, the Toad Sage of Konohagakure, student of the Sandaime Hokage and sensei of the Yondaime Hokage. "

"Pleasure to meet you," Jiraiya told them.

"When you say toads," Zuko said. "Do you mean like…?"

"Like the one I summoned back in Ba Sing Se?" Naruto asked. Zuko nodded. "That was the chief of the Toads."

"And I have Gamabunta to thank for getting me over there without you noticing." Jiraiya said, getting his attention.

"What? That's impossible. I put a Block on my name!"

"Yes, you did. But thankfully, the toads and I knew a loophole. It's true the toads can't Reverse-Summon you if you didn't stay in the last location they knew you were at, like where you summoned Gamabunta. But what they could do is Reverse-Summon someone to Mount Myōboku and then Reverse-Summon that same person to your last known location."

"So the toads called you back to Mount Myōboku, before sending you into Ba Sing Se, using the Reverse-Summon both times. That way, they could send someone after me without breaking the oath I made them swear."

"Yeah, that's about it."

"So you've been spying on me since Ba Sing Se?"

"I was, until that invasion. You never change, do you?" All he got for an answer was a glare, which made him laugh. "Anyway, after that, I kept my eye on the traitors here." He gestured at Azula and Zuko.

"So you know everything we're going through, correct?"

"Correct."

"Then you couldn't have waited until after the Comet?! We have a deadline, damn it!"

"Relax kid, you still have time. Besides, I said the same thing but Tsunade wanted you back now."

He narrowed his eyes. "I take it she will want to see me as well as the councils?"

"Yes."

"When will it happen?"

He reached into his shirt and pulled out a key. "Now," He answered, opening the cell door.

He sighed and stood up. "Well, let's go enjoy the fun." He walked out of the cell and looked at Team Avatar. "Guys, there are a few things you need to do now."

"What's that?" Suki asked him.

"For the duration of this walk and the meeting, you are to let nothing show on your faces, you are to do nothing and above all, you are to_ keep your mouths shut_. We about to engage in Shinobi politics, the kind of politics that have taken bullshitting to an art form. We can't afford to make any mistakes. Get it?"

"Yeah, we got it." Toph answered.

"Then we might as well get going. Take the lead, Jiraiya."

"Follow me." He took Naruto by the arm and gently, but firmly led out of the cell room. The others fell in behind him. As they walked through the prison, the guards they came across would either try to glare at him or outright ignore him. He started to recognize the symbol on the shoulders of the guards' shirts. That's when he realized that these weren't just guards and he wasn't any normal prison.

"This is the building of the Konoha Military Police Force, isn't it?" He asked Jiraiya. "Funny, I would've thought that it had fallen into disuse after that little incident involving the Uchiha."

"While the Uchiha did take up most of its members, the Police Force was not disbanded. The other members took up the slack until their strength was back to normal." Jiraiya informed him. "You know, Sasuke has become a member. They offered him the head position, but he said he'll take when he earned and deserved it."

"Oh joy, just what I wanted to know." He replied. His voice laced with so much irony you could almost taste it.

"Where is Team Kakashi?" Sokka asked.

"Tsunade sent them on a mission the day before I captured you all. It's supposed to take a month and a half to two months to finish."

"Less hassle, I suppose." Naruto commented. They stopped in front of the main entrance. Jiraiya let go of his arm and stepped in front of him.

"Are you ready?" He asked Naruto.

"Of course not," He answered. "If I had my way, we wouldn't be here."

"Well, tough. Try not to escape as we walk to the Hokage Building, okay?"

"How could I escape? My hands are shackled to my sides and I'm wearing the prisoner uniform, which is a bright orange jumpsuit."

"This is coming from the kid who could outrun and hide from ANBU squads while _wearing_ a bright orange jumpsuit."

"That was a long time ago."

"Gaki, you only get to say that when you're my age."

"Whatever. Let's just start the performance." Jiraiya opened the doors and they walked out into the village.

Even though they had walked through it before to get to the police building, the village still astounded and awed the team. It looked nothing the cities of the Water Tribes, Earth Kingdom or the Fire Nation or even the temples of the Air Nomads. Those cities had looked like they had stood for thousands, if not millions of years. This place looked like it had been around for a while but also had things added on over time. It gave the place a kind of a patchwork look. And yet, it felt different as well. They could feel the vibe of life going through the village just by looking at the buildings. They felt that even though the places they had been to held living people, this place looked like it was alive itself, always growing and adding new things.

When they looked at the people, they saw something else entirely. When the people of Konoha saw them, they could see the curiosity in their eyes. But when those eyes looked on Naruto, they could see the shock, the anger, the hate and the fear in them. All around them, they could hear the whispers of "He's back." as well as "The demon brat." And "They should kill him." The whispers grew louder and louder, along with the glares of hatred and anger. When they turned onto the main street, the whispers and the glares intensified.

It was a civilian who threw the first stone, literally. The rock sailed through the air and clipped Naruto on the shoulder, making him stumble back. They would've done something, but the look he sent at them as he recovered stopped them. They weren't supposed to do anything and they weren't supposed to say anything. Another rock flew out from the crowd, but a hand shot out and grabbed it before it hit him. He looked at the hand and then followed the arm up to the face, even though he knew who it was due to the green leotard the person wore.

Lee stood in front of him, a smile on his face. He turned to where the rock had been thrown from. The smile disappeared from his face as he crushed in the rock in his hand. He held out the hand and opened it, letting the remnants fall to the ground. He then walked around behind Naruto. The rest of Teams Kurenai, Guy and Asuma came out of the crowd. Not all at once, one or two would push their way out of the crowd and joined the group.

When Naruto saw them all behind him, he stopped walking. He got everyone's attention when he turned around and faced them. "What are you all doing?" He asked.

"What do you think we're doing, Naruto?" Kiba asked with a big grin on his face.

"We're your friends." Tenten told him. "Friends help and support each other."

He groaned, loud enough for everyone in the street to hear him. "Go away." He ordered them. "You are not my friends. You're just people I may have to kill later." He turned back around and kept on walking.

Jiraiya led the way and Team Avatar followed, not batting an eyebrow. The other teams just watched them leave in sadness. But the crowd just stared at his back in shock. Most of the Konoha Eleven, the best team of rookie shinobi Konoha had to offer, made up of the clans heirs and exceptional shinobi, had shown their support for Naruto and he had thrown it back in their faces. They had never seen such a thing before.

"Did you have to do that, Naruto?" Jiraiya asked as they entered the Hokage Building.

"Don't even start, Jiraiya." He retorted. "You don't think I would've known that was your idea?"

"It might've been mine, but they wanted to do it. They were trying to help."

"I don't want or need their help."

They made the rest of the walk in silence. When they stood in front of the doors leading to the council room, two members of ANBU stepped forward. "We'll take him now, Lord Jiraiya." The one with the bear mask told him. He stepped aside and Naruto stepped forward. The ANBU took hold of each of his shoulders.

"I'm sorry, but the rest of you will have to stay out here." The one with the hawk mask told the group when they were taking a step forward.

"Not a word, Aang." Naruto ordered without turning around to look at him. "Your status doesn't mean squat here. Shut your mouth." Aang, who had opened his mouth to protest, closed it. "Alright then, let's go in, shall we?" He asked the two ANBU. "Remember, I'm relatively harmless."

"'Relatively harmless?'" repeated Bear.

"That means I can't kill you with my hands, but I can kill you with my feet."

"Enough with the jokes, Naruto," Jiraiya told him.

"He's not joking." Azula said. "He's done it before, to five different men, at the same time." Everyone looked at him.

He just shrugged. "What can I say? They were assassins and I was training myself with a handicap." The ANBU said nothing, they just took him into the room and Jiraiya followed. The others just took a seat and waited.

(Location: Council room)

They walked him to a chair and sat him down in it, removing the shackles on his hands off his sides and putting them on the arms of the chair. Once he was secured, they stepped away from the chair and into the shadows.

"Do you understand why you are here, Naruto Uzumaki?" Tsunade asked him from where she sat.

"Of course I do." He answered.

"What do you think the reasoning is?"

"Because a bunch of inconsiderate shinobi assholes from Konoha don't know the meaning of the word 'no'."

"Watch your mouth, brat!" One of the Civilian councilmen yelled at him. "You will be respectful to Lady Tsunade!"

He looked at the councilman, then at the rest of the Civilian council and then at Tsunade. "Is this a new group? Last time I checked, the Civilian council didn't give two shits about you."

"BE QUIET!" Another councilman roared.

"Answers that question, it's a new council all right."

"We are not here to discuss the Hokage's choices for the Civilian council." Inoichi, Ino's father and head of the Yamanaka clan, declared.

"Are you sure about that? They were the ones who spearheaded my last trial."

"Those councilmen have been imprisoned for their crimes, including the ones against you, Naruto." Chōza, head of the Akimichi clan and Chōji's father, told him.

"Besides, this isn't a trial." Kiba's mother and head of the Inuzuka clan, Tsume said.

"Now _that_ I have a hard time believing," Naruto declared.

"And what is so hard to believe about it?" Hiashi, head of the Hyuuga clan, Hinata's father and Neji's uncle, asked him.

"Well, let's see here. I'm strapped to a chair, I've left Konoha, I've been found, captured, and now, you all are sitting on high and are waiting to condemn me."

"Naruto Uzumaki, we are not here to condemn you. We are here to reinstate you as a Konoha shinobi." Shikaku, head of the Nara clan and Shikamaru's father, told him.

"Pass. Seriously, what part of 'no' do you people not understand?"

"Our understanding of the word is fine." The head of the Aburame clan and Shino's father, Shibi said. "We thought it would be logical that you would be happy to return."

"…Wow, you really are that stupid."

"Pup, the Bending Countries have been in a war for the past century!" Tsume told him angrily.

"I know, I've been fighting in it and I'm sure you know I've defected. Now I'm helping the idiot and his team out."

"You are safer here." Chōza told him.

"But I was happier over there." He looked at all of them slowly, glaring hard. "Over there, I was Naruto. I wasn't the Demon Brat, the Kyuubi Brat or the Monster. People didn't look at me with contempt, hatred or fear for that. And now, you want to take that away from me, all in the name of keeping me safe? And you wonder why I left in the first place."

"Enough." Tsunade said before anyone could speak. "The decision is not up for debate. You _will_ become a Konoha shinobi again, Naruto."

"You can't make me become a shinobi. I have the right to choose if I want to be one or not."

"Of course you do. And if you choose not to become a Konoha shinobi, you will be imprisoned in order to ensure your safety. If that should happen, your friends will be allowed to leave."

"…You heartless bitch," He said. He knew full well that neither Azula nor the rest of them would just leave him alone. They would try to break him out. The problem was that if he was imprisoned, Tsunade would be expecting it and be prepared for it. They might be able to succeed in breaking him free, but if Aang told them not to kill anyone, a few of them wouldn't make it out alive. The shinobi would be prepared to kill them if they tried it. He also wouldn't want them to try to get him out if that was going to be the outcome. Tsunade had him trapped and they both knew it.

The two of them just stared at each other in silence. The rest of the councils weren't so quiet. The Civilian council and some members of the Shinobi council stood up and yelled at him, demanding that he should apologize or to be silent. Jiraiya just stood against the wall with an amused grin. This went on for about five minutes, until Tsunade blew a piercing whistle, silencing them. "Are you all done now?" She asked.

"But Lady Hokage," A councilwoman protested. "He called you a—"

"I know what he called me. I do have ears." She replied, cutting the councilwoman off. She turned her attention back to Naruto. "Regardless, those are your two choices. Now, which one will it be?"

"…It's not like I have a good choice either way." He replied. "Fine, I'll become a Konoha shinobi again."

"Then I'm signing you up for the Chūnin Exams. Your teammates will—"

"I'll pick my own teammates." He interrupted her.

"And why would you do that?" Jiraiya asked, the first time he spoke during the meeting.

"I work better with people I know. Besides, you wouldn't want to find the two Konoha Genin you assigned to me mysterious dead, do you?" He asked with a cold smile. They understood what he meant, even though he didn't outright say it. If they put two Genin with him for the Exams, he would kill them when he had the chance, without hesitation.

"Very well, you may choose your teammates." Tsunade stated. "The Exams begin tomorrow at the Academy."

"Great. Can I go now?"

She nodded. The two ANBU stepped out of the shadows and unshackled his arms. "Jiraiya will take you to your housing and will give you the application forms later." She told him. He didn't reply. He just walked out of the room behind Jiraiya.

"Well, that was uncomfortable." Inoichi stated.

"He doesn't seem to hold us in high regard." Hiashi said.

"Can you blame him?" Shikaku asked. "He ran away from us and after three years, he's brought back against his will and is told to either become a shinobi or be imprisoned. I wouldn't really hold us in high regard either."

"I think we can all agree that the pup has changed." Tsume stated. Nobody disagreed.

(Location: Team Avatar)

They walked out of the Hokage Building and back down the street. The people in the street ignored them this time around, even though there was the occasional glare thrown at Naruto. "So how did the meeting go?" Suki asked.

"I've been blackmailed into becoming a shinobi again." Naruto answered. "To make things worse, I've also been signed up for the Chūnin Exams and I need two teammates."

"Who are you going to choose?" Azula asked.

"Not Aang or Katara, that's for sure."

"Why not?" asked an annoyed Katara.

"Death is involved in these exams. If my teammates don't have what it takes to kill someone, then they're not going to be much help."

"Last time I checked, your team managed to make it through the Chūnin Exams without killing anyone." Jiraiya told him.

"That was sheer dumb luck." He kept thinking over his options. "Toph's out of the question too. This kind of thing needs finesse and quite frankly, she doesn't have that."

"No complaints here." Toph said. "I'm considering this _my_ mini-vacation. No way am I doing any exams."

"So then Sokka will be one of my teammates." He decided.

"Why's that?" Zuko asked.

"His skill with the jian and boomerang will come in handy, as well as his training with the Bending forms. Also, Akela will be a great help if we come up against any Inuzuka clan members."

"Thanks, Naruto." Sokka told him, feeling proud due to the praise.

"And who'll be your second teammate?" Azula asked Naruto.

"Zuko," He answered. "He looks intimidating; he's a master with those Dao swords and he's good with seeing what people are really going to do."

"That's it?"

"…And I don't want to put you in that kind of danger, not if I can help it."

"_Aw, that's so sweet."_ The more romantic minds of the group thought.

"Who knew you would have a way with girls, Naruto? And you've got a nice one too." Jiraiya commented.

"Just keep walking, you pervert." He told him.

"I'm not a pervert!" He replied with indignation. "I'm a super-pervert!"

"Could you please repeat that?" Suki asked in calm and deadly voice.

"Suki, trust me." Naruto said. "If you think you'll be able to make him reconsider his ways, it won't matter. This guy has been on the receiving end of many beatings from angry women and has always bounced back. He regularly peeps at women in the bathhouse and in the hot springs here."

"You make it sound like I peep on every woman in there." Jiraiya commented.

"You mean you don't?"

"I have standards, Naruto. I don't peep on any girls who are under sixteen."

"So my friends are safe, at least for a bit."

"We're here." He announced, stopping in front of a building.

He looked up at the building, looked at Jiraiya, then back at the building. "You cannot be serious."

"Very."

"I think I'd rather be back at the prison."

"Too bad, because you're staying here." He stated, before he grab him by the arm and essentially dragged him into the building that Naruto had once lived in.

"This place is…different." He declared as Jiraiya let go of his arm, looking around the ground floor. "This was a lobby the last time I checked, not a living room."

"Well, I think it looks pretty neat." Suki declared, looking around.

"The new tenants had the entire place renovated. It's more like a mansion then an apartment building now." Jiraiya explained.

"New tenants?" repeated Naruto. "What new tenants?"

"The Konoha Eleven live here now. Hey, where are you going?" He asked as Naruto started walking out of the building.

"Back to the prison, I'll stay there." He answered. He didn't get far due to the fact Jiraiya once again grabbed his arm. "I am not staying here!"

"Yes you are!" He told him. "If you don't like it, you can get over it. Now come on." He frog marched him up the stairs and to the door that opened to his apartment. "Here's your key." He said, handing him said key.

He gave a sigh of defeat. "Fine," He said as he put the key in the lock and unlocked the door.

"Can we come inside?" Katara asked, curious to see what Naruto's old apartment looked like.

"No." Jiraiya told them. "Let's leave him to be reacquainted with his old home." He ushered them back down the stairs and into the living room.

"So, Kiba and the others really live here?" Sokka asked. "How did that happen?"

"It started out with Sasuke." He began to explain. "He wanted to get away from his clan's compound and the bad memories there. He heard that this building was to be demolished and since he didn't want Naruto to be homeless when he came back, he used the clan's money to buy the entire building. He took one of the rooms and started to live there. Sakura soon joined him so he wouldn't feel so lonely and Shikamaru followed, wanting to get out away from his house and live on his own for a bit. Kiba was the next one to join them, followed by Hinata. Neji began living here on Hiashi's orders to keep an eye out on Hinata. Pretty soon, the rest of the Konoha Eleven had started living here and had the place renovated."

"So what should we do now?" Toph asked.

"You guys slept late due to the knockout gas. It's about late afternoon, why don't you go look around the main street? You might find something interesting." He made his way over to the front door.

"Where are you going?" Katara asked him with a suspicious look.

"I have to go see the Hokage about some things." He answered without looking back. "You kids enjoy yourselves." He opened the door and walked.

They gather around. "Should we leave Naruto alone?" Aang asked.

"It's probably best if we do." Azula answered. "I think he wants to be alone right now."

"How can you tell?" Suki asked.

"Whenever he got mad or very irritated about something, he would always find a spot to think about it. When that occurred, he usually wanted to be left alone."

"So what, we do as the old guy suggested and take a look around the village?" Toph asked.

"If we're gonna be here for a while, we might as well get to know the place." Sokka told her. Akela nodded his head once in agreement.

"Let's go then. We come back to see Naruto later." Zuko said. They walked out of the building.

(Location: Naruto's apartment)

He closed the door behind him and took a look around the place. Because of him being arrested and leaving soon afterwards, he had left the place somewhat messy. Now, it looked like it had been cleaned recently. "So who had the guts to come in here and clean up?" He wondered aloud as he walked through the apartment.

He walked into the kitchen, which looked spotless. He opened the fridge and looked inside. It was stocked with fresh food that had been bought recently. "It looks like nothing's expired." He remarked, closing the fridge door. He walked over to the pantry and opened it up. Fresh food was also stocked there, along with plenty of something else.

"**That is a lot of ramen."** Kyuubi declared as he looked at the abundance of instant-ramen cups. **"They probably thought you would be craving the stuff after being away from it for three years."**

He didn't say anything in response. He just closed the pantry door and walked out of the kitchen. He made his way over to the bedroom. He stepped into the room and took a look. The room looked like the rest of the apartment, cleaned. The sheets on the bed even looked freshly laundered. Clothes lay on the bed, neatly folded and freshly pressed, along with a familiar looking headband.

"**I guess they knew you were coming."** The fox commented. **"…Are you not going to say anything, Naruto?"**

"They kept the CD player." He finally spoke, looking at said player. "I'd figured they would've thrown it out, considering how old it is."

"**It's not that old. You bought it when you were ten."**

He reached for the stack of CD's next to the player and picked up the one on the top. He looked at it before turning on the player. He opened up the case, took the disk out, put it into the player and hit the "Play" button.

(Start I'm still here (Jim's theme))

As the song began to play, he put the case down and sat down against the wall. He closed his eyes and listened to the music as well as the lyrics.

_I am a question to the world  
Not an answer to be heard  
Or a moment that's held in your arms_

_And what do you think you'd ever say_  
_I won't listen anyway_  
_You don't know me_  
_And I'll never be what you want me to be_

_And what do you think you'd understand_  
_I'm a boy – No, I'm a man_  
_You can't take me and throw me away_  
_And how can you learn what's never shown_  
_Yeah you stand here on your own_  
_They don't know me_  
_'Cause I'm not here_

_And I want a moment to be real_  
_Wanna touch things I don't feel_  
_Wanna hold on and feel I belong_  
_And how can the world want me to change_  
_They're the ones that stay the same_  
_They don't know me_  
_'Cause I'm not here_

_And you see the things they never see_  
_All you wanted I could be_  
_Now you know me and I'm not afraid_  
_And I want to tell you who I am_  
_Can you help me be a man_  
_They can't break me_  
_As long as I know who I am_

_And I want a moment to be real_  
_Wanna touch things I don't feel_  
_Wanna hold on and feel I belong_  
_How can the world want me to change_  
_They're the ones that stay the same_  
_They can't see me_  
_But I'm still here_

_They can't tell me who to be_  
_'Cause I'm not what they see_  
_Yeah the world is still sleepin'_  
_While I keep on dreamin' for me_  
_And their words are just whispers and lies_  
_That I'll never believe_

_And I want a moment to be real_  
_Wanna touch things I don't feel_  
_Wanna hold on and feel I belong_  
_And how can they say I'll never change_  
_They're the ones that stay the same_  
_I'm the one now_  
_'Cause I'm still here_

_I'm the one_  
_'Cause I'm still here_  
_I'm still here_  
_I'm still here_  
_I'm still here_

(End I'm still here (Jim's theme))

As the song ended, he reached out and turned the player off. He didn't move from where he sat. **"You always did enjoy listening to that song."** Kyuubi said.

"It always seemed to describe my life perfectly." He replied. "I felt like the song was created for me."

"**What about now?"**

"I'm not sure. My life has changed but when I listen to that song, it feels like it hasn't changed at all." He gave a bitter chuckle. "How ironic, people would lie to me and keep secrets from me, now I'm doing the same things to my friends." He stood up and walked to the balcony door.

"**Kit, what are you doing?"**

"I'm going to see a couple of people." He opened the door and walked into the balcony.

"…**We're probably not thinking of the same people, are we?"**

"Probably not," He admitted before jumping over the railing.

(Location: Hokage office)

Tsunade sat at the desk, looking over some paperwork, when she felt a familiar presence. "Jiraiya, get in here." She ordered without looking up.

He entered through the window. "Was it necessary to sign him up for the Chūnin Exams?" He asked her, looking at the back of her chair.

"If it were up to me, I'd promoted him as soon as he took the offer. But both the councils want to evaluate him. So we made a deal. If he makes it to the third stage and at least to the semi-final round, he'll be given the rank."

"You know that he'll want to go back once the Exams are over." He said, walking around to face her directly.

"And I will make it a mission. He and the members of the Konoha Eleven here will be able to go back to the Bending Countries and stop the Fire Lord as well as help with the aftermath."

"And once that is all done?"

"He will come back."

"And if he refuses? He has friends over there, Tsunade. He's got a girlfriend too, if I'm not mistaken. He won't just leave them and never come back. He's not like that and we both know it."

"If he refuses to come back to the village voluntarily, the Konoha Eleven will have orders to knock him unconscious and bring him back."

"He'll just escape like the last time."

"No, he won't. If he has to be brought back forcefully, I will have no choice but to erase his memories of the past three years." She told him in a calm voice.

"WHAT?" He shouted. "Tsunade, you can't implant false memories in that long a time period. He's likely to go mad from that!"

"I will not implant memories. I will simply tell him that his fight with Sasuke left him in a coma that lasted three years."

"What about the Kyuubi? It'll be likely that the fox will try to bring back those memories."

"We'll simply tell Naruto not to trust anything that the Kyuubi says." She answered in that same calm voice.

"Tsunade, you can't do all of this. You can't do this to him!"

"Three years, Jiraiya." She said, her voice showing a small amount of emotion. "We've both wanted him back for three years. Now that he's back, I'm not letting him go. He is _ours_, no one else's. And if I have to wipe his mind clean of three years of his life to keep him here, so be it."

"Are you doing this for Naruto? Or so the village can have its weapon back?"

She stood up and slapped him hard across the face. "Never say something like that again, do you understand!? Never again! I would not do all of this just so I could treat Naruto like a weapon! I want my gaki back and I will do whatever it takes to keep him." She sat back down in the chair. "Leave." She ordered him.

He left without saying a word.

(Location: Team Avatar)

"This place is incredible." Aang declared as they walked down the main street.

"I know." Suki agreed, looking around. "There are so many things to see."

"It's so different from the places we've been to." Katara commented. "It's so lively."

"I can't imagine why Naruto would want to leave this place." Aang said.

"Aang, remember the glares he got earlier today?" Sokka asked. "If he had to deal with that while growing up, I would probably leave too."

"Still, the others seemed determined to bring him back." Toph said. "It might not have been entirely bad for him."

"I wondered what happened that made him leave." Zuko said. "Naruto's been able to take anything that's been thrown at him. What in Agni's name would make him leave and never want to come back?"

"Maybe we can ask them." Azula said, pointing. The others looked at where she was pointing and saw Kiba, Akamaru and Ino.

The three also saw them. "Perfect timing," Ino declared as she ran up to them. "Quick, follow us."

"Why?" Zuko asked.

"We're throwing a surprise welcome back for Naruto." Kiba explained. "You guys can help him ease in better."

They all looked at each other. "Alright, where's the party at?" Sokka asked.

"Follow us!" Ino told them before walking away with Kiba and Akamaru right behind her. They quickly followed them through the streets until they finally stopped in front of what looked like a restaurant.

"What is this place?" Aang asked.

"Welcome to Ichiraku Ramen!" Kiba announced as they walked in. "I guess Naruto told all about this place."

"Actually, no he hasn't." Azula replied as they sat down. The place had been renovated as well (thanks to the Konoha Eleven paying for said renovations), making the place big enough for twenty or so people to be seated comfortable.

"You're kidding." Chōji said as he looked at her along with the rest of the Konoha Eleven there. "Naruto's never told you about this place?"

"That's what I said."

"Did he tell you about ramen at least?" Neji asked with a little concern in his voice.

"What is ramen?" Zuko asked.

"I guess it's some kind of dish." Sokka said.

"What gave it away?" Toph asked sarcastically.

"Kami, they're not kidding." Tenten said.

"Hey, Mr. Teuchi!" called Kiba. "We need seven bowls of miso ramen, stat!"

"It's coming." Teuchi told him as he and Ayame made the ramen.

"Why would you guys be surprised that Naruto wouldn't tell us about some kind of food?" Aang asked.

"Because ramen was the only thing Naruto practically ate." Shikamaru answered.

"Whenever he had the chance to eat out, he would always come here." Teuchi told them.

"He was our favorite customer." Ayame agreed.

"Which is why we're having the party here," Hinata said.

"Why here?" Sokka asked. "We left Naruto at his apartment."

"Ah, but you don't know Naruto like we do." Ino told him with a sly wink. "He won't stay there. He'll leave and come straight here."

"So you're planning to ambush him once he walks in, is that it?" Azula asked.

"It's not ambushing." Shino defended. "It is welcoming an old friend back by knowing where he'll go."

"Of course it is."

"Here's your ramen." Teuchi announced, handing out bowls. "Considering it's your first time here, this one's on the house. Dig in!"

They took the bowls and a pair of chopsticks each. They were hesitant at first, but Suki raised the noodles to her mouth and ate them. "This is good!" She declared after she swallowed the noodles. The rest of them started eating and agreed with her. They could understand why Naruto kept coming back to this place.

Zuko was about to ask them something when Hinata spoke. "He's coming!" She announced with her Byakugan showing. "He's walking down the street and heading this way."

"Is everyone ready?" Kiba asked, looking around.

"Of course we are ready to give our youthful friend a welcome back party!" Lee declared.

"Keep it down, Lee." Tenten hissed in his ear.

"…Wait, something's not right." Hinata said as she watched Naruto.

"What's the matter?" Shino asked her.

"He's seen it but he's not slowing down. He's…he's walking right past it."

"What? Are you sure?" Ino asked.

Neji activated his Byakugan to double check. "She's right. He hasn't stopped."

"Then where is he going?" Kiba demanded.

(Location: Naruto)

He stood outside the building. _"Been a while since I've been here,"_ He thought silently.

"**Not being on the same continent for three years will do that for you."** Kyuubi commented with a small amount of sarcasm. **"You do realize that you're going to be smacked repeatedly once you go in, right?"**

"_I'm expecting it."_ He walked up to the door and looked over at the bouncer. "Hey, Bull." He greeted.

Bull was like his namesake, big and bulky. He was also silent. He rarely spoke, so people were usually surprised when he did. He looked down at Naruto and his gaze hardened.

"Can I go in?"

He stared at him for bit a second longer before nodding once. He thumped on the door twice. It opened and a beautiful young woman opened it. "What is it, Bull?" She asked. He jerked his head at Naruto and she turned to look at him. The worried look she had on her face turned to anger and before he could say anything, she smacked hard him in the face. "How dare you." She said as he fell to the ground.

"Nice to see you again too, Ai," He replied, standing back up.

"You have a lot of nerve showing your face here after what you did."

"I had to leave."

"You couldn't say goodbye!?"

"We both know the answer to that."

"Tell that to Mama."

"Actually, that's why I'm here."

"What?"

"I came here to explain myself and talk to Mama."

"You're serious?"

"Yes I am."

She fell silent and then turned around. "Come on in." She told him before walking through the door. He followed and Bull closed the door behind him.

From across the street, both Team Avatar and most of the Konoha Eleven watched as he entered the building. "How can he go there of all places?!" demanded Ino.

"What's wrong with it?" Sokka asked. "It's a restaurant, right?"

"How can you think it's a restaurant?"

He pointed up at the sign. "It says the_ Meat Bar_."

"Um…well…you're kinda right." A flustered Chōji said. "It is like a restaurant, but not…quite."

"You're not making any sense." Toph told him.

"Not all meats are for eating." Kiba said.

"Now _you_ aren't making any sense."

"Troublesome." Shikamaru muttered. "The place is both a restaurant and a brothel. The name refers to the fact that you can get different kinds of meat in there and not just the ones for eating."

The entire team (save for Azula) was flabbergasted. "You can do that?" Sokka asked with a stunned voice.

"It's rare, but yeah."

"And Naruto just went in there?" Aang asked.

"You saw the same thing we did." Shino told him.

"How can Naruto be this unyouthful?" Lee demanded in an angry voice.

"What are you talking about?" Azula asked him.

"You can't see this? He just went into a brothel!" Ino told her.

She shrugged. "So? It's not like this is the first time he's done it."

"WHAT!?" screamed the Konoha Eleven.

"What do you mean he's done this before?" Katara asked.

"Just he goes into a brothel doesn't mean he's going to sleep with anyone there." She told them pointedly. "It's possible that he has to apologize for something, if that smack was anything to go by."

"And just how would you know that?" Neji asked.

"I already told you, this is not the first time he's done something like this. Besides, he wouldn't betray me like that."

"What do you mean?" Hinata asked.

"We love each other." She stated.

Everyone there (with the exception of Zuko, who thought it was plain as day) was stunned by that simple statement. While all the girls were wondering how that happened, all the guys (except Aang, who didn't really know what to make of it, and Shikamaru, who thought it was too troublesome) had one thought, which was _"Lucky bastard."_

"Now what are you all doing here?" Jiraiya's voice asked from behind them, making them jump in surprise.

"We weren't doing anything!" Aang quickly assured him.

"Of course you weren't." He replied with a deadpan voice before looking at what they were looking at. "Ah, the_ Meat Bar_. I have such good memories of that place." He turned his gaze back on them. "Why are you even looking at that place? Most of you are too young to even think about going in there."

"We're not going in there, but Naruto did." Kiba told him.

"Did he now?" He looked back at the building. "Hmm…I want you all to do something for me."

"What's that, Lord Jiraiya?" Hinata asked him.

"Go home. Get some sleep." He looked over at Team Avatar. "You guys go back to the Tree House and rest up. The two of you are going to need it." He told Zuko and Sokka, making Akela growl slightly. "Sorry, the _three_ of you are going to need it." He amended. "Here are your application forms, just make sure to sign your name at the bottom." He handed them the forms. "Now scoot. I'll have a talk with Naruto."

"Are you sure, Lord Jiraiya?" Tenten asked.

"Of course I'm sure. Go on, get out of here." They walked away. After a few minutes of silence, he walked up to the door of the_ Meat Bar_. "Bull." He greeted the bouncer. "May I go in?"

Bull nodded his head and opened the door for him. He gave a nod of thanks and walked in.

(Location: The Tree House)

Later that night, Zuko, Sokka and Akela were asleep in their rooms. The sound of the window opening woke them up, but they feigned sleep so that they could throw off whoever was in the room with them.

"Would the three of you knock it off?" Naruto's voice told them. "I know that you're awake, so stop faking it."

They opened their eyes and sat up, turning on the light at their bedsides while Akela simply raised his head. They saw Naruto sitting in a chair with the back facing them and his arms draped over it. Hanging from his mouth was something that Sokka had seen before. "Uh…Naruto, why do you have a…cigarette in your mouth?" He asked, remembering the word for it.

"I've started smoking." He answered, taking a drag and blowing the smoke away from them.

"When did that happen?"

"About an hour or so ago," He said. "Quite frankly, after dealing with you guys and the things you do, I need it."

"I thought that was dangerous to your lungs or something like that?"

"It is. But I get all the benefits of smoking without getting any of the downsides."

"How is that possible?"

"That's a secret."

"Why are you here, Naruto?" Zuko asked.

"I'm here about the Chūnin Exams." He answered, turning serious. "Did you guys sign the forms?"

"Yes, both of us did."

"Good, then we can get down to brass tacks."

"What do you mean?"

"To put it simply, I am going to talk about tactics for the Chūnin Exam. The two of you…" He stopped when Akela somehow managed to scowl at him and slightly bared his teeth. "Sorry, the _three_ of you are going to listen and then share opinions. Are there any objections?"

They didn't answer that question, there was no need. They had none.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

Yes, they're back in Konoha. For those of you who are going to complain about Team Kakashi not being there, that little reunion is required to be a solo act. And yes, I know I'm an evil bastard.

I know that there will be some of you that will tell me that I can't do the Chūnin Exams because of how close I left off to the Comet. But considering the show never really gaves actual dates, I'm playing with it a little bit.

I would like to thank The King in White for his story Chasing Yesterday. That story inspired me to do my own version of the walk down the main street. I would also like to ask him to update Dragon of Beauty. That's a good story and he's leaving it dead in the water.

Tsunade was probably a little heartless for what she did and for what she might do to Naruto. But can you blame her? She honestly thinks being in Konoha is best for him. Like she said, she wants her gaki back and she's willing to do whatever she can to keep him.

Probably a few of you are not going to like that I put a song in the story. First off, let me point out I am not doing it ever other chapter. Secondly, that was probably one of the few songs that describe Naruto and the Jinchūriki perfectly.

How many times have you read a story that has Naruto going straight to Ichiraku's after he comes back from either the training trip or exile? A little creativity doesn't hurt, it really doesn't. That's why I had him walk past it and head over to the Meat Bar. What happens in the Meat Bar will be taken care of later.

As for those of you who think that Team Avatar might finally learn about Naruto's secret, it might happen or it might not. Maybe they'll all learn about it at the same time, maybe just one will or maybe none.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	36. Bluffing and Speeding

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 36: Bluffing and Speeding

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Konoha Eleven building)

Ino stood outside of Naruto's door. Even though she had the key to the apartment, she was a little afraid to use it. Before Naruto had come back, his apartment was just a set of rooms they cleaned regularly. They may have reminded them of him, but it was memories of him three years ago, when he was hyperactive and had greeted them in a loud voice.

Now, he was back but completely different from what they remembered. Instead of being hyperactive, he usually stay calm and collected (if not a bit sarcastic) unless something really angered him. If that happened, he would not hesitate to show his anger. Instead of greeting them loudly or excitedly whenever he saw them, he looked at them like he didn't want to be anywhere near them.

"_Perhaps it's a good thing that Sakura and her team are out of the village for two months."_ She thought to herself. _"If they were here, there would probably be a bloodbath."_ She turned her attention back to the door. "Um…Naruto, are you awake?" She called out, hesitantly knocking on the door. "Everyone is gathered downstairs for breakfast. We're waiting on you." There was no reply. "Come on, Naruto. Since when have you passed up free food? There's plenty of ramen waiting." She kept knocking, losing the hesitation. When there was still no reply, she started banging on the door. "Hey! We're trying to be nice to you and wait. Do you want us to start with you?!" And again, she got no reply. The door just stood there, mocking her by denying her the answers she wanted. "FINE THEN, IF YOU DON'T WANT ANY FOOD, THEN GO AHEAD AND STARVE!" She shouted before stomping away.

She made down to the living room and then through the kitchen to get to the dining room. They usually didn't eat breakfast or lunch together, that was dinner. But this time, they wanted to eat with an old friend. That was the idea, at least. "Is he not coming down?" Hinata asked, the other members of the Konoha Eleven (minus Team Kakashi) standing by the big table.

"He didn't even open the door!" She fumed.

"Are we going to wait for him or not?" Chōji asked his teammate.

"It's no skin off my nose if he doesn't want to come join us."

"But we did this for him!" Kiba protested.

"If he's going to be like this, there's nothing we can do about it." Neji told him.

"He is correct, Kiba." Shino said. "If Naruto does not wish to join us, then we can't force him."

"Why can't we?"

"I don't know about you, but I would rather not get killed trying to force him to have breakfast with us." Shikamaru said.

"If he doesn't want to eat, he can starve." Tenten agreed.

"That's what I yelled at him." Ino said. They sat down and began to eat. They tried to have a conversation but they didn't really feel like having one. The whole point of having this breakfast was for Naruto. It seemed he was doing his best to ignore them.

They finished the food just as they heard people walking through the front door. "Hey, guys." Aang greeted them as he walked in with the rest of Team Avatar. "Sorry if we're late. We had to feed both Appa and Fǎn Yìng."

"That, and Momo kept running through the rooms." Katara commented. The lemur perked up when he heard his name. Then he saw the food on the table and made a leap for it. Akela rolled his eyes as he watched this.

"Don't worry, you're fine." Kiba assured them.

"Where's Naruto?" Zuko asked, looking around.

"That jerk's probably still asleep." An annoyed Ino said.

"Is that so?" Azula asked with an amused smirk. "I'll take care of it." She walked over to the stars and climb up them.

"Where are you going?" Toph asked as she felt Ino and a few others try to sneak up the stairs.

"We want to see how she wakes him up." Ino answered. "It'll be fun to watch."

"It's best if you don't." Zuko warned them. "Not unless you want get caught in the crossfire."

"Crossfire?" repeated Tenten.

He nodded. "When Azula tries something, she'll give it her all and then some. But that's not always a good thing. Sometimes, it gets her into problems."

"Like what?" Lee asked.

"From what I can tell, the officers who are in charge of training recruits have begged Naruto many times not to let her train with the recruits. Apparently when she does, at least twenty people are sent to the hospital."

"At least?" repeated Kiba.

"And that's on a good day." That stopped them from going up the stairs. They waited for a few minutes, listening for the sounds of fighting or an explosion. What they got was both Azula and Naruto walking down the stairs.

"Now that's a way to be woken up in the morning." Naruto declared, looking at Azula with a grin.

"I'm so glad you approve." She remarked. Although she tried to hide it, some of the people there could see the faint blush on her cheeks.

"What did you do?" Katara asked her.

"She kicked the door open, walked in and woke me up with a kiss." Naruto answered.

"Are you serious?" Sokka asked, surprised that Azula would do something like that. He wasn't the only one; the other members of Team Avatar were surprised too.

"Why would I lie about something like that?" He looked at him, Akela and Zuko. "You guys have eaten, right?"

"Yeah, we have."

"Good, then let's get going." He started walking to the door.

"What about you?" Zuko asked. "Shouldn't you get something?"

"I had an apple. Come on." They followed him.

"Hey, hold on!" Ino said, stopping them.

He turned around to face her. "Yes, Ms. Harpy?"

"What did you call me?!" She demanded, getting angrier.

"You heard me. What do you want?"

"Naruto," Hinata spoke. "Why aren't you wearing the clothes we set out for you or your headband? You're still wearing your prisoner uniform."

"That's because I am a prisoner." He answered. Taking the zipper in his hand, he pulled it down. He didn't unzip it completely; he stopped when it was at his waist. He pulled his arms out of the sleeves, letting them fall completely down. He wore a black sleeveless shirt underneath the shirt and had bandaged his left arm, on the bicep and on the forearm. All-in-all, it made him look a little intimidating. "Until we leave this place, I will consider myself a prisoner of Konoha." He turned back around and walked out of the place. Zuko, Sokka and Akela were right behind him.

"You really consider yourself a prisoner?" Zuko asked him.

"I just said that, didn't I?"

"Last time I checked, a prisoner couldn't walk around the village freely."

"…Look at the top of the building on your left." He waited as Zuko turned his head. "You see him?"

"Yeah, I see him."

"Sokka, look at the roof two buildings down."

He did so. "What am I…? Oh, I see him."

"Just because I can walk freely, doesn't mean there aren't guards keeping an eye on me."

"If you hate this place so much, why don't you just destroy it? You have the ability to Soulbend. Why don't you just take control of that swordsman you knew from Kouzan or someone similar and burned this place to the ground?"

He stopped walking and stood in the middle of the road. Without any warning, he spun into a roundhouse kick, throwing it at Sokka, who jumped back to avoid it. "Whoa! What'd I say?!" He asked. Akela drew his lips back, baring his fangs and began to growl slightly.

"So everyone in this village is deserving of my hatred?" Naruto asked in a growl. "Does that include the children born after I was? Does it include the newborns that were given life after I had left? Or the kids who are growing up with no knowledge of who I am? How about strangers I have never met?"

"Wait…what are you talking about?"

"Think, Sokka!" He ordered. "You're supposed to be the smart one of the group! What did the Konoha Eleven tell you about this place when they traveled with you?"

"Just a few general things, like it was a village of shinobi, it was in the Land of Fire, which is considered one of the Five Great Shinobi Countries." He remembered that particular conversation quite well. It took them a while to convince him that the Land of Fire was _not_ the Fire Nation.

"So you think nothing would happen if I destroyed Konoha? It's the Land of Fire's main source of strength. What would happen if I took away that source?"

"The Land of Fire would crumble and fall." Zuko realized.

"Creating what?"

"A power vacuum," Sokka said.

"And a power vacuum on that scale will lead to war! It could quite possibly be the most bloodiest, chaotic and destructive war this side of the planet has ever seen. And you want me to condemn thousands, if not millions of lives to a possible death just because I have no love for one village?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't think of it like that." He apologized.

He calmed himself down and turned back around. "You need to stop being so gung-ho about things, Sokka. Not everyone is guilty for what happened to me." He started walking again and they followed.

"…Shouldn't we get to the Academy?" Zuko finally dared to ask. "The Chūnin Exams start soon."

"We're getting there." He answered. "Actually, hold on…" He stopped and looked at a store. Without saying a word to the others, he turned and walked into the store.

(Location: Hokage office)

Tsunade sat back in her seat, taking a small break from the paperwork. "Lady Tsunade." Shizune said as she walked into the room.

"What is it?" She asked.

"Were…were you really going to erase Naruto's memories?"

"Who told you that? Was it Jiraiya?" She asked her assistant angrily.

"No, he didn't. I was outside the door yesterday and I heard you talking about erasing Naruto's memories." Tears began to glisten in her eyes. "Why would you do something like that?"

"Don't start crying, Shizune. You're a shinobi."

She nodded and wiped the tears off. "But why would you do it?"

"It's the best for everyone."

"You would be keeping him from people he knew for three years!" She accused.

"That's only if he refused to come back. If he came back of his own accord, I'd allow him to visit them. But his first duty would be to Konoha."

"You know he has a rank of high standard in the Bending Countries. People would notice if the Paragon of the Fire Nation wasn't around."

"We'd give him time to train his replacement and then have him come back. He doesn't belong over there, he never has."

"It doesn't matter if he belongs there or not!"

"Don't you want him back as well, Shizune?"

"Of course I do. But why do you have to go to such lengths?"

"Because I want him back," She answered, looking away. "You might think badly of me, but it really is the best for everyone."

"It won't be for Naruto, though. You're just being selfish."

"…I know."

(Location: Academy)

They stood in front of the Academy doors. "So…we're supposed to go in there?" Zuko asked. When he didn't get an answer, he looked back. "Naruto?"

Naruto didn't answer him. He just stared at the swing lying still underneath the tree.

(Flashback)

He sat on the swing, looking at the kids who had just become shinobi and their parents. Everyone looked so happy; the parents wore proud smiles on their faces.

"There, you see him?" He heard one mother say.

"It's that boy." Another mother said. "I heard he's the only one who failed."

"Well, it serves him right."

"Just what would happen if he became a shinobi? I mean, he's the boy who—"

"Ssshh, we're not allowed to talk about that!"

(End Flashback)

"Naruto…hey, Naruto!" shouted Sokka.

He winced. "Ah! Don't do that, I'm not deaf."

"Well, you were spacing out for a minute."

"Sorry, I was…reliving old memories." He looked back at the swing.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not right now and not with you guys. Let's just get this thing started." He turned around and walked into the Academy. Zuko, Sokka and Akela followed him. They walked through the hallway on the first floor before reaching the end and climbing up the stairs.

"Why would you put the stairs at the end of the hall?" Zuko asked. "Wouldn't it be better to put them next to the entrance?"

"A little walking never hurt anybody." He replied. "Except maybe for Aang, he would complain the entire time."

"It's true." Sokka said. "We tried walking once and he complained loudly. It also didn't help they kept teasing me about choosing to walk."

"Hey, you had the right idea, Sokka. You just went the wrong direction while walking and you also had to put up with an idiot."

They went into the second floor hallway and saw people gathered around a door. The sign above the door said 301. "Hang on, that can't be right." Zuko said quietly. "Aren't we on the second floor?"

"Don't say anything, Zuko." Naruto ordered. "The same goes for you, Sokka. We just keep on walking." They made their way through the small crowd and then continued down the hallway. The crowd of Genin behind sniggered and called them losers and idiots.

"We're the idiots?" Sokka asked. "They're the ones who think it's the third floor." Akela nodded once in agreement.

"You guys don't really know what Genjutsu can do to you. Those Genin do, so the Genjutsu caught them in its trap." He explained as they climbed the stairs to the third floor.

"Hey you!" shouted a voice from below. They looked down and saw another Genin standing on the floor beneath them. Judging from his headband, he was from Konoha. "The blonde one, I'm talking to you!" He shouted.

Naruto turned his head slightly and looked down at him. "What do you want?" He asked.

"I know who you are. You're Naruto Uzumaki, right?"

"What about it?"

"I want you to fight me!"

He was silent for about five minutes as he stared at the kid. Finally, he turned his head away and kept on walking, the other three following him. "Hey, don't ignore me!" The kid screamed. They did just that and kept on walking, only to stop when the kid leapt up to in front of them, making them stop.

"Get out of the way." Naruto ordered him in a calm voice.

"Not until you fight me! I've heard stories about you and I want to see if you live up to them." No one said anything as Naruto slowly looked him over. "What's the matter? You scared?" The kid taunted. "I'd be surprised if you weren't. I was the Rookie of the Year in my class. They said I was the best prodigy that Konoha had since Sasuke Uchiha." Again, no one said anything. Once he was done looking over the kid, he saw that his teammates had arrived and were cheering him on. "Are you scared of me that you won't attack me? Then I'll attack you!" He charged forward and threw a punch at him.

To both his teammates and his surprise, his punch was effortlessly caught. "For the record," Naruto told the kid as he held the fist in a tight grip. "I was trying to decide whether I should just break your arm or cut it off. Lucky for you, I decided the lesser of two evils." He broke the kid's arm with ease, making him howl in pain. He then punched him swiftly in the solar plexus, cutting off the howl. And he finally threw the kid back down to the floor, sending him crashing down in front of his teammates.

As the kids' teammates tried to get him back up, the members of Team Avatar who were doing the Chūnin Exams left. "Wasn't that a little harsh?" Sokka asked Naruto.

"No." He answered. "If anything, that was a kindness. That kid was fresh out of the Academy. He thought he was hot stuff and good enough to take the Chūnin Exams so soon after graduating. If he and his teammates kept up that attitude, they would've been dead within five minutes."

"But didn't you do the same thing?" Zuko asked.

"Like I said, we got through by sheer dumb luck." They stopped in front of a door at the end of the hallway. "You guys ready?" He asked them. Both Akela and Zuko nodded.

"Let's go show them who we are." Sokka declared.

"Couldn't have said better myself," He said with a grin. He walked up to the door and kicked it open. The doors slammed loudly as they opened, getting everyone's attention as they walked into the room.

"_There are a lot of people here."_ Sokka thought quietly as they walked in.

"_Will we have to fight them all right here and now?"_ Zuko asked himself. _"We might not last, let alone win."_ Naruto didn't say anything; he just led them to the side of the room and leaned against the wall. Zuko did the same while Sokka sat down on the floor with Akela.

The entire room was silent as everyone there stared at them. They had all heard about Naruto Uzumaki and things he did in the Elemental Countries. They had heard about the battle in the Land of Waves, which got a bridge named after him. The last Chūnin Exams he partook in, which ended with the invasion from Oto and Suna and him beating the current Kazekage. The mission he took with Jiraiya, the Toad Sage to bring the Slug Princess, Tsunade, back to the village so she could be Hokage. And, of course, they had heard of the mission to retrieve Sasuke Uchiha and the almost legendary fight the two of them had. But after that, all they heard was that he had escaped from the village and had disappeared for three years. And now, he was back.

When he felt the stares, Naruto looked up and stared right back at them. "You people got something to say?" He asked, loud enough for everyone to hear. "Or are you all just that bored?"

Three people walked out of the crowd and over to them. The person in the middle had white hair and purple eyes. He wore a purple shirt and grey pants. He wore a belt around his waist that held a bottle of water. Another belt was around his chest and strapped to the back of it, was a sword that both Sokka and Naruto knew well enough, though they didn't let anything show on their faces. Between the two belts was a headband showing that he was from Kusagakure, the Village Hidden in the Grass.

The girl on his left wore glasses. She also had red hair and red eyes. Her hair was particularly odd. On the right side, it was short and unkempt and on the left, it was long and straight. She wore a lavender-colored shirt with long sleeves, but exposed her navel. She wore black short shorts and black stockings going all the way up her legs. She wore her headband around her forehead.

The man on his right was tall. He had orange hair and orange-red eyes. His face was one of calmness. They couldn't see his shirt or his pants, due to the fact they were covered by a cloak. His headband hung around his neck.

"Well, look who we have here." The white-haired one spoke with a grin, showing the pointed teeth he had. "Naruto Uzumaki, in the flesh, it is an honor." He gave a mocking half-bow. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Suigetsu. These are my teammates, Karin and Jūgo." Naruto didn't say anything, neither did Zuko or Sokka. "So, where have you been for the past three years?" Again, he didn't say anything. "Oh, so you've become one of those tough silent people, right?" The grin he wore became bloodthirsty. "Just so you know. You're dead when we meet in combat. I've heard stories about you and I want to see if you live to the reputation. Or are you too scared?"

"Lay off him, you idiot." Karin told her teammate

Naruto still didn't say anything. He reached into the prison uniform's back pocket and pulled out the pack of cigarettes he had bought from the store. He took one, put it in his mouth and put the rest back. He then dug around in his right pocket before pulling out the zippo lighter he had bought with the cigarettes. Flicking the lid open, he lit the cigarette and took a drag. As he put the lighter away, he took the cigarette out and blew smoke in Suigetsu's face, making him step back and cough. "So, you thought you could make yourself sound and look tough by threatening me, is that it?" He asked. "Congratulations, you've succeeded…in making yourself a braggart. They're the ones who usually go first."

"That's it! You're dead, Uzumaki!" Suigetsu snarled. He was about to leap for him, but Karin held him back. The other teams began to whisper among themselves as this went on.

"Calm down, idiot! We can't start a fight!" She told him.

Naruto, Zuko and Sokka just watched this go on for a couple of minutes. "So, how is your master?" Naruto finally asked as Suigetsu calmed down. "Is he here?"

"Master, what are you talking about?" Jūgo asked, finally speaking.

"Do you not understand? Alright, I'll ask you again. How is Orochimaru doing and is he here?" The entire room went silent when they heard that.

"What the hell? How is Orochimaru our master? We're from Kusa, you idiot!" Karin all but yelled at him. "Besides, why would Orochimaru come here again? He'd be attacked on the spot the minute he stepped through the gate."

"So he's not here. That's a pity." He took another drag and blew smoke in the air. "I was hoping to gut the bastard myself."

"Ha! Who's talking tough now?" Suigetsu asked with a laugh. "Besides, what makes you think that we serve Orochimaru?"

"The Kubikiribōchō is strapped to your back. I know only two kinds of shinobi who take it from someone's grave. One kind has the right; the other's master just wants more power. The first would be shinobi from Kiri and the other is from Oto. And since you're not from Kiri, you're probably from Oto."

"Guess what, pal? You're wrong. We're from Kusa. You can tell by our headbands." He sneered, jabbing at his headband.

"Of course you are." He replied with condescending sarcasm as he took another drag.

"Well, where are your headbands? I thought you'd be a Konoha shinobi if you were here. But I don't see a headband."

He gave a cold smile. "Look down at my feet, you'll see it." He told the so-called Kusa shinobi. He did, and that was when Naruto kicked him hard underneath the chin. He flew back and his head burst into water. Everyone stared in shock at the body on the floor. The shock turned to surprise when water started to flowed back to the body and formed Suigetsu's head.

"That's a hell of a kick." He said as he stood back up.

"**Kit, look at his teammate."** Kyuubi warned his host. He turned and looked at Jūgo, who was muttering to himself and beginning to wear a crazed grin. Murderous intent began to roll off of him.

"_I'll kill him. I'll kill him."_ He chanted within his mind as the skin around his neck began to turn dark. But before he could even do anything or before his teammates could stop him, he felt an _immense_ amount of killing intent directed at him. It was coming from Naruto and it showed him several different versions of him dying, some of them were excessive, some of them were extensive, some of them were gory and all of them were painful.

"If you want to live, I'd recommend you curb your lust for killing people." He told him. His murderous side had never disappeared so quickly. He was left standing in fear of the blonde, who had turned his gaze and his killing intent on the rest of the people there. "You all probably think that you're good enough to take these Exams and you also think you'll be able to pass and become a Chūnin. But I've got one question for you all." He took a drag. "How many of you tenderfoot pussies have been in a war? How many of you have watched people you've known get killed right before your eye? How many have you tried to save their life, only to fail and watch that life leave their eyes. How many people here have come to within an inch of dying multiple times, only to be saved by some sort of luck?" As he asked these questions, he slowly made the killing intent bigger. The others there began to hallucinate. They saw what he described and began to get more and more scared. Akela had pulled his nose away in disgust once he had smelt the amount of pants being soiled. "You're trying to become a Chūnin, which means you going to get missions like that, where people will die and it might be your fault. If you're able to take that, then please, stay. For those of you who can't…" The killing intent, which had many Genin there almost turn into blubbering babies wanting their mommy, disappeared. "The door is right there." He pointed at said door. "Get out."

The rush to get out of the room could almost be classified as a stampede. Genin ran over others trying to get out of the room. They fled from the person who seemed to indirectly promise them a very painful and very bloody death should he find them. By the time they had fled, less than half remained in the room. The remaining Genin weren't terrified of Naruto, it was more like disturbed.

Both Zuko and Sokka looked at Naruto with a new level of respect. If he could do something like that to an entire room full of shinobi, it was no wonder he was able to take control of Ba Sing Se away from Long Feng. _"Thought so,"_ Naruto thought to himself. _"That was too easy."_

"**But fun."** Kyuubi said.

"_Oh yeah, it was definitely fun."_

"_Damn, he is good."_ Suigetsu admitted as he watched of this happen. _"I can't wait to fight him."_

"_What…what was up with that chakra?"_ Karin wondered, looking at Naruto with a small amount of fear in her eyes. _"What was he doing for the past three years that enabled him to something like that?"_

A huge cloud of smoke burst into existence, getting everyone's attention. Once the cloud dispersed, Ibiki Morino along Inoichi Yamanaka stood in front of a group of Chūnins. "Listen up!" Ibiki roared. "My name is Ibiki Morino and this is Inoichi Yamanaka. We are the proctors for the first exam and now, we are your worst enemies."

"Hold on." Inoichi said, looking at the Genin. "This is less than half of the Genin who signed up for the Exams. Where are the rest of them?" All the Genin there looked over at Team Avatar, more specifically, at Naruto, who was currently taking a drag and blowing smoke.

He finally noticed the stares. "What?" He asked, taking the cigarette out.

"Naruto, what did you do?"

He shrugged. "Nothing much, they wanted to know if the stories they heard about me were true, so I told them a few things. Next thing you know, most of them are trying to get out of the room."

"Put that out." Ibiki ordered him, pointing at the cigarette in his mouth. He took it out, dropped it and snuffed it out with his foot.

"There, you happy now?" He asked.

"Ecstatic." He answered before turning his attention to the rest of the Genin there. "If we are all ready, all of you hand in your paperwork. Once you hand in the paperwork, you will be given a number." He held a small piece of paper up that the number one on it. "The number you receive will determine where you will sit. Once you are all seated, we will begin the written exam."

They all handed in the application form they had been given and had signed. They were told to sit in particular seats. Team Avatar sat very far apart from each other, but that didn't make them nervous. They remembered the talk they had the previous night.

(Flashback, Location: The Tree House)

"Alright, the first exam we're going to have is a written exam." Naruto told the other three. "We'll be graded as a team, but they'll keep us separated."

"Why would they do that?" Sokka asked.

"The questions on the exam will be incredibly difficult. Odds are that I probably won't be able to answer them right off the bat. But that's okay, because we're not going to answer them."

"Wait…you lost me." Zuko admitted.

"The whole point of this exam is to see how well you can gather information. There will be Chūnins mingled into the Genin there in order to provide the answers. Other Chūnin will be seating on the sides and will be keeping an eye on us. If they see us cheating, they'll mark us. If they marked one of us five times, we'll fail and get kicked out."

"So, we would have to cheat in such a way that they won't be able to catch us." Sokka summarized.

"That would be right, if we were going to actually take the test. But as I said before, we're not going to do that. This is what we're going to do…"

(End Flashback)

Naruto looked behind. They had place Sokka in the back on the far right and Zuko on the far left. He was up in the first couple of rows. _"I guess they think we have some sort of silent communication."_ He thought.

"**Can you say overly paranoid?"** Kyuubi asked.

"_Gleefully,"_ He answered.

"Remember, you only have an hour to complete this exam." Inoichi reminded them. "The tenth question will be given in the last fifteen minutes." He looked at the clock. When it struck the top of the hour he told them to begin.

They took hold of their pencils and stared down at the test. Some of the Genin managed to figure out what the purpose of the test was right away and began to cheat. Others took a little longer to understand. They tried to keep calm under the gaze of the Chūnins watching over them, trying not to think if they were the ones who were marked every time they wrote on the clipboard they held.

The hour dragged on, the ticking of the clock unnerving a few of them. While the Chūnins watched all of the Genins, both Ibiki and Inoichi were watching Naruto and his teammates. While they did occasionally write something down on the papers in front of them, they just sat in silence, waiting for the time to go out.

Out of nowhere, one of the Chūnin threw a kunai at the Genin next to Naruto. It struck his paper, tearing a hole in it. "What the…?" The Genin said in surprise, shaking from the fright. "What was that all about?" He asked the Chūnin.

"We caught you cheating five times." He answered. "You failed the test."

"What? No way. There's gotta be a mistake! How would you know if I—"

"Oh, just shut up." Naruto spoke, surprising everyone. "The guy said you failed. If that was what he said, then you and teammates get your sorry asses out of here." He reached over and pulled the kunai out of the table. "You don't mind if I use this, do you?" He asked the Chūnin. When he didn't receive an answer, he started to pick at his nails with the kunai.

"Candidate number 15, fail," The Chūnin announced as he walked over and took the kunai from Naruto. "Number 86 and 54, fail." The three Genin stood up and walked out of the room. Once that team was gone, it had sent the ball rolling. Every couple of minutes, another team would be failed and sent out of the room. Some would protest, which would result in them getting slammed into the walls by one of the Chūnin or just being dragged out of the room. And all the while, the clock kept on ticking.

"_You know, I can see why they don't use a digital clock."_ Naruto mused._ "It helps with the mind games."_

"**Funny. I always thought it was there to annoy the hell of the Genin."** Kyuubi replied.

"_It's the same basic principal."_

Finally, after what felt like a millennium to some, forty five minutes had past. "Very well," Inoichi said, getting everyone's attention. "We will now give you the tenth and final question."

"But first," Ibiki continued. "There are a few more rules we need to tell you." While he explained the rules, Team Avatar remembered last night.

(Flashback, Location: The Tree House)

"When it comes time for the last question, the proctor will hit us along with the rest of the Genin with a mind game." Naruto told them. "He'll give two options. The first is to skip the tenth question. If one Genin does choose to skip the question, both he and the rest of his team fail and will be sent out of the room."

"Seems like the lesser of two evils, going everything you've said so far about the first exam." Zuko noted.

"It is. The second choice is to stay and take the question. If you answer the question incorrectly, you and your team will fail as well as be barred from taking the Chūnin Exams ever again."

"So you either take the safe route or take a risk and possibly fail permanently, huh?" Sokka asked for clarification.

"That's the gist of it. But all we have to do is very simple…"

(End Flashback)

"Now that we have explained the rules, those of you who wish not to take the question, raise your hand." Inoichi ordered. "Your number will be recorded and then you'll be able to leave."

Everyone was silent. With the exception of three, all of them were completely and utterly nervous. No one was sure who would raise their hand first; they just knew who did would start the others off. "I give up." A Genin in the back stood up and raised his hand. "Sorry guys, I just can't do it."

"Number 128, fail," One of the Chūnin announced. "Number 34, number 81, you fail too." The three Genin rose up from their chairs and left the room. Sure enough that started the dominos. Other Genin stood up and chose to skip the question. They and their teammates left the room; some were glaring the one who gave up to death.

"Are you not going to say anything, Naruto?" Ibiki asked with a smirk.

"Why should I?" He asked back. "It's a sink or swim world out there. Some of the people decided to sink while others decided to swim." Other Genin gave up. By the time the last team left, less than a third of the people who took the test were left.

"_Hmm, there are only 24 left."_ Inoichi thought to himself. _"This was biggest amount of Genin who had signed up for the Chūnin exams. If Naruto hadn't said anything, no doubt this would be larger."_

"Now that all those who had given up have now left, there is only one thing left to say." Ibiki said. "All of you…have passed the first exam."

The silence in the room was almost deafening. "Wait…what?!" Karin shouted, standing up. "What the hell do you mean we passed? What is the tenth question?"

"There was no tenth question." Inoichi told her. "Not a written one. Your decision to stay was the answer we needed."

As both he and Ibiki explained what the exam was all about and what was supposed to happen during it, both Zuko and Sokka shared the same thought. _"Can we move on please?"_

"_Finally, it's over."_ Naruto thought as he stretched in his seat.

"**Still don't like written exams, huh?"** Kyuubi asked with a chuckle.

"_Of course, I'm just glad I only have to deal with reports nowadays."_

"**You mean you **_**used**_** to only have to deal with reports. Besides you didn't write anything on the paper."**

"_You mean anything they wanted to see."_

"For those of you who have answered the last question successfully, you have earned the right to move on to the next exam." Ibiki declared. "As the first exam is now officially done, there is nothing left but to wish you all good luck."

"**And in three…two…one…"** The fox counted down. As soon as he was done, a black ball smashed through the window. As it flew through the room, it began to unfurl. Two kunai were thrown at the ceiling which held the thing up. It revealed itself to be a banner, along with a woman. Her hair was black with a blue tint to it, which she had done up in a short, spiky ponytail. Her eyes were purple and pupil-less. She wore a mesh suit that went from her thighs to her neck and was also form-fitting. She wore an orange mini-skirt and a tan overcoat along with the mesh suit. She wore a pendent around her neck, shin guards and her headband was worn around her forehead.

But before she could say anything, Naruto spoke first. "Ladies and gentlemen," He began in a loud voice. "Allow me to introduce our proctor for the second exam. She is a woman who can kick your ass six ways to Sunday and back using nothing, but a dango stick and a smile. I give you the one, the only, ANKO MITARASHI!"

Anko couldn't say anything; she had been caught off guard. _"Damn it, that was better than what I was planning to say!"_ She thought to herself (it was the only thing she _could_ think).

"Anko, you're early." Inoichi told her as he stepped out from behind the banner.

"Again," Ibiki stated as he followed Inoichi.

"Sorry, I got excited." She told them. "But never mind me; you two did a fairly impressive job. Only eight teams left. And this was the biggest amount of Genin we've ever had for the Chūnin Exams."

"This wasn't all of us. Before we got here, half had left."

"What? How did that happen? Did they chicken out?"

"…In a sense." She followed his gaze and saw Naruto sitting in his seat with indifference.

"Hello, crazy snake lady." He said to her. "Are you going to molest me again?"

"I don't know." She replied, sounding like he had said didn't embarrass her. "Are you going to act tough again?"

"I don't need to act now."

"Oh? Are you sure about that?"

"Of course I am. And I've become a bit of a mind reader very recently. I can tell you what all the Genin here are thinking right now."

"And what is that?"

He wore a foxlike grin on his face. "They're thinking 'Is she wearing a bra underneath that or not?'" The Genin all looked at him in surprise. That _was_ what they were thinking; the boys were thinking it with hormones and lust mixed in. The girls were thinking it with equal parts shock, curiosity and disgust. Zuko and Sokka simply thought the question with curiosity (they had girlfriends. If they had used any other kind of emotions in the thought process, they knew that the ladies _would_ somehow find out). Akela really didn't see what the fuss was about.

If Anko wasn't blushing before, she was now. "Anyway, if you maggots want to get to the second exam, follow me!" She hurriedly strode out of the room, partly to get the second exam started and partly to avoid being caught off guard like that again. All of the Genin got up and followed her, the last being Team Avatar, who just sauntered out of the room.

After five minutes of silence, Ibiki looked over at a pair of Chunins. "Cut that down, would you?" He told them, jerking his thumb at the banner. As they did that, he turned to Inoichi. "Might as well start collecting the papers," He said.

"Might as well." He agreed. They started at opposite ends of the room and worked their way through the rows. He reached for Naruto's paper, picked it up and saw that none of the questions were answered. _"That's odd." _He thought to himself. _"I saw him write on the paper."_ Deciding to check the back, he flipped it over. His eyes widened as he looked over what was there. "Ibiki, you need to read this." He said. When he noticed that Ibiki was looking at two different papers, he hurried over. "What's the matter?"

"These are the papers for Naruto's teammates." He said.

"There's nothing on them." He noted, looking at the blank papers.

"What they wrote is on the back." He flipped them over. On the back of each paper was writing. It seemed that Sokka and Zuko had taken their particular sections of the room and had carefully written down how each person in their sections was cheating. There were also numbers, who was whose teammate and whether or not they were helping each other. For every Genin that had been failed, their number and descriptions were crossed out. "I can't help but be impressed. They managed to write all of that without us noticing."

"…I think you should take a look at Naruto's paper." He handed him said paper and he looked at it. On the back were the numbers for each candidate. But instead of knowing how they were cheating, the paper described the best way to kill each and every one of the candidates. It also took note of the Chūnin as well as him and Inoichi, but it was for incapacitating, not killing. What chilled them to the bone was what was written at the bottom:

Estimated duration of bloodbath once Chūnin and proctors are incapacitated: ten to fifteen minutes, depending on reactions and capability to defend oneself.

"This was written by the kid who didn't answer a single question the last time he took the exam?" Ibiki asked in disbelief.

"There's more." Inoichi told him, pointing at the very bottom of the paper. He looked at where he was pointing to and read what was there:

P.S.

Of course I wasn't going to kill them. I just wrote this out of sheer boredom.

Besides, why would I go through all that trouble, when I can just let the second stage do it for me?

"…Do you think we should show these to the Hokage?"

"It's probably for the best, even though they'll be destroyed once she sees them."

"Why would she do that?" He had never heard of an exam paper, failed or passed, being destroyed once the Hokage had finished reading it.

"Sorry, Ibiki, but that's classified. Only the Hokage and a select few know."

"And you're one of those few?"

"Yes."

He looked around to make sure the Chūnin weren't paying attention (obviously or subtly). "How serious is this?" He whispered.

"If we fail, the village might be destroyed."

(Location: the Genin)

"What exactly is this place?" Suigetsu asked as he looked past the fence.

"Welcome, boys and girls, to Training Ground Number 44, also known as the Forest of Death." Anko said in a cheery voice.

"You know." Sokka said as he looked at the forest. "I was honestly expecting something a little more original."

"You can't get everything you want, Sokka." Kurenai, who was the other proctor for the second exam, told him.

"Hey, I'm not complaining."

"So tell me, Anko, how's the love life?" Naruto asked.

"Why would you want to know?" She asked back.

"Well, I figured that you really didn't have one, considering the way you were molesting me last time."

She huffed. "For your information, I happen to be seeing someone."

"…She's not kidding, is she?" He asked Kurenai.

"No, she's not."

"Is it seeing someone, or stalking someone?"

"Honestly? There are days when we're not sure."

"Who's the guy?"

"Your old instructor, Iruka Umino," She answered.

Dumbstruck, he looked at Anko, then back at Kurenai, back to Anko and then back to Kurenai. "…I don't know whether I should be happy for him, or pity him."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Anko demanded.

"You heard me."

"Anyway," Kurenai said loudly, stopping the both of them from going any further. "Before we begin, we have something to hand out to you."

Anko pulled out a small stack of papers from inside her overcoat. "Before the exam begins, we will need you to read over and sign this consent form. Some of you will probably not make it out alive. We need your consent to that risk; otherwise it'll be on us."

That made everyone start whispering amongst themselves. Naruto, Sokka, and Zuko didn't. They just remembered the conclusion of last night's conversation.

(Flashback, Location: The Tree House)

"The second exam will be a survival exam." Naruto told them. "They'll have us do the exam in the Forest of Death. In the center of the forest is a tower, which will be the goal."

"How do you know all of this, Naruto?" Zuko asked him. "You're describing what the proctors of each exam will do to us. You also know how each exam works. How can you know this stuff when you haven't been here for three years and spent the majority of the first day back in a jail or with someone else?"

"It depends on the person. Anyway, how I got the information is not important right now." He told them, waving it off. "What is important is what's going to happen."

"So what's going to happen?" Sokka asked.

"They'll make each of us sign a paper that says if we die in the forest, it's not their fault. Once we hand in those papers, we will be given either an Earth scroll or a Heaven scroll. As soon as we walk into that forest, we will have to hunt down any teams that have the second scroll we need while also protecting our own."

"I take it the scrolls are what we need to get into the tower?" Zuko asked.

"Correct. We'll also be given five days to get another scroll and get to the tower."

"So we will have five days to get a scroll and find the tower, is that it?" The only answer he got was a grin.

(End Flashback)

They had turned in the consent form and got an Earth scroll in return. They were then led to one of the gates surrounding the forest. As the time for the exam to begin got closer, the Chūnin with them opened up the gate. They kept checking the watches on their arms and when it was the top of the hour, they opened up the gate.

(Location: Kusa Team)

They charged into the forest at top speed. "So, who should we target first?" Jūgo asked.

"Who cares about that? I want to find Uzumaki." Suigetsu said with an evil grin.

"Ugh, we're in the middle of an exam, idiot." Karin told him with annoyance. "I know we have orders, but we don't have time for you to get your kicks."

"Shut up, woman!" He shouted. "Uzumaki is the strongest person in these exams. I can almost hear Kubikiribōchō calling for his blood."

"Are you sure it's not yourself that's calling for his blood?" Jūgo asked him.

"You're one to talk, Jūgo. We both saw what you were going to do before those proctors showed up."

"I'm not denying that didn't happen. It's because of that I believe we should not go after Naruto Uzumaki right now."

"What about our orders?"

"Lord Orochimaru's information on him was limited and outdated. We knew that going into this."

"Yeah, but that's why Lord Orochimaru sent you with us." Karin pointed out. "He knew that you might be able to level the playing field against him."

"And looked what happened to me when I almost lost control. He gave me one look and I was scared. No, scared is too gentle of a word. I was _terrified _of him." The other two just looked at him. They had never thought that _Jūgo_ of all people would be terrified of someone when he got like that. "It would be for the best if we waited and observed him and his team before following our orders."

"…Hmph, fine," Suigetsu muttered. "Then let's go find a Heaven scroll."

(Location: Team Avatar)

They walked into the forest, completely calm. Once they were out of sight of the gate, they stopped. Akela kept watch. "So, did it work?" Zuko asked Naruto.

"Of course it worked." He answered with a grin, pulling a Heaven scroll. "They had an abundance of them due to the fact they expected more Genin. I made the clone beforehand; he snuck inand took the scroll."

"But how did he know which scroll to take?"

"They had a list." He answered shortly, putting the scroll back. "Anyway, now we need to get to the tower."

"So what, we just walk in a straight line?" Sokka asked.

"It's that, or we can climb to the top of the trees. Once up there, I make more clones and then make them throw us at the tower."

"They can do that?"

"If you want them do."

"…Let's just stick to walking. It never hurt anyone, right?"

"If that's the case, we won't be walking." He looked in the general direction of the tower. "It's about six miles or so to the tower. We want to get this over with quickly. We run." He looked back at them. "Are there any complaints?"

"Are you actually going to listen to them if we tell you we have them?" Zuko asked.

"Probably not," He admitted.

"Then why bother?"

"Relax, it's only six miles. Also, I know where I'm going." He took off and they followed. They ran for six miles at a dead run. By the time they had reached the tower, Naruto was lightly sweating. "There, you see? It wasn't that bad." He pulled out another cigarette and lit it.

Sokka, on the other hand, was panting heavily. "I think…riding Appa…made me a bit…lazy." He admitted. Akela rolled his eyes when he heard that.

Zuko was a little better, but not by much. "Well…are we here?"

Naruto looked at the door. "Yeah, we're here. And we lucked out too. This is the door we're supposed to go through as well." He grabbed hold of the door handles and opened it. "Come on guys." He said as he walked through the door. After a moment of getting their breath back, they followed.

What they saw was a big room. At the end of room was a board with a poem written on it. But they didn't pay attention to it. They were paying more attention to the guy standing against the wall underneath the poem. "Jiraiya," Naruto greeted shortly as he blew out smoke.

"Naruto," He said. He walked towards them a bit, stopping a few feet in front of them. "I take it you have the scrolls."

"They're right here." He pulled out the scrolls and tossed them at him.

"Congratulations." He said as he grabbed the scrolls out of the air. "You passed the second exam in forty five minutes. You've beaten the old record by fifty two minutes."

"Yay," He said flatly.

"So what happens now?" Zuko asked.

"Well, normally I'd explained what the poem behind is supposed to mean, but Naruto already knows it and you two…" Akela growled slightly. "Sorry, you _three_ aren't shinobi. There's also the part where Tsunade tells you the true purpose about the exams before letting you off for a month so you can train for the third exam."

"A month?!" repeated Sokka. "We're going to cut it that close!?"

"It looks that way." Naruto told him before looking back at Jiraiya. "So we're gonna have to wait five days before listening to the spiel?"

"No. You're going to get right to the training."

"And who's going to train us?"

"Me."

"Oh great, our training will be frequently interrupted by peeping time." He groaned.

"Believe me, gaki." He said with a completely serious face. "There will be no peeping with anyone on anybody during this training session." He dropped the scrolls to the ground and walked past them. "Follow me."

(Location: Konoha Eleven building)

Aang, Azula, Toph, Suki and Katara, along with Momo, spent the day with the Konoha Eleven in the apartment building. "So how long are these Exams supposed to be?" Katara asked as they sat in the living room.

"Well, the first Exam is only an hour." Ino explained.

"But the second Exam could last up to five days." Kiba continued.

"And the third Exam is a month later." Neji finished.

"We're going to be here for a month?!" Aang repeated. "We don't have the time for that!"

"I'm sorry." Hinata said. "But that's the way it is."

"Let's just hope that Sokka and the others made it through the first Exam." Suki said.

"They'll be fine." Chōji assured him.

"Yeah, if anything, Naruto's luck will get them through." Kiba said with a laugh.

Katara, Aang and Toph shared a confused look. "How will Naruto's luck make them succeed?" Katara asked.

"Naruto's luck is almost legendary around here." Tenten explained. "He once won the jackpot in a casino with a coin he found on the ground."

"That would explained why he never went to a gambling hall." Azula mused to herself.

"You know of Naruto's most youthful luck?" Lee asked.

"Once he decided to stay, he would often play gambling games with people. After a while, they stopped playing for money with him. Every time they did, he would always manage to win. He was also good at knowing at who was scamming and who was cheating."

They heard a chuckle come from the doorway. "That gaki's got the luck of the gods. Wish I had that." A voice said.

They all turned around to see who it was, the Konoha Eleven all stood up when they did. "Lady Tsunade, what are you doing here?" Ino asked.

The members of Team Avatar all took a look at the Hokage. She was a tall woman with blonde hair in two loose ponytails that reached the back of her waist and brown eyes. On her forehead was a small purple diamond mark. She wore a green jacket over a grey blouse. The blouse was held closed by a dark bluish-grey obi that was the same color of her pants. But what got the attention of Katara, Azula and surprisingly Toph, was what the blouse held. She had the largest bust they had ever seen; even Shù Yè's paled in comparison. When they saw them, they couldn't help but feel a little jealous.

'I'm here to pass on some news." She told them.

"Is it about Naruto and his team?" Hinata asked.

"Yes."

"How troublesome," Shikamaru muttered. "Did they fail already?"

"No, quite the opposite, they have passed both the first and the second Exam already."

"How can that be?" Shino asked. "The first Exam only lasted an hour, but how could they finish the second Exam on the first day?"

"Hey, you're forgetting that we finished on the first day too, Shino." Kiba told him. "Only the Sand Siblings beat us there."

"And that is something interesting." Tsunade said. "Naruto's team beat the Sand Siblings' record."

"How much did they beat it by?" Neji asked.

"Fifty two minutes."

That stunned everyone. "They finished the second exam in forty five minutes? How?" asked Ino.

"Are you a proctor for the Chūnin Exams, Ino?"

"No."

"Then I can't tell you."

"Can't, or won't?" Shikamaru asked. She ignored him.

"Where are Naruto and the others now?" Azula asked.

"They will be spending the month training. You won't be able to see them for the duration of that time."

"Is this part of the whole Exam thing?" Toph asked.

"No, this is because their trainer will require nothing but their complete and undivided attention."

"Who will be training them?" Katara asked.

"Jiraiya," She answered.

"Well, that can't be too bad. I'm sure that Jiraiya will be fair to them."

She snorted. "Kid, you don't know him."

"What do you mean, Lady Tsunade?" Hinata asked.

"Jiraiya has only trained one Genin squad and it's not because he's picky. He has only trained one Genin squad because they were the only Genin squad able to survive his training. I tried it once and I never want to do it again. I don't think I could survive another round of it."

"Is Lord Jiraiya that bad?" Chōji asked. The Hokage saying that even she would survive the training was either a cause for awe or worry.

"When he's really serious about the training, he will demand nothing but perfection. He is a sadist when it comes to that."

Aang, Azula, Toph and Katara all shared the same thought. _"What kind of torture are they going to go through?"_

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

First off, what Naruto said to both Sokka and Zuko wasn't just for their sakes. If you want read a story where Naruto completely destroys Konoha, there are a dime a dozen out there. And I'm willing to bet that most of them have never written about the ramifications of that or have put in a quick solution.

The Land of Fire is one of the _Five Great Shinobi Countries_. Please take a closer look at the word _Shinobi_! That means the Land of Fire is a great country _because_ of Konoha. If Naruto destroys Konoha, the Land of Fire will be ruined and that creates a power vacuum, which in turns will eventually cause a war! I'd like think that after being taught by Kyuubi, Naruto has gained _some_ sense of being political savvy.

Yes, I have made Naruto a smoker. Like he said in the last chapter, he needs it after putting up with Team Avatar and especially with Aang. I would like to thank Fan of Fanfics21 for the idea.

Yes, Suigetsu, Karin and Jūgo are in as well and we all know who they work for. Did you really think I was going to make him go through the Chūnin Exams for the fun of it? Trust me, I've got something cooking. That's also why he going through the same Exams as before, just without the preliminaries. You'll see.

As for who makes to the final Exam, you'll find out when we get there.

For the record, I was actually seriously considering having them be thrown in the direction of the tower. Also, six miles is ten kilometers. Getting there in forty five minutes in a run is not impossible.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	37. Practicing and Wondering

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 37: Practicing and Wondering

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: The Tree House lobby)

Azula walked down into the lobby of the hotel. _"Thank Agni for similar looking foods."_ She thought to herself. The food for breakfast still looked a little odd to her but she managed to make her way through it without causing emergency runs to the bathroom.

"Azula, over here!" called out Toph from where she was standing with Aang, Katara, Suki and Momo, who sat on Aang's shoulder.

"Good morning, everyone," She greeted as she walked over.

"Morning, Azula!" Aang chirped.

"Do we have any idea of what to do today?"

"Not really." Katara answered. "We'll have to find a way to past the time for a month."

"And we can't go see the guys in that entire time." Toph noted. "So we're on our own."

"Has Fǎn Yìng been fed?" Azula asked.

"The cooks took care of him and Appa." Suki told her. "I kept an eye on them. It was almost funny to watch. They were more afraid of getting close to the dragon then the sky bison."

"The dragon does look more intimidating."

"Yeah, but they know what a dragon looks like. They have no idea what a sky bison looks like or what it eats."

"I think the fact that they had to give hay to Appa tipped them off."

"You know what I think we should do?" Toph said.

"What?" Katara asked.

"I think we should train Twinkle Toes while we're here."

"What?" You mean right now?"

"Well, we would have to find a more suitable spot." She said sarcastically.

"She does have a point." Azula agreed. "Just because we're here for a month, does not mean we should slack off."

"Okay, so where should we train?" Aang asked.

"We'd have to find a place, Aang." Suki pointed out.

"We can go looking once Appa's done eating."

"No." Azula declared. "We don't need Appa, we'll walk."

"What? Why?"

"Aang, we're in a village." Katara pointed out. "We really don't need to fly around. We didn't do that when we first got here."

"Oh, right." He said with a sheepish grin. "Sorry, I forgot."

"One would think that you were raised by a sky bison the way you keep using Appa." Azula remarked.

(Location: Jiraiya's training ground)

"You…are…a…fucking…sadist!" Naruto accused Jiraiya as he, Sokka and Zuko lay on the ground, wheezing for their existence.

"That was because your attempts were disgraceful!" He practically bellowed.

"You expect…us to climb a waterfall…with a load of rocks on our backs…while dodging kunai and shuriken?!" Sokka demanded.

"Yes I do. And if the three of you do not get up right now, I will double your loads."

"Can I ask why exactly I'm carrying _five times_ the load they are!?" Naruto demanded, pointing at them as they all stood back up.

"You're an ex-shinobi, you can deal with it. Now get moving." He pulled out a kunai. "If you're not moving before I count to three, I am not pulling you out of the water. One…" They got the point and ran for the waterfall that showered water into the shallow, rocky creek. "This is for your own good! If you want to get through the final Exam, then you have to do everything I tell you."

"WE STILL HATE YOU!" They shouted at him.

"What a big surprise." He remarked sarcastically. "NOW GET CLIMBING!"

(Location: Aang's group)

They wondered through the village. They had left Momo with Appa and Fǎn Yìng. People glanced at them, but didn't really say anything. "You know, I'm kinda glad we're here." Aang remarked as they walked down the street. "People don't see me as the Avatar here. They just think I'm a normal kid."

"A normal kid would have hair on the top of his hair and no arrow tattoo on it either." Toph remarked, making the others laugh.

"It's a part of my culture!" He protested.

"In case you haven't notice, this is not a place of your culture." Suki told him.

"Aren't we supposed to be looking for a place to practice?" Azula asked pointedly.

"How about we use the space over there?" Toph suggested as she pointed to her left.

They followed her finger. "Uh…Toph?" said Katara. "That's a fence."

"I mean what's beyond the fence, Katara. There's a big field there and it's completely empty. So long as we don't get over destructive and hit the building, we'll be fine." She walked over to the fence and leapt over it.

Suki looked at the others. "Can we think of anything else?"

"Probably not," Azula admitted. "We might as well go with it." She followed Toph's example and jumped over the fence. Katara, Suki and Aang followed.

"Well, it certainly has the room." Aang remarked as he looked around. "It does look like a training area."

"So, how do we want to do this?" Katara asked.

"We test his ability with each element." Toph stated. "Since we don't have another Airbender, Suki can take care of that."

"Not a problem." Suki agreed.

"We go in the cycle Aang learned. Once the next person feels like it, they'll step in and take over the fight." Azula said. "Anyone have a problem with that?"

"No." Aang answered. "So who's going to start?"

"Me." Suki answered, just before charging him. Although it caught him by surprise, he quickly recovered.

She charged forward and threw a set of punches at him. He twisted and turned, staying out of the path of the punches. Seeing an opportunity, he got around her and placed his hand on her back. The idea was that no matter how she turned, he turned with her.

However, she had trained with him before, so she knew how to get out of the predicament. She suddenly dropped low and tried to sweep his legs out from under him. He leapt back to avoid falling to the ground. She followed him by turning around and rolling forward.

As she came out of the roll, she snapped her feet out into a kick at his knees. Once she saw that he took a step back to avoid it, she followed through with the kick by standing up. "C'mon, Aang," She told him. "You're supposed to be Airbending at me, not dodging."

"Sorry, it's a part of the Airbending training. I'm not trying to hurt you." He apologized.

"Don't worry about hurting me, just use your Airbending."

"Right," He answered.

She came at him again, this time using kicks as well as punches. Aang started off slow. He used his Airbending to make her punches or kicks miss slightly. Then he began to indirectly attack her.

He pressed forward, but always kept moving around. This allowed him to distract her while also sending blasts of air at her. It forced her to give ground so she wouldn't be hit by the air blasts. He took that advantage and began to use air swipes via his staff.

"_If he ever gets the attitude to able to kill, those air swipes of his will be deadly."_ She thought to herself as she was forced to bend backwards to avoid an aforementioned swipe. She tried to turn the fight back to her advantage by getting in close.

He responded by bending the air to lift her up off the ground and pushing her quickly recovered and charged back at him. The charge was cut off when she had to start dodging air blasts and swipes again. She was forced to hop from one side to the other, slowing her down.

"How are you doing?" Aang asked her as he kept bending the air at her, oddly enough.

"Why are you asking me that? We're in the middle of training."

"I don't know, just because?"

"Please don't. Tell me this isn't a habit of yours."

"Well, no. But you're my friend, not my enemy. Why shouldn't I talk to you?"

"Because you should be focusing on your opponent," Katara told him. "And not talking to your friends." She bent the water out of her pouch and threw it at him. As he caught it and threw it back, Suki stepped back out of the fight.

Katara caught the water, split it in half and threw both at him. He redirected one back at her, but kept one for his own use. He then bent the water he kept into a water whip and swung it at her. She blocked it with her own water whip.

She pressed forward, swinging the water whip at his feet. He fell back, dodging the whip. Seeing an advantage, she threw the whip at him and froze it, turning it into a spear of ice. He managed to catch the spear in his own water and sent it back in a deluge.

She didn't move fast enough and was sent flying into a tree. She did, however, managed to melt the ice spear in the water before it pierced her. She was dazed from the hit, but the advantage was with her. Aang had thrown all his water at her and left himself with none.

Realizing his mistake, he tried to bend some of the water back to himself. But Katara had managed to shake herself out of her daze. She bent most of the water back to her, but he managed to grab some of it. However, if you were to compare the amount of water either of them had, she had the bigger amount.

"_This almost feels like when I fought Master Pakku."_ She thought to herself. _"Only I'm not the student."_ It was true. If she gave it her all, she could easily beat Aang in Waterbending. But the last time she tried to give it her all was when she was hunting Yon Rha, so she wasn't really going to give it her all.

She bent the water into a wall in front of her. She plunged her hands into the wall and then withdrew them. She froze the water on her fingers into claws of ice. Swinging one arm, she fired the claws at him. He avoided them by rolling to the side. She threw the other set of claws at him.

As he came out of the roll, he leapt straight up into the air to avoid the second set. The small amount of water, which he had carried through the roll, was now circling his waist. As he landed, he bent the water into a whip and used it to block furthers sets of ice claws thrown at him.

This exchange went on for quite a bit. Katara would throw ice claws and the occasional ice spear at him. He would use the water whip to either knock the ice aside or deflect it back at Katara, who either dodged or caught it effortlessly.

As it went on, Katara began to lose the water she had. The deflected ice was scattered all around them. Some had hit trees, others had hit the ground and a small number had hit the nearby building. Thankfully, none of it had pierced the windows, otherwise the training session would have ended shortly afterwards.

Finally, she couldn't keep throwing ice at him due to the low amount of water she had left. He had tried to outpace her and succeeded. The amount of water they had changed, he now had the bigger amount. But before he could do anything, he had to duck in order to avoid a rock aimed at his head.

"My turn," Toph declared. Katara acted swiftly and snagged Aang's water away from him as she stepped back.

Aang quickly assumed an Earthbending stance. He struck first by trying to off-balance her. He bent the earth beneath her upwards into a column and then destroyed the column. Toph fell back to the ground.

She recovered and then bent a rock line at him. As the line reached him, she bent rock column to jut out at him. He threw a spinning kick at them, breaking them apart. The rubble surrounded him and he took advantage of that.

He sent a barrage of rocks at her. She defended herself by knocking the rocks to the ground. After she had reduced the last rock to dust with a punch, she bent two rocks of her own and threw them at him.

He bent up a wall from the ground to protect himself from the rocks. Once they had smashed into it, he sent pieces of the wall at her, almost like what she did at the Earth Rumble. She sidestepped one piece, leapt over the second and swatted the third away, smashing it to pieces.

He bent a column out of the ground, but it wasn't for protection. Starting from the bottom, he bent disks of rock at her. She tried to stop them by bending a wall up, but the first disk smashed through the wall and the others followed. She was forced to keep moving, if she tried to block one of the disks, the weight would probably send her flying.

After he was done with the column, he bent the remains into an earth gauntlet that covered his right hand. He charged forward at her. He drew back the gauntlet into a punch. But that was what she was waiting for.

As the punch flew at her, she grabbed hold of it and bent it down to the ground, taking him with it. He hit the ground and the gauntlet shattered, spraying bits of rock everywhere. She tried to send him flying by jutting a column underneath him. But even though he had hit the ground and was a little dazed, he managed to recover and roll out of the way.

Seeing him roll away, she bent a rock from nearby and threw it hard at him. He covered himself in a sphere of rocks, protecting himself from the rock. Once it had smashed against the sphere, he broke it apart and sent it at her in a deluge of rock and dirt. As it was about to hit her, she plunged her hands into it and split it apart. The two parts of the deluge were bent around her and slammed into the ground behind her.

They stared at each other, a little worn but still good to go. They waited for the other to make the first move. _"That's weird." _He thought. _"Toph's not really the one to wait in a fight."_ He then noticed that she had a slight smile on her face.

It was that smile that warned him. He leapt back to avoid the fireball that flew through the space where his head previously was. "I guess you're up now?" He asked Azula.

She didn't answer him; she just bent another fireball at him. He blocked it with his own fireball. As Toph stepped away, they circled each other. Azula moved first by dropping low and swiping her leg, sending a low wave of fire at him.

He blocked by bending his own fire to disrupt it. He turned in a circle and bent a blast of fire at her head. She spun to the side, bending out a fire whip and swinging it at him. He swatted it aside with his own fire whip.

After exchanging a few blows with the whips, Aang took his and threw it in a fire blast at her. She deflected it, sending it upwards and quickly sent her own fire blast at him. He bent his fire into the form of a shield to block the blast. He was successful, but he skidded backwards as well.

She pressed forward and bent her fire into the shape of daggers. She got in close to him and started to swing. He tried to attack back, but her strikes kept him from doing so. He was force to duck and weave while she used her fire daggers.

He finally got the chance when she left herself open after a particular strike. He moved around and bent a fire blast at her back. Seeing what he was doing, she lifted her foot up and knocked his hands aside, sending the blast away. She then spun around on one foot and bent a fire arc at him.

He jumped back in a flip to avoid the arc. As he was airborne, he thrust his feet out into a kick, bending fire at her. Not only did it stop her from attacking, it gave him some extra push to land further away. When she saw the fire coming at her, she split it into two and slammed them into the ground on either side of her.

He landed away from her. Just as his feet touched the ground, she sent another low fire wave at him. He threw himself into a backflip to avoid the wave and then bend a fire arc at her with his leg. She disrupted the fire by kicking her leg at it; splitting it in half and making it dissipate in the air.

They stared at each other for a brief minute. They then did the exact same thing. They bent a stream of fire at the other person. The streams collided and thus the struggle to push the other one back began. It was something to see. Blue fire fought with orange. One would look like it was devouring the other for a brief moment before pushed back. At one point, Azula would have the upper hand. The next, Aang would have it.

Eventually, the streams died down and they were left panting lightly. "Okay, I think we're good." Aang said.

"Not yet, Twinkle Toes." Toph said. "There's one more thing we have to do."

"What's that?" He asked, turning to face her.

She just grinned and shouted "Four-on-one!" She, Katara, Azula and Suki all charged him at the same time. The idea was to see how he would do against multiple Benders and a non-Bender at the same time.

However, before they could even start attacking, they heard someone say "Ahem."

Stopping, they all turned to see who said that. They saw a man with tan skin, brown hair he wore in a ponytail, dark eyes and a scar across his nose. He wore the Konoha shinobi uniform, which was blue pants and a blue shirt, along with the green flak jacket and the headband around his forehead.

"Hello, my name is Iruka Umino. I'm an instructor at the Konoha Academy." He greeted them. "May I ask what exactly are you doing the Academy's backyard?" He asked while fiddling with a kunai. The threat was all but screaming in the silence.

They looked around and saw that despite their efforts not to go overboard, they had torn up the place rather impressively. The yard was a complete and utter mess. They then looked up and saw that at every window, kids were looking out and watching them.

"Um…Oops?" offered a sheepish Aang.

(Location: Jiraiya's training ground)

He stared at the bodies lying around. "You all should just give up right now and save yourselves the trouble of losing in the final Exam." He told them with disappointment. "Now get up."

"Can we please have a moment to lie here in pain?" Sokka asked pleadingly. Akela (who was lying on his side) whined in agreement.

"…Moment's over, up!" They struggled to get back up. Although their bodies protested, they managed to get into a sitting position. "Now tell me, where did you all go wrong just now?"

"I don't know. Why don't you enlighten us?" Naruto asked sarcastically. Jiraiya's response was to smack him in the back of the head. "Ow! What was that for!?"

"I asked you all a serious question and you decided to be a smartass about it."

"You told us to attack you and we did, only to get thoroughly beaten to a pulp." Zuko answered.

"Wrong!" He shouted. "I told you to attack me _as a group_! Instead, you all attacked me as individuals."

"We _did_ come at you as a group!" Naruto told him. "We attacked you at the same time."

"And that's all you did!" He roared. "When one person tried to attack me, the others would back off so they wouldn't interfere. I can't believe you went with it." He glared at Naruto.

"Hey, if this was a battlefield, I'd been doing something different than staying back."

"This _is_ a battlefield. If you want to survive the final Exam, each and every one of you must be able to fight in tandem with each other."

"But I thought that the final Exam was fought one-on-one." Sokka said.

"You can never be too sure. Now, try attacking me again." With no warning, he lunged at them.

They rolled back away from him, grabbing their blades off the ground. "What? No warning?" Naruto asked as they stood up.

"I thought you knew that you didn't get any warnings in the real world." He looked at them as they moved into their stances (Akela bared his teeth). "I hope swords aren't the only things in your arsenal." They looked at each other and nodded once. Sokka pulled out his boomerang. Zuko heated the edges of his Dao swords with his Firebending. Naruto created three more clones and they all moved into a different Bending form. "Better, but I'm still not impressed."

"Then let us impress you." Zuko said as they all charged at him.

(Location: Aang's group)

After apologizing several times, Aang and the others tried to repair the backyard. "Toph, that's the last time we let you pick the place to train." Katara told her as she bent the water and ice scattered around back into her pouch, melting the ice as she went.

"I know, I know." Toph replied as she and Aang mended the earth, putting rocks back in the ground and putting the remnants of the walls and columns back down into the ground. "Pardon me if I thought it was just a random building and not where they teach the kids."

"Some of those kids are the same age as you and Aang." Azula remarked drily as she put the small fires that had fallen to the ground. "You really can't call them kids."

"Have they gone through the same things we have?"

"No."

"Then I can call them kids as much as I like."

"She's got you there." Suki commented.

"Shut up."

"In any case, we're all done here." Aang stated. The backyard was more-or-less back to the way it was. "Let's go find that instructor and tell him."

They walked back into the Academy. They climbed the stairs up to the second floor and walked to his room. However, they ran into him in the hallway, him and his class. "Hey, we're done out there." Toph told him, pointing her thumb behind her. She was about to say something else when the class swarmed them.

"That fight was so cool!" One girl squealed.

"You guys were so awesome!" Another told them.

"Hey, can you show me how to use fire like that?" One boy asked Azula.

"Please teach me how to move rocks like you did!" Another begged Toph.

"Show us your moves." Someone told Suki.

Iruka whistled loudly, getting everyone's attention. "That's enough, class." He told them. "Now give them some room." The kids did so reluctantly. "Thank you for doing that."

"It was our mess." Azula replied. "Therefore, we had to clean it up."

"Well, at least you admit it. That's something I can honestly say some of my students won't do." He looked back at the class, making some of them take a keen interest in the wall. "So, how do you like Konoha so far?"

"It's very nice." Katara answered. "We've looked around since we've come here. There are so many things to see."

"The air feels so clean and fresh around here." Aang commented. "I haven't felt that in a while."

"That's good to know. Was there anything you wanted to know about our village?"

"Well, we have been wondering about the faces up on the mountain." Suki told him. "But we haven't really bothered to ask anyone about them."

"Then you're in luck." He declared with a smile. "We were about to go talk about the pervious Hokages. Would you like to come with us?"

"We would be honored." Azula answered. "Lead the way."

"Alright then, follow me." He walked down the hall, the students followed him and then they did. They left the Academy and walked over to the Hokage building. They made their way through the building before finally climbing up to the roof.

Iruka had the students sit down while Aang and the others stood at the back. "Is everyone here?" He asked. Everyone answered in the affirmative. "Good. Now, as most of you know, behind me is the Hokage Mountain. On it are the faces of the Hokages. From left to right, they are the Shodaime Hokage, Nidaime Hokage, Sandaime Hokage, Yondaime Hokage and finally, the Godaime Hokage."

One student raised her head. "Who is the Rokudaime Hokage, Iruka-sensei?" She asked.

Before he could answer the student, someone else did. "What? Do I have to retire already?" They all turned around to see Tsunade standing at the stairs. In her arms was a small pig wearing a red jacket and collar of pearls. "I've only been the Hokage for about three years, have I really been doing that bad of a job?"

"La-lady Hokage!" squeaked the girl. "No, no! You've been doing a great job!"

"Now you're just buttering me up before telling about some bad habits I have."

"No, I wasn't! I swear!" This only made her laugh.

"Lady Tsunade, could you please not tease my students?" Iruka asked her.

"Just having a little fun, Iruka," She told him, the grin on her face making her look like she was a mischievous young girl. The pig looked up at her and oinked. "Alright, Tonton, I'll stop." She looked back at Iruka. "So, giving a history lesson?"

"Yes, Lady Tsunade. What brings out here?"

"I'm taking a small break from the paperwork, so I figured I come up here and get some fresh air."

"You've come at a good time. Would you like to join us?"

"Eh, why not?" She walked forward and stood next to him.

"As you know, Lady Tsunade is the Godaime Hokage." He told them. "She is a part of the Sannin and renowned for her strength and her medical skills. She is also the holder of the Slug Summoning Contract and because of this, is known as the Slug Princess of Konoha."

As the students looked at her with wonder and amazement, Azula looked with curiosity. "How is she qualified to be Hokage?" She asked aloud, getting everyone's attention.

"Did you not listen to what Iruka just said?" Toph asked her.

"Yes, I'm well aware of what she can do, Toph. But there are many people here who are probably just as skilled as her or possibly better. So how did she get the position as the village leader over the others?"

"Mainly because the other candidate refused when he was told and then offered to go get me." Tsunade told her drily. "But you do have a point, what qualifies me to be the Hokage?" She looked over at Iruka.

He got the point and began to explain. "While Lady Tsunade is a renowned shinobi and medic, those are not the only things that contributed to her being Hokage. Another important factor is her linage."

"Her…linage?" repeated Aang.

"Yes. Lady Tsunade is the granddaughter of the Shodaime Hokage, the grandniece of the Nidaime Hokage and the student of the Sandaime Hokage. Basically, she has the best claim."

"And that's all there is to it." She walked pass the students and back to the stairs, only to stop at the top and look back. "Azula, was it?" She asked.

"Yes." She answered.

"Follow me, please. I want to talk to you." She walked down the staircase, Azula followed.

(Location: Jiraiya's training ground)

Zuko, Sokka and Naruto were engaged in a free-for-all, using only their swords. They did this while also dodging kunai and shuriken thrown at them by Jiraiya. "Agni!" Zuko swore as a kunai pierced his thigh.

"You're too slow, Zuko!" Jiraiya told him.

"I'm fighting at my top speed here!"

"Then you need to be faster! Any slower and a Genin fresh out of the Academy could beat you."

"I don't see you doing this." Sokka shouted at him as he simultaneously parried one of Zuko's Dao swords and dodging a shuriken. However, he got another shuriken in the arm because of his dodging.

"You need to be more aware of your surroundings, Sokka!"

"I'm trying!"

"Trying isn't good enough! People who try are the ones who fail. How many times have you tired, only to fail?"

"Who asked you?!" He snarled. The snarl turn to a scream of pain as a kunai embedded itself in his leg.

"You must focus! If you hadn't lost control of your emotions, you could've avoided that."

"I hate you with every inch of my being."

"Heard it before, now focus!"

He turned his attention back to the fight. It continued on for a good amount of time. It kept moving around the training ground, due to the fact that a swordfight never stays in one spot and also Jiraiya kept making them be aware of their surroundings.

Finally, Jiraiya stopped throwing things at them. "Alright, that's enough." He told them. They collapsed to the ground when they heard that, sighs of relief escaping their mouths. Akela padded over to Sokka's side and sat down. "So, can you tell me what exactly the three of you doing wrong was?"

"We were talking to you while we were fighting?" Naruto asked with tried sarcasm.

"Yes, that is a part of it, but that is not all. Naruto, your ability to fight with a jian is somewhat sloppy. You're not a master of it, are you?"

"Of course not, it was just something in my arsenal. The jian master here is Sokka."

"That's another thing." He turned his attention to Sokka. "Sokka, while you are able to use your jian and your boomerang effectively when they're separate, you are horrible at using them together."

"Hey, I have never seen the reason to use them at the same time. It's usually been one or the other."

"You have to learn how to use them together. There'll come a time when you will have to and if you don't learn how, you'll end up dead." He turned to Zuko. "Zuko, why weren't you using your Firebending in the fight? It would have given you an advantage."

"You told me not to." He protested

"I told you not to use it when it wasn't needed. You took that as not being allowed to use it."

"This was a swordfight."

"And your point is? Just because it was a swordfight doesn't mean you have to stick with swords. A swordfight is a fight, and you can use anything that gives you the advantage in a fight."

"Now what are we going to do?" Naruto asked. "Climb the waterfall again with stones on our backs?"

"Making us run the entire place forty times in under ten minutes?" Sokka asked.

"Or is it going to be repeating the same set of movements while standing still for five hours?" Zuko asked.

"It's none of those." Jiraiya answered, surprising them. "You've been doing a little better than pathetic, but I can't blame you. This is only the first day of your training." He turned away from them. "I'm going to get food. You all take a breather." He walked away into the bush.

They turned to look at each other. "Did I hear him right?" Sokka asked.

"I heard our personal torturer say that we could take a breather and relax a bit." Naruto replied. "Did I hear wrong?"

"No, I heard it too." Zuko told him.

"So we can actually relax for a little?" Sokka asked for clarification.

"Not yet." Naruto said. "We have to do one more thing."

They all raised their arms and looked at what was imbedded there. "We have to pull these out." They said in unison.

(Location: Hokage office)

Azula stood in front of Tsunade's desk. "Well, you wanted to talk to me." She said. "What do you want to talk about?"

Tsunade looked her straight in the eye. "What exactly is your relationship with Naruto?" She asked.

"I assumed that since Jiraiya was spying on us, he sent you reports."

"He did."

"Then why do you want to know about what went on with us?"

"It's always better to hear from the person then read it off a piece of paper."

"…I can agree with that."

"So, what is your relationship with Naruto?" She repeated.

"He is my bodyguard."

"So he protects you?"

"That is what a bodyguard does." She replied sarcastically.

"I suppose you chose him and you two didn't get along well at first?"

"Wrong. He beat me in an Agni Kai and won the right to be my bodyguard."

"But you still didn't get along at first, right?"

"…It took some time to get use to him being around all the time." She admitted. "That and he acted exactly like I remembered him."

"And what was that?"

"Why should I be telling you this?"

"I want to know."

She gave an annoyed sigh. "He was insufferable, acted smug every time he was proven right and kept pulling pranks on me just for a laugh. There were days where I wanted to kill him."

"And yet, he's still alive. I guess you began to see something else in him?"

She slowly nodded. "I began to see his good points. He was kind and caring. He never refused to give some of the money he earned to those who desperately needed it. He was friendly to all and only showed his anger to those who deserved it. He kept pulling pranks in order to make me laugh. When he led men into a fight, he always made sure to get every soldier under his command out alive. He never bragged about his feats or his strengths. He was someone you could count on."

"And then you fell in love with him."

"It would have been hard not to. He changed me. He all but dragged me out of the comfortable place I knew as my life and showed me what was really going on. He made me think about old things in different ways. He forced me to train myself with new things. He had me see things from another's perspective. He changed me and I fell in love with him." She placed her fingers on the necklace around her neck. "He even gave me this."

That got Tsunade's attention. "Let me see that." She ordered her when she saw the necklace.

"Why should I?"

"That is supposed to be with Naruto. I gave it to him. He's supposed to keep it on at all times."

"What in the name of the Spirits are you talking about?"

"That necklace, belong to my grandfather. I inherited it and then gave it to Naruto." She reached out her hand. "Now give it to me."

"No." She closed her hand around it, as if to protect it from her.

"That belongs to Naruto!" She stood up from her chair.

"And Naruto gave it to me as a birthday present! Why would he do something like that if he needed to keep it?"

She looked at her, then at the necklace and then sat back down in the chair. "That baka," She muttered to her quietly. "Does he not realize what the necklace is for? Why would he give it to her?"

"Excuse me?" Azula asked, having only heard parts of what she was muttering.

"Never mind, it doesn't concern you."

"You sound just like him." She said with annoyance.

"What do you mean?"

"Until we came here, I didn't know much about Naruto's past. He never told us where he came from or why he left, he just kept telling us that it doesn't concern us. We only began to find out about him when your teams started to protect the Avatar and even then it was just tidbits of information."

"I see." She said. _"That's good. Neither her or the others know about what he holds."_ She thought to herself. "So you love Naruto, but you don't much about him."

"Yes, I do. What about it?"

She said nothing. She flashed her hands through a quick number of handseals and then placed her hand on her desk. Azula saw a kanji briefly flash on the desk before fading away. Even though nothing in the room, she felt like her ears had been plugged up a little. _"What was that?"_

Tsunade took her hand away from the desk and leaned back. "What would you say if I told you that after the Chūnin Exams, I would let Naruto to go back to the Bending Countries?"

"I would say that there would have to be a catch."

She nodded in agreement. "What would you say if I told you that I would have the members of the Konoha Eleven here go with you to help?"

"I would say that their help would be unneeded and that they would only hinder us."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes. I would also say that is not the catch."

"What would you say if I told you that I would send the Konoha Eleven in order to keep an eye on Naruto and had orders to make sure he came back to Konoha willingly."

"I would say that it would never happen."

"…What would you say if I told you that if he refused, they would have orders to subdue him, to bring him back by force and once he was back, the past three years would be wiped from his memory?"

She became furious and covered her hands in blue fire. "I would kill them before that happens!" She shouted. "And if you gave that order, I will burn you to ashes!"

After staring her straight in the eyes, Tsunade did something she wasn't expecting. She laughed. "Kami, I was right about you."

"What?"

She stood from the chair. "Put the fire out, Azula. Remember, I used the words 'what' and 'if'."

The fire disappeared, but the anger and suspicion in her eyes did not. "Explain." She ordered.

"While there are orders for Naruto to have his memory wiped if he refuses to come back willingly, those orders are never going to happen. The reason I am telling you this is because I believe that out of the five of your group here in the village, you and Suki are the most level-headed. However, you know Naruto better than Suki, so I told you."

"Told me what?"

"I want you to listen closely." She walked around the desk. "The Konoha Eleven members here have been told of these orders. But they think that the orders will be carried out when they are done in the Bending Countries."

"So I'll have to kill them before they try it." She growled.

"That might be true, if they were going."

"You're not making sense."

"I know I am not. I'm doing that on purpose."

"What is this all about?"

"I'm telling you this because I want you to keep the rest of your team calm. There is a good chance that they will hear the Konoha Eleven talking about these orders. I need you to make sure they don't think anything of it and make sure they don't plan anything."

"Why?"

"If they did, they could ruin the plan. I cannot let that happen."

"What plan?"

"I can't tell you. I'm sorry."

"…This is Shinobi politics, isn't it?" She asked.

She gave a small smile and nodded quietly. "It's often dangerous and deadly. But if you play it right, the rewards are very satisfying. Now, you're going to keep quiet about this conversation, right?"

"Of course, I will." She had been in politics long enough to realize when she had to be quiet. "But you do realize that Katara, Aang and the others are probably trying to listen in through the door?"

The smile turned into a smirk. "After I touched my desk, you felt your ears plugged up slightly, right?"

"Yes."

"That was the Silence Seal taking effect. This conversation we just had was one that only the two of us heard."

"You're sure about that?"

"Of course I'm sure. It's my office."

"What will we do now?"

"I am going to deactivate the seal and you will leave. For all intents and purposes, we just talk about Naruto. I wanted to know how he was during the past three years. Sound good?"

"Yes, it does."

She walked back to her chair, placed her hand on the seal spot and muttered **"Kai."** Azula's ears lost the plugged up feeling as the Silence Seal faded away. "Thank you for telling me about him, Princess Azula." Tsunade said, acting like nothing had happened.

"I'm not a princess." She told her. "But you're welcome, Lady Hokage." She turned around and walked to the door. She opened it and swung it open. She saw Aang and Katara standing against the wall with oh-so-innocent smiles on their faces. "Didn't anyone tell you it's rude to eavesdrop?" She asked.

"What? We weren't eavesdropping." Aang protested.

"Of course you weren't, and I'm the incarnation of Agni."

"Sorry, Azula," Katara apologized. "We couldn't hear anything, so we got curious."

"So you were listening in before that." She said, catching them with their own words.

"Well, no kidding. The boss lady of the village wants to talk to you and you alone, leaving us out here? Of course they're going to try and listen in." Toph said, cutting them off before they could protest.

"Lady Tsunade thought the same thing. That's why she gave us some privacy." They began to walk down the corridor.

"What did she want to talk to you about?" Suki asked, genuinely curious.

"…She wanted to know about Naruto."

"That's it?" Aang asked in disbelief.

"He _was_ a shinobi of this village once." She pointed out. "She wanted to know how he's been for the past three years, that's all."

"Why didn't she ask one of us?" Katara asked.

She looked her straight in the eyes. "Okay, please remember _who_ has known him the best for the better part of three years."

"She's got you there." Toph said with a laugh.

Katara's face flushed for asking something that was completely obvious. "We-well, now what are we going to do?" She asked, trying to change the subject.

Suki looked out a nearby window. "Why don't we get something to eat?" She suggested. "It's about noon."

"Yeah, let's go to Ichiraku's!" Aang declared.

"Let's go then." Azula said, shrugging her shoulders. That was all Aang needed to hear, he ran down the corridor so fast he actually left a dust trail.

"I didn't think Twinkle Toes like that place." Toph said. "Don't they have a lot of meats in the food?"

"They have a veggie ramen, which he's beginning to love to death." Katara explained.

"Wait a moment, I thought Aang wasn't carrying the money we were given." Suki said, remembering the money bag the Konoha Eleven had given them.

"He's not." Azula told her, pulling the money bag out. "We might as well go after him, before he orders anything."

They all nodded in agreement and chased after him.

(Location: Jiraiya's training ground)

The sun was setting in the distance. Naruto, Sokka and Zuko were sitting around and were the midst of pulling out the kunai and shuriken and wrapping the wounds up. "Ah, Agni, that stings!" Zuko swore as he wrapped up his arm.

"I hear that." Sokka agreed as he wrapped a bandage around his thigh.

Naruto was feeling the same pain they were feeling due to the fact Jiraiya had him stop Kyuubi from healing him. _"Oh, how I hate that pervert right now."_ He thought viciously as he wrapped up his hand.

"**Hey, he said you weren't going to miss out on any part of the training."** Kyuubi told him. **"I guess that means the pain part as well."**

"_I still hate the pervert."_

"**He's a **_**super**_** pervert, remember?"**

"_Shut up."_

"Well, I think we can all agree on one thing." Sokka said.

"That our teacher for a month is a sadistic bastard?" He asked.

"Yes. But there's something else too."

"And what's that?"

"He's not kidding around. I think that after the month is up, we won't be the same as we were before." They fell quiet as they thought about what he said.

"…He's still a sadistic bastard." Zuko said. Akela barked in agreement.

"I'm glad you all hold me in so high esteem." Jiraiya said from behind them.

Surprised, they turned around and saw he was carrying a big boar on his back. "Is…is that for us?" Sokka asked, almost drooling at the boar.

"No. This is my dinner. You have to get your own."

"WHAT?" They all shouted at him. They were too tired to actually try and hunt for their own food.

His serious face sprouted a huge grin as he threw back his head in laughter. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding! There's enough to go around and even though you guys didn't do well today, you deserves this." He dropped the boar to the ground. "Now, while I start the fire, you three take care of the boar."

He left to gather the sticks for the fire. They got to work skinning the boar. Sokka took the lead due to the fact he had done skinning before. Naruto and Zuko followed his orders carefully. By the time Jiraiya had come back, the boar was almost skinned. He set up the fire and then watched as they finished skinning the boar. He took the carcass, put it on a spit and hung it over the fire. He slowly turned the spit, making sure the boar was thoroughly roasted.

When he was done, he carved out pieces of the meat and handed them to the team, who fell on the food with the grace and dignity of a pack of wolves (which is ironic, considering Akela was there). "This is delicious!" Sokka declared with tears in his eyes. "I have never tasted something so good!"

"So glad you approve." Jiraiya told him. They finished the rest of the meat in silence. "So tell me, did you enjoy today's training?" He asked them.

"We hated you every minute of the day." Naruto answered.

"Good to know, because this is only the first day. We have the rest of the month and I will use that month to make you all better and stronger, even if I have to break you down and build you back up." He declared.

They shared a look for a long minute and then looked back at him. "We might hate it and we definitely hate you for it." Zuko said, speaking for the group. "But bring it."

He just gave them a vicious grin that promised a lot of work and loads of pain.

**End **

**Author's note: **Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Did you think I was just going to go straight to the final Exam? That's no fun. There's no build up if I do that.

If you were expecting Jiraiya's training to be something like Guy's, too bad. Guy is excessive in his training; Jiraiya is a sadist and a perfectionist. There is a difference there. Also for those of you who are going to say that Naruto doesn't need to be trained by Jiraiya, think of it this way. Kyuubi made him into the person he is now and also trained him. Jiraiya is just refining him and making him better.

I did the entire thing with the Hokage Mountain to give them a bit of background on Konoha. They really don't know anything about the place. Plus, how else was I supposed to get Azula into the office?

For those of you who are wondering why I had Tsunade tell Azula about the supposed "orders", when have I ever something like that simple? You guys keep coming up with expectations about what I'm going to do and I'd like to think I've usually managed to catch the majority of you by surprise every time. This is no different.

But if you think I'm going to tell why the orders are never going to happen or what the plan is, guess again. But I will tell you one thing: just because Tsunade might be acting like a selfish bitch, doesn't mean she is one. It's a little thing called deception. It comes with being a shinobi.

So, for all you who want me to have her killed, I just have one thing to say:

It's not going to happen. If you don't like it, you can shut up.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	38. Meeting and Discovering

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 38: Meeting and Discovering

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Hokage office)

Tsunade sat at her desk, working her way through the paperwork in front of her. _"I need a drink."_ She thought to herself. Her eyes wandered over to the sake bottle at the edge of the desk and the cup next to it. She stretched out her hand to reach for the bottle, only to hear an angry oink come from the other side of the room. "Oh come on, Tonton." She said as she looked at the pig. "It's just one drink."

Tonton shook her head, walked over to the desk, leapt up onto it and sat in front of the sake bottle. She oinked again to emphasize her point.

"Come on. Please?" All she got was an oink again. "All I'm asking for is one cup. That's all, I swear."

"You know, this is why Shizune has her keep an eye on you." Jiraiya said from behind her.

She swerved to face him. "You better have a good reason for being here, Jiraiya. Otherwise, you're going to end up flying through that window." She threatened him.

He raised his hands up in surrender. "Easy there, Princess." He looked over at the pig. "It's alright, Tonton, she can have one drink." The pig nodded once in agreement and walked away from the sake bottle. He walked to the bottle and poured it into a cup. "Here you are. This is all you get." He gave her the cup. She took and drowned it in one shot.

"Give me another." She said, holding up the cup.

"No, you only get one. You do remember what's happening today, right?"

"Of course I remember. Why do you think I'm trying to have some sake?"

"That's not funny, Tsunade."

"It was worth a shot." She glared at the cup in her hand. "Besides, I can't remember the last time they showed up for the final Exam when one of their Genin wasn't in it."

"There is a first time for everything."

"Oh, shut up." They fell silent. The silence lasted for a couple minutes. "…How are they doing? You've had a month."

"They've progressed fairly well."

"Is that all?"

He looked at her. "If you wanted to ask about Naruto, just say so."

"Well?"

"I've pushed him harder than the others. He's taken to it with minimum complaints."

"Minimum complaints, what does that mean?"

"Apparently, I have a new nickname: the Fucking Sadist."

"That's an old one; we just called you that behind your back."

"Well…it's nice to know someone calls me that to my front now."

"Where are they?"

"I left them there and told them to keep training. I figured with what is going on today, me being with you will help out in the long run."

"…Will he be able to do it?"

"You know as well as I do how much he hates him."

"But at the end, if he can't kill him…?"

"Tsunade, he agreed the moment I told him who he was supposed to kill. He'll be able to do it, probably with pleasure."

"I guess you're right." She finally put the cup down. "So while you're with me, who'll watch them?"

He turned to look at the pig. "Tonton, could you…?" She shook her head. "It's just for a short while." She oinked in the negative. "Look, if you're worried about her, don't be." He pointed his thumb at Tsunade. "I'll keep an eye on her, promise." She thought it over. After a few minutes, she nodded in agreement. "Thank you. Could you come over here for a minute?" She walked over to him and allowed him to put a note in her collar. She hopped off the desk and walked through to the open door.

"Alright, pour me another, Jiraiya." Tsunade declared, grabbing the cup.

"No. If I do, she will find out."

"Oh come on, it's just Tonton."

"Pardon me if I have a healthy respect for your pig. She is only creature I know that can make Tora go back to the daimyo's wife _willingly_."

(Location: Jiraiya's training ground)

They stood in separate parts of the training ground. Zuko was meditating underneath the cold waterfall, chilling him to the bone. Sokka was meditating next to the fire, making him sweat. Naruto sat on the edge of the stream, looking over a scroll.

Sniffing something in the air, Akela stood up. "What is it, Akela?" Sokka asked as he opened his eyes. Zuko opened his eyes as well and Naruto put the scroll down. They all noticed a nearby bush rustle; making both Sokka and Zuko put a hand on their swords.

When they saw a pig come through the bush, they were surprised; they just managed to keep it off their faces. "Tonton, what are you doing here?" Naruto asked as he stood up and lit a cigarette. She oinked at him and showed him the note. He walked over, took the note out, open it and read it.

"What does it say?" Zuko asked.

He read the note aloud:

Guys

I have to be seen in public with the Hokage for a few hours, and since I need all of my chakra to you all nowadays, I can't use a clone. So I'm having Tonton keep an eye on you for a while.

Just stick to the training regime.

Jiraiya

"Well that's seems pretty simple." Sokka noted.

"Hold on, there's a post script." He said before reading it aloud:

Akela

If you're thinking about turning the pig into a snack, don't. I'm fairly certain Tonton will have no trouble kicking your furry rear. I'm also sure she will do it with pleasure.

Akela, who had eyeing Tonton, now looked at her with a small amount of fear. She took one step towards him and he swiftly backpedaled. "The wolf being afraid of the pig," Naruto said. "You've gotta admit, that's funny."

"It's hilarious." Zuko replied.

"So then, we keep to the regime." Sokka said.

"He did say that." And with no warning, he leapt out from under the waterfall, swords in hand, swinging at Naruto's head. Sokka joined him by thrusting his jian at Naruto's stomach. He blocked both of them by using his own jian and a stray kunai.

"Not going to give me any warnings, huh?" He asked jokingly as he took a drag with his free hand and blew smoke in their faces.

"Why would we?" Sokka asked back. Thus began a free-for-all fight.

(Location: Azula)

She stood in the backyard of the Academy. Due to the fact that something special was going on, classes started later, leaving her alone. She had her daggers out and stood in front of one of the training dummies. Ever since she and Zuko fled the Fire Nation, she constantly practiced her daggers skills.

She lunged at the dummy, slashing and stabbing. She went through the sets and moves Naruto had drilled into her head. She did them over and over again. Finally, when she was done, the training dummy looked like a dog had all but torn it to shreds.

"I guess Naruto instructing me did actually help." She remarked. She sheathed her daggers and walked out of the Academy backyard. She walked back onto the street, where she saw everyone bustling around in a hurry.

"Hey, Azula!" called out Kiba. She turned her head to him and saw he was standing with his team as well as hers. "Come over here."

"I'm coming, I'm coming." She walked over to them. "What's this all about? People look like they're either trying to clean up their house or their business."

"That's because today is the day that the foreign heads of state and such come in today." Shino explained. "They come to the final Exam to see how the participants will do. It also helps attract clients for the villages of shinobi."

"It's also a good event for gambling." Hinata told them.

"Yeah, you should see the odds." Kiba agreed.

"Odds?" repeated a confused Aang.

"A way of betting money," Azula told him before turning her attention back to Kiba. "What are they like?"

"Most odds on Naruto have him winning. But the odds on Sokka and Zuko have them losing."

"Ha! Damn right they will!" A voice shouted in the street. They turned and saw that it was the team from Kusa. "They'll be dead within five minutes." Suigetsu declared.

"And you are who, exactly?" Suki asked.

"We are the other Genin team that made it to the final Exam." Jūgo answered.

"So Sokka and the others will have to face off you guys?" Katara asked for clarification.

"Man, they'll be able to win easily." Toph declared.

"What did you say?!" Suigetsu roared.

"You heard her, didn't you? Or are you deaf?" Azula asked.

"Get your facts straight, you midget." He snarled. "Team Avatar will be dead by the time we're done with them."

"So you're going to kill us too?" Aang asked, scared.

"Of course not you idiot." Karin said condescendingly. "You don't concern us."

"But if you want to find us after the Exam…?" Suigetsu left the question hanging, which scared Aang even more.

"Suigetsu, enough," Jūgo said.

"Ah, don't worry, I won't kill them. There wouldn't be any fun in it. Let's keep moving." He went down the street with his teammates behind him.

"That was…a little intense." Katara remarked.

"Are you kidding? That was nothing." Azula said.

"Yeah, that was normal." Kiba agreed.

"You have got to be joking." Aang said. "Did you not see how he was looking at us?"

"Sheesh, Twinkle Toe," Toph said "Toughen up a little, will ya?"

"Toph is right. If you keep acting like this, you will not last long here." Shino agreed.

"We're not going to stay long after this."

"We know."

"Anyway," Azula said, cutting off the conversation before it went any further (she had done this plenty of times in the past month). "Are the heads of state going to come in a parade or something?"

"No." Hinata answered. "They'll come in a procession. Nobody will actually stand in a crowd and watch them walk in. Most of them will be led to their suites in the hotels."

"Most of them?" repeated Suki.

"A few of them will be greeted with by Lady Tsunade."

"Can we go watch?" Katara asked. "It might be interesting."

"Only you would find it interesting." Toph remarked.

"Actually, I would like to see it as well. It is always interesting to see politics play out." Azula said.

"You mean for you." Aang accused in a somewhat joking manner.

"Comes with being an ex-princess," She said with a shrug. She turned to back to Hinata and her team. "So, can we?"

"Well, we know a spot." Kiba answered. "You'd have to stay quiet and stay still."

"We can do that. Let's get going."

"Follow us." They started to walk down the street.

"Hey, Azula, I have a question." Suki said.

"What is it?"

"When is Naruto's birthday?"

"Why would you want to know that?"

"Well, I figured that if it's close, we could throw him a party."

"…I actually don't know."

"Didn't you say you loved him?" Shino asked. "How do you not know his birthday?"

"It was one of those things that he never really told us. The closest answer I ever got was that it was in October."

"So you tried throwing a party for him?" Kiba asked.

"Why would I do that when I don't even know on what day he was born? "

"She's got a point, Kiba." Hinata agreed before looking at her. "Naruto was born on the tenth of October."

"Good to know, but I still don't think he would want a party."

"I guess we see what happens." Suki said. "October is still a couple of months away."

(Location: Konoha gates)

Tsunade stood at the gates with Jiraiya at her side and a group of shinobi behind her. Though they didn't turn their heads to see it, they could hear Kurenai's team bringing Azula and the others into the group. "They shouldn't be here." Tsunade whispered to him.

"It's their choice." He whispered back. "Besides, this might help out in the long run."

"We'll see." They stopped whispering as they saw people coming towards the gate. This was where they had to pay attention; the backbones of the other Great Shinobi Countries were coming. In other words, the Kazekage, the Mizukage, the Raikage and the Tsuchikage had come to Konoha.

The first group was a familiar one. "Greetings, Lady Tsunade." Gaara said as he stood in front of her. "Lord Jiraiya."

"Gaara," Tsunade greeted in return.

"You know my sister and brother?" He gestured to Temari and Kankurō.

"Yes, but I'm afraid I do not know who the other two members of your party are."

"This is my sensei, Baki, and my student, Matsuri." Baki was a tall man. He wore a cloth around the top of his head and let the end cover the left side of his face. He had two red tattoos on the right side of his face and wore his headband around his forehead. He wore the Suna flak jacket, which was beige, had shoulder padding and pouches over the stomach. Matsuri wore the same jacket, minus the shoulder padding, over a dark shirt and skirt. She wore stockings, black gloves and arm-guards. Due to the fact of how close she stood next to Gaara, the two Sannin knew she was more than a student to him.

"Nice to meet you," Jiraiya said before noticing someone else. "Who is this?" He asked, looking at a person whose face was hidden by a hood.

Gaara was about to tell when the hooded member spoke. "I'm surprised you don't recognize me, Lord Jiraiya, considering I acted in your movie."

"Acted in my movie?" He looked closer. "Koyuki Kazahana, is that you?"

The person smiled and lowered the hood, revealing the daimyo of the Land of Spring. "It's good to see you again, Lord Jiraiya. And it's a pleasure to meet you, Lady Tsunade." She greeted the Hokage.

"Lady Kazahana, why are you traveling with the Kazekage?" She asked.

"I still have trouble trusting Yukigakure shinobi. So I traveled with Lord Gaara to come to Konoha."

"This would be your first time seeing a Chūnin Exam, yes?"

"Yes."

"Why come now?"

She smiled. "I think we both know the reason."

"Fair enough, I hope you enjoy Konoha."

She smiled and nodded. They walked on and let the next group come forward. "Well, well, if it isn't the Toad Sage and the Slug Princess." The short, old man with the hat of the Tsuchikage said. His beard was done triangularly and his mustache had angular corners. The top of his head was bald and the hair in the back was done up in a top-knot held by a yellow ribbon. His eyebrows were thick and his nose was big and red. He wore a green and yellow coat that had a red collar. Underneath the coat, he wore the flak jacket of Iwagakure and mesh armor over a shirt and pants.

"Ryōtenbin no Ōnoki (Ōnoki of Both Scales)," Jiraiya greeted the Tsuchikage. "It's been some time since you have come here."

"You make it sound like I want to be here."

"If that's not it, then why are you?"

"To see the value of potential enemies," He answered shortly.

"Geez old man, can't you say we came to see their Jinchūriki in action?" The girl behind him asked. She had black hair and wore her headband around her forehead. She wore a red shirt with the right sleeve missing. She wore the same flak jacket as Ōnoki, which was brown, had a pouch over the stomach and a sleeve that covered her left arm, showing only the black gloves she wore.

Once she had uttered those words, two killing intents were directed at her. "If I were you, young lady," Tsunade growled. "I would refrain from calling Naruto that in mine or Jiraiya's presence."

"Why should I?"

"Kurotsuchi, be polite. She is the Hokage." The third member of the group, a large man with big cheeks and a plump nose, told her. He wore a red shirt and pants along with a flak jacket. He had on a scarf and wore his headband like a bandana.

"I don't have to be polite to her, Akatsuchi. I don't follow her."

"But she is still someone to respect."

"Enough!" Ōnoki shouted, cutting her off before she could speak again. "The two of you are going to give me back pains. You may be my granddaughter, Kurotsuchi, but that does not mean you can be disrespectful to the other Kages. You will apologize to the Hokage right now."

"Alright, old man, I'll apologize." She turned to face Tsunade. "I'm sorry, okay?" Even they both knew she really wasn't, Tsunade and Ōnoki let it slide. The Iwa shinobi walked on and the next group came forward.

"Lady Tsunade, Lord Jiraiya, it's an honor to meet you." The woman with the hat of the Mizukage greeted them. She was slender and quite fetching too. She had auburn hair that fell to the back of her ankles. She had also tied some of it into a top knot and some of it also covered her right eye. Her visible eye was green. She wore a blue dress that fell to just below her knees. Underneath the dress, she wore mesh armor. She also wore a belt around her waist with a pouch on the back. She wore high-heeled sandals along with shin guards that went up over her knees.

"Mei Terumī, we are glad to welcome the Fifth Mizukage to Konoha." Tsunade greeted her.

"Your efforts to bring Kiri away from its dark past are becoming well known." Jiraiya complimented her. If this had been any other time, he would've been grinning perversely at her. But this was not the time for that. He might be a super pervert, but he also knew when to rein it in.

"You flatter me, Lord Jiraiya. However, I would like to discuss trading and political ties with Konoha."

"I'll be sure to meet with you." Tsunade promised.

"Thank you. May I introduce my guards, Ao and Chōjūrō?" Ao was a middle aged man. His hair was blue and pointed upwards. While his right eye was covered by an eye-patch, his left eye was blue. He wore talismans from his ears and he wore a striped, grey suit. Over the suit was a green haori. Chōjūrō also had blue hair, but his was tufty. He wore square, black-rimmed hair over his dark eyes. He also wore a blue, pin-striped shirt and camouflage pants. On each pants leg was a shuriken holster. He wore a holster bearing his headband over his shirt. Strapped to the back of the holster was an odd looking sword covered in bandages, save for the two handles.

"That's the Hiramekarei, isn't it?" Jiraiya asked Chōjūrō. "You're a member of the Seven Shinobi Swordsmen of the Mist, aren't you?"

"U-um, yes, I am." He answered hesitantly.

"Chōjūrō, how many times have I told you to be more confident?" Ao snapped at him.

"Enough, you two," Mei said. "Please do not fight in front of our hosts." She paused and looked at Chōjūrō. "But Ao is right, Chōjūrō. You should be more confident."

"Yes, Lady Mei." They walked on and the next group came forward.

"Lord Raikage, welcome to Konoha." Jiraiya greeted the man wearing the hat of the Raikage.

"Jiraiya, Tsunade," He curtly greeted in return. He was a tall man with dark skin. He had a very muscular build, like he worked out constantly. He wore his blond hair combed back and had a small mustache as well as a beard. He wore simple pants and no shirt, just a haori over his upper body. On his arms were thick, golden bangle bracelets. He also wore a gold belt that had the face of a boar engraved upon it.

"Boss, it doesn't hurt to be polite." One of his guards told him. The guard was tall and dark skinned as well. He had a nose that was slightly bulbous and shaggy white hair while also having a lazy look. He wore a sleeveless, high-collared uniform with baggy pants. He wore the Kumo flak jacket, which was white and had only one strap, over the uniform. On his left shoulder was a tattoo of the kanji for lightning while on his right shoulder, was the kanji for water.

"Darui, why are you telling Lord A what to do?" asked the other guard. His skin was white, while his hair was blonde and his eyes were dark. He wore a black shirt and pants with the flak jacket over the shirt. He also wore black arm-guards that ran up to his elbows as well as red and white shin-guards over sandals. He wore his headband on his forehead.

"Hey, I'm just saying, C." Darui replied.

"Darui, C, be quiet." A ordered them.

"Yes, Lord A." They replied.

"And not a word out of you, Bee," He warned the fourth member of their group. The man had a muscular build, same as the Raikage and also had dark skin. He also had blonde hair, which was combed back, and a goatee. He wore oval sunglasses, so no one could see his eyes. The cloth on his headband, which he wore on his forehead, was white. On his left cheek was a blue tattoo of two bull horns and on his right shoulder was the kanji for iron. He wore a simple pair of dark pants, which had two white straps on each leg. On his arms were hand-guards and on his legs were shin-guards, both were red and white. Instead of a shirt, he wore a flak jacket and a white scarf. He also wore a long red rope belt around his waist. On his back, strangely enough, were seven swords.

"Please, brother. You think Killer Bee is gonna speak? You'll use your Iron Claw and I won't see for a week." He replied in a rapping style. For those who hadn't heard his rapping, they just looked at him like he had sprouted a second head.

"Damit Bee, how many times have I told you to stop rapping?!"

"Do I have to count? Because if I do, I'm sure you'll punch my lights out."

"Killer Bee, as entertaining as always," Jiraiya greeted him.

"Lo and behold, I see a fellow member of getting knocked out cold. Jiraiya the Toad Sage, you look like you haven't changed. Fool, ya fool."

"…Your rapping still needs work."

"Is that little Uchiha in town? I want to go at him again and knock him to the ground."

"That's not why we came here, Bee, and you know it." The Raikage told him.

"I assume you are here for the same reason the other Kage are?" Tsunade asked.

"Of course it is." A new voice spoke from behind them. "That's why we came too."

Everyone turned to see who spoke. They were both surprised and shocked to see it was Kisame. But he wasn't alone. All the known members of the Akatsuki were there as well. They all became alert when the recognition finally seeped through. The guards from Kumo stood in front of B, ready to defend him.

"What are you all doing here?" demanded A. "Are you all so confident that you'll try to take him in broad daylight?!"

"No." Itachi spoke, "That was not our intent at all."

"Then what are you doing here? Especially you, Itachi?" asked Tsunade. "It's almost like you want us to try and take you."

"If you do that, then Amegakure will have no choice but to declare war on Konoha." A different voice announced. The person speaking could not be seen, but people could tell it was a woman just by the voice.

Jiraiya froze. Not only did he know the voice belong to a woman, but he had heard it before, when it sounded much younger. "Konan, is that you?" He called out.

The members of Akatsuki were surprised by the fact Jiraiya apparently knew the person talking, although they were able not show their surprise on their faces. "Stand aside." The person ordered them. They back away and the person walked forward.

The person was indeed a woman and quite a beautiful one too. She had blue hair, amber eyes, wore lavender eye shadow and had a labret piercing. In her hair, she wore a paper flower. Her facial expression was a neutral one. Whatever she wore was covered by the cloak of the Akatsuki covering her. "It has been a long time…Jiraiya-sensei." She said.

"_Did she say Jiraiya-sensei?!"_ The other shinobi asked silently in their heads. The only exception was Tsunade.

"I remember you." She said. "You were one of those orphans Jiraiya took care of."

"Indeed I am, Lady Tsunade."

"Why are you here? And why do you wear the cloak of the Akatsuki?"

"I am here on the behalf of Amegakure. Our leader has sent me to observe the Genin who have made it to the final Exam. These men are my guards. So if there are any attacks on any one of them, I will consider it an attack on Ame."

Both Tsunade and Jiraiya tensed. Even though she didn't out right say it, they knew what she meant. She had essentially declared that Ame was in the hands of the Akatsuki, giving them political power and that she was here to watch Naruto. If she was here on behalf of Ame and the other members of Akatsuki were her guards, it meant they were under the protection of diplomatic immunity. If anyone tried to attack them right then and there, it would ignite a war between them and Ame. That was something the two of them did not need at the moment.

"Very well, we welcome you to Konoha." Tsunade finally said. "But know that if you or your guards attack anyone, we will treat as an attack as well."

"Do not worry, Lady Tsunade. We are only here to watch, nothing more." She began to walk forward.

"What happened to the other two, Konan?" Jiraiya asked her.

She stopped walking. "…They died, a long time ago." She walked into the village and the other members followed her. The shinobi from other countries watched on as they walked down the road before hesitantly following them.

"This might complicate things." He sighed as they heard the shinobi behind them disperse.

"Only if they try something," Tsunade replied.

"Tsunade, the Akatsuki have taken control of Ame, you know what that means."

"I know."

"Not even the three of us were able to beat him."

"I said I know, Jiraiya." She did know. It was an almost scary thought. Someone had been able to take control of Ame away from the same person who had given them the title of Sannin. Someone had killed Sanshōuo no Hanzō (Hanzō of the Salamander).

(Location: Jiraiya's training ground)

They had finished the free-for-all a little while back. Now they were working on evasion. It was Sokka's and Akela's turn, as they dodged kunai and shuriken from Naruto and fire from Zuko. Had it been the beginning of the month, they might have been able to dodge the fire, but that would've been it. Now, he gets the odd kunai or shuriken while the wolf dodges them completely.

"When is my turn going to be over?" He asked as he ducked under a fireball.

"Less complaining, more evading," Naruto told him.

They all heard Tonton oink behind them, but they didn't turn around. They heard someone come through the bushes. "I'm back." Jiraiya announced. "Did Tonton keep an eye you guys?"

"Yes, she did." Zuko replied.

"Were there any troubles?"

"Well, there was this one part where Akela tried to attack her. She punched him so hard, I think her hand bruised." Naruto remarked.

"How can Tonton have a bruised hand? She's a pig." Jiraiya asked dryly.

"Alright then, you're the real Fucking Sadist."

He grimaced. "Don't call me that."

"It's better than Pervy Sage."

"I agree with him." Zuko said.

"The same here," Sokka stated. Without warning, he grabbed his boomerang and threw it at Jiraiya. He quickly sidestepped to let it fly past and ducked to avoid a stream of fire from Zuko. When he stood up again, all three of them were coming at him with swords drawn. Zuko came in low, Sokka came up the middle and Naruto swung high.

He quickly pulled out two kunai and managed to block all three of them. "You've taken the lessons to heart." He said with approval. "You can go now, Tonton. I'll take it from here."

Tonton nodded and walked into the bush. As she trotted away, she heard the sounds of metal clashing, Jiraiya shouting **"****Ranjishigami no Jutsu** (Wild Lion's Mane Technique)**!"** and Naruto all but screaming "Watch his hair! Watch his hair!"

(Location: The Academy)

Azula stood against the wall as the students walk into the room. "What are you doing here?" One of them asked her as they sat down in the seats.

"Azula is here because she requested something of me." Iruka told the class. "She is interested in learning more about the previous Hokages." That was partially true. She wanted to know about a specific Hokage, the blonde haired one. It took her a bit, but she realized that was the same person she had seen in the swamp.

"How does that concern us, Iruka-sensei?" Another student asked.

He smiled at them. "You are the students. You're supposed to learn the information I tell you. Why don't you tell her about the Hokages?" That got a chorus of groans from the students. "If you like, we can make it a pop quiz." That silenced the groans. "I thought not. We'll start with the Shodaime Hokage. Who can tell me about him?"

One student stood up. "His name was Hashirama Senju." She answered.

"What was he famous for?"

"Well…he helped found the village."

"What else?"

"Um…he…uh…"

"He was also known for his use of **Mokuton** (Wood Style)." Another student said, standing up as the first sat back down.

"He was a Woodbender?" Azula repeated, trying to make sure she hadn't heard wrong.

"In a sense, yes, he was." Iruka told her (he had been briefed about Benders from Tsunade after the meeting she had with her). He turned his attention back to the student. "Who succeeded him as the Nidaime Hokage?"

"His brother, Tobirama Senju," He answered promptly.

"What was he famous for?"

"He created the Academy, the ANBU, the Chūnin Exams and the Konoha Military Police Force."

"I heard that he was something along the lines of a Waterbender and an exceptional one too." Azula remarked.

"Well class?" Iruka prompted.

A student stood up. "Well, I don't know what a Waterbender is, but the Second Hokage was a master of **Suiton** (Water Style) Ninjutsu. He could create his own water out of the thin air or from himself. He could also perform complex techniques with a single handseal."

"Very good, and who succeeded him as Hokage."

Another student stood up. "He passed on the title of Hokage to his student, Hiruzen Sarutobi, in the midst of the First Shinobi World War."

"What was the Sandaime Hokage famous for?"

"He has fought in all three Shinobi World Wars and he trained the Sannin."

"Is that all?"

"No. He also knew all the forms of shinobi combat and had complete mastery over them, which earned him the title of Professor. He was also the holder of the Monkey Summoning Contract."

"And who succeeded him?"

"He was succeeded by Minato Namikaze, but retook the position after the Yondaime Hokage had died."

"And how was the Yondaime Hokage famous?"

The student sat down and another stood up. "He was known throughout the Shinobi world as Konoha no Kiiroi Senkō (Konoha's Yellow Flash) due to his use of the **Hiraishin no Jutsu** (Flying Thunder God Technique). During the Third Shinobi World War, enemy had flee-on-sight orders if they had ever encountered him."

A third student stood up. "He's also famous for defeating the Kyuubi sixteen years ago. But he died afterwards and the Third Hokage had to step in again."

When she heard that, Azula froze. She started to remember things she had heard or seen before, small things about Naruto that seemed inconsequential at the time.

_For a brief moment she would have sworn she had seen a head of a large fox snarling behind him._

_"You know how I always think that Naruto has two auras?"_

_"What did I do? Am I really a demon? Why do they keep hurting me?"_

"_I am responsible for the hell he's been through." _

_"It sounded like he had woken up from a dream. Then he started to talk to himself. I didn't hear much but I did hear the words 'Akatsuki' 'Jinchūriki' and 'Yonbi'."_

_"He's never told us about his past."_

_"I came to these lands so I could leave my past behind me."_

"_Like the fact you thought you were a demon when you were a child?"_

_"There was an incident when I was born. As a result, the village lost its leader and many lives. Because I was born on the same day, they took it out on me."_

_"…I'm sorry I kept things from you, Azula. But I didn't want you to know about them."_

"_I heal quickly."_

_"No one heals that quickly!"_

_"I do."_

_She sighed. "This is one of your secrets, isn't it?" He just nodded. "You're going to have tell me them someday."_

_"Maybe, but it's not today."_

"_All I had were my past experiences and they're not something I like to remember."_

_"Does he not realize what the necklace is for?"_

"_It was one of those things that he never really told us. The closest answer I ever got was that it was in October."_

"_Naruto was born on the tenth of October."_

"_Geez old man, can't you say we came to see their Jinchūriki in action?"_

"Azula, Azula are you alright?" Iruka's voice called out at her.

"What?" She said, coming back to the rest of the world.

"I asked you if you were alright."

"Yes, I'm fine." She turned to the class. "Thank you for all you've said."

"So you learned everything you wanted to know?"

"Yes. I have to leave now. Goodbye." She left the room before he could even speak. She all but ran out of the Academy and back onto the street. _"He and I need to have a talk, right now!"_ She thought to herself. _"The problem is I don't know where he is."_

"I saw Lord Jiraiya a few hours ago." She heard a woman speak to her friends. "He walked right past the hot springs and into the nearby woods."

"What's wrong with that?" One of her friends asked.

"This is _Lord Jiraiya_, the man who peeps at women in the hot springs whenever they are in. I have never known him to just walk past a hot springs when there were women in it. It kinda makes me concerned."

"You mean didn't know?"

"Know what?"

"Lord Jiraiya is training Naruto Uzumaki and his teammates for the final Chūnin Exam. They've been living in the forest near the hot springs for a month."

"_Well, isn't that helpful?"_ Azula thought to herself as she made her way to the hot springs.

(Location: Jiraiya's training ground)

He had them stand in the water and practice the forms over and over again. They had done this countless times during the month, so they had gotten used to it. They had also gotten used to the fact that Jiraiya would randomly strike at them, seeing if their concentration would break,

He walked in front of them, watching them carefully. Without warning, he threw a punch at Sokka. He deflected the punch and kept going through the forms, like nothing had happened. "Better." He simply stated. He swung his leg at Zuko, who blocked it and kept on moving through the form. Without saying anything, he pulled out a kunai and swung it at Naruto. He disarmed him, tossed the kunai away and kept doing the forms.

He kept on randomly attacking them for the next half-hour. Every time, they would block, deflect or disarm him. They've done it so many times during the month, it had become a reflex. "Alright, that's enough. You guys can stop." They relax their bodies, but kept their minds on alert. It wouldn't have been the first time Jiraiya would tell them to stop, only to suddenly attack them.

That was what alerted them. "Hit the ground!" Zuko cried out. They all ducked as a large fireball sailed over their heads and hit a nearby tree, setting it ablaze.

"Did anyone else notice that fireball was blue?" Sokka asked.

"Trust me, I saw it too." Naruto told him. "And I only know one person who can do that." She all looked up and saw Azula standing at the edge of the training ground with a very angry expression on her face.

When she looked at Naruto, she snarled and threw another fireball at him. He leapt back into the surrounding bush to dodge. They could all hear the footsteps getting fainter. She growled and went after him.

"Should we go after them?" Sokka asked.

"Not when Azula is like that." Zuko told him.

(Location: Naruto & Azula)

Naruto had managed to distance himself away from the training ground with Azula on his heels. They finally stopped in a small clearing. "Azula, what's the matter with you?" He asked as they circled one another.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked, throwing another fireball at him.

"Tell you what?" He dodged it

She bent a stream of fire at him. "What, did you think it was something only you needed to know about?"

"You're not making any sense."

"Stop lying! I know everything." She bent a barrage of fireballs at him. He ducked low and moved forward. Reaching out and grabbing her wrists, he yanked them downward, stopping the barrage.

"What are you talking about, Azula?" He asked her.

"I'm talking about the fact that you have a demon sealed inside you and you never bothered to tell us!" She shouted. The clearing fell quiet as the shout echoed in the trees.

"…How do you find out?" He finally asked.

"I didn't put it together until today. I had asked Iruka about the pervious Hokages. He, in turn, asked the class and they told me. When they got to the Yondaime defeating the Kyuubi, things started to make sense."

"What do you mean?"

"You told me that there was an incident on the day you were born and people blamed you for it. When you were a child, you wondered if you were a demon, so that must have meant people actually thought you were one. You left this land behind to escape your past, which means that your experiences with this place had become too much and you wanted to go somewhere people didn't know who you were. You were born on the tenth of October and since you've never really told us about that, it must've meant you didn't want to remember that day. I also know that you talked to yourself when you think you're alone and somehow, the words 'Yonbi' and 'Jinchūriki' mean something to you. But the Yonbi, which sounds similar to Kyuubi, was not the one to attack Konoha, so that must mean you are not the only one." She listed off the details while looking him straight in the eye

He was silent for a few minutes before letting out a defeated sigh. "You always did have a keen eye." He said.

"So I was right?"

"…On the day of my birth, the Kyuubi attacked the village. The Yondaime Hokage sealed it inside of me to save the village and sacrificed himself in the process. A Jinchūriki is someone who holds a Bijū inside of them. I am the Jinchūriki of the Kyuubi."

"Why didn't you tell me or the others?"

"What was I supposed to say? That I had a fox seal inside my stomach that had the ability to destroy the Fire Nation if he felt like it? That there was a chance that he could take control of my body and go on a rampage?"

"**Hey, we have an agreement."** Kyuubi protested. **"I don't take over your body unless you're unconscious and we're in the middle of a fight."**

"_She doesn't know that, Kyuubi. I'm using it as an example."_

"Did you think that we would treat you differently if you did tell us?" Azula demanded, yanking her hands out of his grip.

"Yes! That's why I left in the first place! Everyone kept looking at me with hate, disgust or fear and the first twelve years of my life, I didn't know why. I couldn't make any friends because parents kept telling their kids to stay away from me. I was beaten on a regular basis and I couldn't even go to a hospital to get treated, they would just throw me out. Do you think I would want to go through that again in a new land after I had just left it behind?"

"It would have been different!"

"How would you know that? The reaction would've been the same. If I had told you, odds were that you would've wanted nothing to me. You'd just look at me like I was a freak. So yes, I didn't tell you about what I held. But can you blame me?"

"…I know you wanted to keep this a secret. But I'm also hurt that you didn't think I would be able to see you as human and not a demon. If you can't trust me, how can I trust you?"

"What are you talking about, Azula?"

"You are not my bodyguard anymore. If I can't have your trust, you will not defend me." She declared in an authoritative voice.

"What? You can't mean that. I've been protecting you for three years!"

"And you've been keeping secrets from me. I've been tolerant of that, but I can't take it anymore. Until we can trust each other, we're done."

He looked like he had been slapped, having understood what she meant by done. "Azula…"

"Naruto, please just don't." She turned her back on him. "Let's just leave each other alone for now, okay?" She didn't wait for an answer. She walked into the bushes and away from him.

He stood there, listening to her footsteps getting fainter. **"…Kit? You okay?"** Kyuubi finally dared to ask.

"I've just been effectively dumped over you, Kyuubi. Do you think I feel okay?"

"**Um…would me saying sorry make you feel better?"**

"Not really, no."

"**I figured as much."**

(Location: Konoha Arena)

It had been two days since the Kages and the daimyos had arrived. It was the day of the final Exam and the arena was packed. People had literally fought in the streets over tickets leading to the day. Some (mostly shinobi) had been smart enough to get a ticket a month beforehand.

"Hey, there are some seats over there!" Kiba declared as he, the other members of the Konoha Eleven in Konoha and the Team Avatar walked into the stands. There was indeed an empty row of seats, which looked like it could seat everyone. They all sat down (proving the assumption true).

Up in the Kage box, all five of the Kages had been seated and waited the beginning of the Exam. "This will be a very interesting day." Mei remarked.

"If anything, at least we'll be able to see a couple of good fights." Bee rapped. "Seeing people get beat down will make us feel alright."

"Bee, knock it off." A told him.

"Where are Konan and her 'guards'?" Tsunade asked Jiraiya in a whisper.

"They have a private booth and are being constantly monitored." He quietly answered.

She nodded in acknowledgement and looked down at the field. She saw five people waiting behind the proctor for the beginning of the Exam. Meanwhile, others were doing the same thing. "Why is Sokka wearing a cloak and hood?" Aang wondered aloud. Sokka was indeed wearing a dark cloak with the hood drawn over his head. They could because he was talking animatedly with Zuko and because Akela sat on his haunches by his side.

"I guess we'll find out." Suki replied.

"Have you noticed?" Tenten quietly asked Shikamaru.

"Yeah I did." He replied. "It's a drag."

"What are members of the ANBU doing here?" Kiba asked the others as he looked and noted the location of each ANBU member (Akamaru was too big to come with him now, so he stayed home).

"Perhaps for extra security?" suggested Neji. "All five of the Kages are here."

"But the last time ANBU was posted as security during the final Exam, we got invaded." Ino pointed out.

"Something's going to happen." Tenten said. "We'll have to be ready."

Everyone agreed, everyone, except Hinata. "What is the matter, Hinata?" Shino asked her.

"Something is not right." She said.

"There are ANBU stationed all around the arena." Chōji pointed out.

"I don't mean that. Look down at the field." They did so and immediately saw what she meant.

"Hey guys, we're not the only ones who're seeing this, right?" Katara asked them.

"Trust me, Katara, we're seeing it too." Kiba assured her.

As a matter of fact, everyone in the arena began to notice it too. Down in the field, standing behind the proctor, were Zuko, Sokka, Suigetsu, Karin and Jūgo. There were only five people there.

Soon, everyone in the arena, including the Kages and the 'delegation' from Ame (with the exception of three people) all had the same question.

"_Where is Naruto Uzumaki?"_

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

If you think that it was stupid of me to have the Akatsuki reveal their control over Ame, stop and think. By doing so, they gain political power and the ability to make trade deals and treaties with other countries. Also, a 'delegation' could go right into another country and probably get away with whatever they do due to the diplomatic immunity they have.

I like to think that Tonton is more than just a pet pig. She is how Shizune keeps an eye on Tsunade when she's not in the room. All-in-all, a good line of thumb is be afraid of the pig. Be very afraid of the pig. If you don't believe me, I have one word for you: Pumbaa.

Yes, Azula has finally figured out what Naruto's little secret is. I couldn't keep that locked away forever, you guys would kill me. But it wouldn't have been any fun if the entire group learned about it at the same time. Plus, I wanted to have Naruto and Azula to have a serious argument.

If any of you think that my writing of Killer Bee was not up to snuff, I apologize. I don't really listen to rap, so it's kinda hard for to figure out how he should rhyme.

As for the reason Sokka is wearing a cloak with a hood covering his face and the fact Naruto is not there, you'll just have to wait and see.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	39. Being Ready and Being Watched

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 39: Being Ready and Being Watched

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Konoha Arena)

The quite noticeable absence of Naruto began to stir up the crowd. He was the reason most of the people there had come. They wanted to see him in combat; the others were just second fiddles. But now, all they had were said fiddles.

"Where the hell is he?!" demanded Kiba. "Most of the people came here to see him!"

"If he doesn't want to show up, that is his choice." Azula told him curtly. Everyone looked at her after that. "What?"

"Uh…did something happen with you and Naruto?" Katara asked hesitantly.

"Are you him?"

"No."

"Then don't butt in on things you don't know about." She snapped.

"Okay, okay, sorry." She apologized.

* * *

Meanwhile, up in the Kage box, the Kages were wondering the same thing. "Where is that brat?" Ōnoki asked.

"I don't know, but let's get this Exam started." said A.

"Should we not wait for him?" Mei suggested.

"He is just one person. There are five others who are waiting to fight."

"He's right." Tsunade declared as she stood up from her seat. She walked forward to the banister and took a deep breath. "Welcome, everyone." She said in a loud voice, getting the attention of every single person there. "Thank you for coming to Konoha for the Chūnin Exams. We will now begin the final Exam. We also ask you not to leave the arena until all the matches are done. Now then, enjoy yourselves."

* * *

When he heard that, the proctor, Genma Shiranui, turned to the five on the field. "Alright, listen up." He said. "There are no rules in these fights. The match will go on until one of the fighters is dead or claims defeat. If I say a match is over, I will step in and stop it, no arguments. Are there any questions?" No one said a word. "In that case, everybody except for Sokka and Suigetsu head to the waiting area."

Karin and Jūgo started to walk away while Zuko looked at Sokka's hood-covered face. "You ready?" He asked.

"Of course I am." He answered. He turned to look at the wolf sitting next to him. "Akela, go with him." Akela gave him a pointed look. "I'll be fine. Besides, do you really want to attack a guy who can turn into water? He might give you an impromptu bath." He winced and finally nodded. He stood up, padded over to Zuko and the two walked away.

* * *

"This might be an interesting match." Kisame said as he watched from the private booth.

"What makes you say that, hm?" Deidara, a former Iwa shinobi with long blonde hair done up in a half ponytail and with a bang covering his left eye, asked.

"We have fought alongside Sokka once when we were in the Bending Countries." Itachi explained. "He was the only one in the Avatar's group to recognize the fact that people had to die that day."

"On the other hand, Suigetsu is the younger brother of Mangetsu Hōzuki." Kisame pointed out.

"And how is that relevant?" Kakuzu, a tall man with a white hood and a black mask covering his head, leaving his green eyes visible, asked.

"Mangetsu was one of the few members of the Seven Swordsmen I know of that had mastered all seven of the blades, even Samehada, who is quite picky when to wielders." He explained. "It'll be interesting to see if his younger brother has even half of his talent."

* * *

"Man, I can't believe I'm fighting you." Suigetsu complained. "I wanted to fight Uzumaki."

"Why? You'd get a longer fight with me." Sokka told him.

"Are you stupid? You'd think I'd be able to beat him that easily?"

"Actually, the way the three of us figured it out, he'd beat you in five seconds."

"What did you say?" He snarled.

"You heard me. Or did you forget what he did do your head?"

He reached for the Kubikiribōchō. "Alright, that's it. Let's fight!"

"In that case, begin!" Genma ordered before stepping back.

He charged forward, swinging the Kubikiribōchō. "I'm gonna slice your head off!" He declared, swinging the giant blade down at his head.

"You'd think I'm gonna let that happen?" He remarked. With quick speed, he pulled out his club and used it to swat the sword aside. Suigetsu was surprised and almost fell down. But he quickly recovered. He regained his balance and turned into a spin, swinging the Kubikiribōchō in a circle.

Sokka stepped back to avoid the strike. He pressed forward, keeping the sword moving. "What's the matter?" He asked. "Not going to fight back?"

He stopped, ducked under the swing of the blade and then swung his club upwards. It struck Suigetsu in the stomach, causing water to splash out and forcing him to withdraw the club. _"A blunt instrument against him won't do any good and I can't pull out my jian or my boomerang until I'm certain he's shown all the moves he knows with the Kubikiribōchō." _He analyzed. _"Well, I'll have to make do."_

* * *

"Why hasn't Sokka attacked?" Aang asked. "I thought he would've charged straight in and attacked."

"He might have, if I didn't beat it out of his head." Jiraiya's voice spoke. They all turned and saw him standing on the stairs.

"Lord Jiraiya? I thought you were protecting Lady Tsunade." Tenten said.

"Oh I am, but the one up there is just a clone. I figured that I keep an eye on you guys."

"We are perfectly capable of protecting ourselves, Lord Jiraiya." Shino told him.

"I meant them." He pointed to Aang and the others. "I'm here to make sure they don't do anything stupid."

"How wonderful, somebody to keep an eye on us because they think we might do something." Toph said sarcastically.

"Sorry, it's just a precaution."

"Whatever."

"So why isn't Sokka attacking?" Suki asked.

"If he had, the match wouldn't have lasted long." He explained. "He is smart and tries to keep a cool head in the middle of a fight, but he just attacked. His analyzing skills were virtually nonexistent and that can get him killed. So I took some time and taught him how to analyze an opponent."

* * *

He kept his club close to him as Suigetsu kept on attacking. Every time the sword got close, he would knock it away. He kept dodging and evading, infuriating Suigetsu. "Come on, fight back!" He shouted.

"I'll fight when I want to." He replied.

This only infuriated him more. He let out an angry shout and pressed forward. He kept swinging, trying to cut him. Sokka would keep on blocking and deflecting. Then he did something unexpected. He suddenly charged forward, swinging the club. He tried to hammer away at Suigetsu, who was using the Kubikiribōchō to block.

"_He's using the Kubikiribōchō_ _as a form of shield."_ He noted. _"Now to figure out if it will stay in that one position, or if he will move it to accommodate."_ He tried to attack from every possible angle. Suigetsu kept using the sword as a shield, but always kept it in the same position. Sure, he would move it to block a strike from a different angle, but the handle always stayed closed to his head while the blade pointed downwards.

"_I have to keep going. He could be deceiving me, I have to be sure!"_ He thought to himself as he kept attacking.

"_What's up with this guy?"_ Suigetsu asked himself. _"One minute, he's avoiding my strikes and the next, he trying to pound me into the ground."_ He did his best to block the strikes of the club. The arena began to echo with the clang of the club hitting the sword. _"Hang on…there! Every time he attacks, he steps forward, lifting his foot off the ground. If I time it right, I can use Kubikiribōchō to trip him."_

He waited for a good opportunity. Seeing said opportunity, he quickly took Kubikiribōchō out of its defensive position and slid it underneath Sokka's foot, making in land in the middle of the circle. He pulled back and yanked the blade up.

Sokka's foot got caught and so, by extension, was he. It didn't last long as he was tripped by the blade. He fell to the ground, crashing into the earth. The club flew out of his hand and landed a good distance away from him.

"_Okay, I probably pushed it too far."_ He silently admitted. _"But on the other hand, I now know he can do that."_

"Well it seems that you finally began to fight back." Suigetsu said. "Pity I have to end though, I was starting to have fun." He stuck the Kubikiribōchō into the ground, flashed through handseals and then pointed his right hand at him, folding every finger except for his index finger and thumb. **"Suiton: ****Mizudeppō no Jutsu**(Water Style: Water Gun Jutsu)**!"** He cried. A small amount of water compressed itself onto the tip of the index finger and then fired itself at Sokka.

He rolled out of the way, the water hit the ground. He quickly stood up, but jumped back as Suigetsu fired off another round of water. "Oh, do you want to dance?" He asked him. "Then let's dance!" He kept firing water at him, trying to kill him. This made Sokka keep dodging the water by ducking and weaving.

* * *

"That was the **Mizudeppō no Jutsu**!" Ao said with surprise.

"Bu-but I thought only members of the Hōzuki clan could do that jutsu." Chōjūrō protested.

"Well, it seems that brat is member of that clan." Ōnoki remarked. "I can actually see the Nidaime Mizukage in him."

"I take it that's not a good thing, old man." Kurotsuchi asked with a slight teasing tone.

"I hated that man. I was quite glad when he was killed."

"But the question remains, Lord Ōnoki, what is a member of the Hōzuki clan doing with Kusa?" Mei asked.

"That is, if the team is from Kusa after all." Tsunade remarked.

"Where else could they be from?" Chōjūrō asked.

No answered him.

* * *

Sokka was running around, trying to dodge for all his worth. The small balls of water kept missing him by mere inches. And yet, the odd thing was that Suigetsu wasn't getting angry at continually missing him. If anything, he was looking more and more happy. "This is so much fun!" He declared with an almost maniacal grin. "Are you getting frustrated now?"

"Actually, I've faced worse." Sokka replied. "Is this all you've got?"

"No. I have more." He brought up his left hand and started to fire water from that one as well. The amount of water coming at him had been doubled as well as the rate it was coming at him.

"_I had to open my mouth."_ He cursed himself quietly.

* * *

"Well now, that is quite interesting." Kisame said with a grin.

"What makes you say that, Kisame?" Tobi, a member whose face was covered by a spiral-patterned orange mask with a hole showing his right eye, asked him.

"Not a single member of the Hōzuki clan I knew could use the **Mizudeppō no Jutsu **dual-handed."

"Seems easy enough, hm," Deidara noted.

"Actually, it takes a good amount of concentration to fire off a round. The fact that Suigetsu can do it with both hands, at the same time and such a rapid rate is quite impressive."

* * *

"He had to open his mouth." Jiraiya said with a sigh.

"You've been training him for a month and you're surprised when he does that?" Toph asked.

"No, I was just hoping he wouldn't do it during the middle of the fight."

"What I want to know is how that guy is Waterbending." Aang said, pointing down at Suigetsu. "I thought he was a shinobi, not a Bender."

"He's not Waterbending. He's using the **Mizudeppō no Jutsu**, which can only be used by the Hōzuki clan of Kirigakure."

"Why can only they use it?" Katara asked.

"That clan has the ability to completely liquefy their bodies. It's called the **Suika no Jutsu** (Hydrification Jutsu). When they use this jutsu, anything but an air-tight container can't hold them. The only downside we know of is that they are vulnerable to **Raiton **(Lightning Style) Ninjutsu."

"Or probably just plain lightning." Azula remarked curtly. "Besides, if he can turn his body into water, then that means a Waterbender can defeat him easily."

"Well, that's possible, I suppose." He admitted after looking at her for a brief moment. "But we've never had a Waterbender in the Chūnin Exams."

* * *

Sokka was running circles around Suigetsu, dodging every piece of water shot at him. _"I did not endure that hell of a month just to be killed by water!"_ He swore to himself. _"If I ever let that happen, it'll because I pissed off Katara!"_

Suigetsu wanted to keep up the jutsu, but the effects were already getting to him. The rate of fire began to slow down until it finally died. Sokka stopped where he stood and saw Suigetsu panting for breath. "You're out of energy already?" He asked.

"Something along those lines," He answered. "Fortunately, I know how to get it back and keep you in the dark." He flashed through a different set of handseals; raised his right hand to his mouth in a half seal and raised his left hand over his head. **"Suiton: Kirigakure no Jutsu** (Water Style: Hiding in Mist Jutsu)**."** He said, opening his mouth and spewing out white mist. The arena began to be thick with the stuff. Sokka couldn't see anything past his own hand.

* * *

"I was beginning to wonder when he'd bring that out." Kisame said.

"So he can use it as well." Itachi noted.

"The kid was well on his way to becoming a member of the Swordsmen when I left. Learning that jutsu is mandatory. Besides, he needs to rejuvenate himself and the mist gives him the perfect cover."

"What do you mean?" Kakuzu asked.

"A downside of using the **Suika no Jutsu** is that the user has to stay hydrated at all times. The kid figured that if he tried to drink water in the open, Sokka would've pounced on the chance to attack him. So he gave himself some cover."

* * *

"So he brought in the **Kirigakure no Jutsu**." Neji stated. "That might cause problems for Sokka."

"What makes you say that?" Katara asked him.

"The **Kirigakure no Jutsu **is a famous jutsu from Kiri." Jiraiya explained. "As you can see, it covers an area in mist, hiding the user from his opponents. The thickness of the mist is determined by much chakra was put into it. This jutsu can go hand-in-hand with the technique to silently kill."

"Silently kill?" Aang repeated with a worried look.

He nodded. "Masters of Silent Killing can use the mist to sneak up to the opponents and kill them without them ever realizing it."

"Is Sokka going to be okay?" Suki asked.

"I guess it all depends on whether that Suigetsu kid is a master of Silent Killing or not."

* * *

He had managed to drink the amount of water needed and was now hunting Sokka down. He wasn't a master of Silent Killing, so his footsteps made noise as he walked slowly through the mist which, in his opinion made it feel worse. _"Hah, he's probably pissing himself right about now."_ He thought with glee. _"Only hearing footsteps, not knowing where I am. He must be completely and utterly terrified."_ He soon saw the cloak he wore, standing in the mist. _"And now, I've gotcha!"_ He swung the Kubikiribōchō down on the head, intending to cleave him in two.

The blade met no resistance as it met the cloak. It was simply cut in two. But as the remains fell to the ground, there was no blood or even a body. "What?" He said in surprise.

"What do you know? That stick did come in handy." Sokka's voice said in the mist.

"Where are you?" He demanded, turning to the direction where the voice was coming from.

"Do you honestly think I'm going to tell you?"

"How did you know I was coming for you?"

"It was painfully obvious. The sound of your feet on the ground was a dead giveaway. You thought I was terrified of that sound, weren't you?" The sound of laughter echoed throughout the mist. "There are things I'm more afraid of then ominous footsteps in mist and one of them is a giant owl librarian." The voice came from a different spot in the mist.

"Come out here!"

"Out where? We're in the middle of a mist." Again, the voice came from a different place in the mist.

He quickly canceled the jutsu, letting the mist fade away. The only problem was he still didn't see him. "Where the hell are you!?" He yelled.

"I'm right behind you, moron." He turned around and looked at his enemy. What he saw was not what he was expecting.

Sokka stood across from him. He wore his armor that Sifu had changed for him. Strapped to his back was both the sheath for his boomerang and his jian, crisscrossing each other. He didn't wear the helmet, he didn't need to. He had painted his face the same way he did when Zuko had come to the South Pole looking for Aang. While he had looked serious with it on before, seasoned warriors would've been able to tell he didn't have the experience to back up the look. Now he did and that made the look all the more intimidating.

* * *

"Isn't that the stuff he wore back at the South Pole?" Aang asked.

"Yeah, it is." Katara answered.

"It looks scarier now."

"Sokka does not look youthful at all!" Lee declared.

"Troublesome." Shikamaru muttered. "It's not about being youthful, Lee. It's about making your opponent nervous."

"Very good, Shikamaru," Jiraiya told him. "You know, Sokka reminds me of you, just without the laziness."

"You know, he's got a point." Ino agreed.

"I wonder who would win in a game of strategy." Chōji said.

"It's too troublesome to figure out now." The Nara clan heir replied.

"That's your answer to everything!" Kiba objected.

"But in this case, he would be right." Neji said.

"What I want to know is how he can do that thing with his voice." Toph said.

"He could throw his voice around like that since we were kids." Katara told her. "He often did it to annoy me. It's also why no one wanted to play hide-an-go-seek with him."

* * *

"Is all of that supposed to scare me?" Suigetsu asked, trying to act like his entire appearance didn't unnerve him. Sokka didn't say anything; he just looked at him like he was measuring his worth. "If you're not going to do anything, then I'll make you do something!" He raised the Kubikiribōchō above his head.

Sokka's hand blurred as he pulled out the boomerang and threw it at him. It sliced through his left arm, turning into a jelly-like substance. The boomerang curved back around and sliced through his right arm, turning it into the same substance. While his opponent screamed in pain, he just caught the boomerang and put it away. "Seems like your arms stay attached even after they've been sliced through. Pity, I guess Naruto's kick was just luck."

"You think you'll be able to beat me that easily!?" He screamed as his arms returned to normal.

"I don't know. Care to find out?" He asked as he drew his jian and took a Waterbending stance. He waited as his opponent charged at him. When the Kubikiribōchō was swung at his head, he lifted the jian in a defensive position. The blades met and in that moment, he pushed the Kubikiribōchō up and away and then brought his own sword down in a slice.

Suigetsu stepped back and only got his shirt sliced. He turned into a spin and swung his sword at his opponent's side. Sokka swung to meet it, blocking the sword with the side of his jian. He quickly leapt onto the Kubikiribōchō itself and slashed at his head.

He ducked his head to avoid the slash and jerked the blade down, trying to get him fall. His response was to jump off of it in backflip and land a goodly distance away from him. Quickly looking down, he noticed that he had landed right next to the club. "Well, that's useful." He remarked.

"What is?" Suigetsu asked as he charged forward.

"This." He got his foot underneath the club's handle and kicked up in the air. He caught it with his left hand. He stood ready, dual-wielding weapons.

"Is that supposed to make me nervous?" He swung his blade high, intending to once again to slice him in half. Sokka stopped the blade by hitting the tip with the jian's own tip. He took a step forward and swung the club at Suigetsu's midsection. Instead of hearing the sound of it hitting flesh, it hit water, splashing it all over the place. He moved the jian away from the Kubikiribōchō and aimed it directly at his shoulder.

He was blocked when Suigetsu moved his blade in front of him, blocking the thrust. _"So he can use hold it in other defensive positions, he just tried not to show it."_ He noted, before twisting to the side. Yanking the club out of Suigetsu, he reared it back before striking down at the back of his head.

Without even looking back, Suigetsu reached out behind himself and grabbed the club, stopping it short. He pulled it around the side, bringing Sokka back to his front. Releasing his grip to hold Kubikiribōchō with both hands, he tried to stab him through the stomach. However, releasing his hold on the club proved to be a mistake.

Sokka stopped the sword with the jian, then using the hooked end of the club to take hold of the Kubikiribōchō via the hole in it. Pulling hard, he yanked it out of Suigetsu's hands and sent it flying away in the air. It hit the ground with the tip, causing it to stick to the ground.

He tried to stab his opponent in the chest, but he avoided it by taking a step to the side. _"I need to get Kubikiribōchō back!"_ He thought in a panic. He tried running past him, Sokka turned low in a half-circle, sweeping his foot underneath his feet. He tripped and began to fall to the ground. As he fell, he felt the club hitting his back hard. Even though water sprayed everywhere, he could still feel pain. He tried to move, but only succeeded in lifting his head up from the ground.

"You know, you might have a few jutsus. But quite frankly, you are totally dependent on this thing." Sokka stated as he walked over to where Kubikiribōchō stood in the ground. He hooked the club to his belt and sheathed his jian. "I wonder how you would do against it." He said as he stood by the giant blade.

"So you're going to use it?" He asked before giving a harsh bark of laughter. "You don't have the strength to pick it up, let alone hold it."

He gave a smirk that seemed cold and vicious. "I never said _I_ was going to use it." He clasped his hand around the handle and yanked it out of the ground. His eyes turned black and he was enveloped in a cocoon of energy. It was visible for only a second and it dissipated. In Sokka's place, with the Kubikiribōchō resting on his shoulder was a man Suigetsu was very familiar with.

"What? How are you here?!" He asked in a half-shout, half-squeak. The pain disappeared due to the fear he felt, allowing him to stand up.

"**Well, if it isn't little Suigetsu Hōzuki."** Zabuza Momochi said with a grin visible underneath the bandages.

* * *

"What in the name of Lord Jashin is that?!" Hidan, an Akatsuki member with slicked back silver hair and purple eyes, demanded. "That man is dead!"

"Wow, that's so cool!" Tobi declared with childish glee.

"Itachi, Kisame, what is this?" Konan asked the two. "I thought Zabuza Momochi was dead."

"Oh don't worry, Zabuza is dead." Kisame said.

"Then how is he here?"

"Our information about this ability is limited, due to the fact we only saw it once." Itachi answered her. "It is an ability called Soulbending and from what we gathered, the user takes an item familiar to a person, use it to summon the soul and then to become it. In this case, Sokka has used Kubikiribōchō to become Zabuza."

"So, Zabuza has taken control of the boy's body." Kakuzu summarized.

"More like Sokka has taken command of his soul."

"How rare is this ability?" Konan asked.

"Soulbending is only able to be used by four specific people, the Paragons. Sokka and Naruto are two of those four members."

"So the Kyuubi brat is one of these Soulbenders, hm?" Deidara asked.

"Deidara, remember which village we are in." Konan said pointedly.

* * *

**"Seems like the kid's using me to fight you," **Zabuza noted. He rolled his shoulders back, loosening up the muscles. **"Sounds like fun."**

"You're actually going to fight?" Suigetsu said, surprised.

"**Of course, after all…"**He placed the sword on his back. **"We never finished our spar."** He flashed through handseals and did the motions Suigetsu did. **"Kirigakure no Jutsu."** The mist quickly arrived and quickly thickened.

Suigetsu kept looking around, but he could never see where he was. He couldn't hear anything as well. **"Are you looking for something?"** He heard Zabuza's voice in the mist. **"You've gotten sloppy, Suigetsu. I thought you were trying to be a part of the Seven Swordsmen."**

"Where the hell are you!?" He shouted, any shred of calmness and confidence he had left was now gone.

"**I'm right here."** He whispered behind him. He spun around and tried to use the **Mizudeppō no Jutsu**. But it was too late. The last thing he saw was the Kubikiribōchō coming at him.

* * *

"Well, this match is over." Jiraiya declared.

"What makes you say that, Lord Jiraiya?" Tenten asked.

"Suigetsu isn't a master of Silent Killing, Zabuza is. Once he used the **Kirigakure no Jutsu**, the fight was over."

"Are you sure about that?" Toph asked.

"Of course I'm sure. I trained him for a month after all."

"Hey look, the mist is thinning." Aang pointed down to the field.

* * *

Genma watched as the mist began to dissipate. When it was clear enough to see, he saw Zabuza standing over an unconscious Suigetsu, who had turned into the same jelly-like substance his arms had been in. **"That…was pathetic."** Zabuza declared, looking down at him. **"I expected better from you, Suigetsu."** He looked over at the proctor. "You might as well call it." Sokka's voice spoke from Zabuza's mouth, the completely black eyes fading away to reveal blue ones.

He nodded in agreement. "The winner of the match is Sokka of the Southern Water Tribe."

As everyone politely applauded, Sokka's blue eyes were replaced by Zabuza's brown ones. He looked at the sword in his handand then looked up at the Kage box. **"Eh, might as well." **Without warning, he charged towards the wall and then ran up it. Before anyone could stop him, he had reached the top and had leapt into the air. His eyes looked over the people in the box and locked on the woman sitting in the chair with the hat of the Mizukage above her. He landed on the banister in front of her. **"Are you the Mizukage?" **He asked.

"Yes, I am." Mei answered.

He brought the Kubikiribōchō up and pointed it at her. Before he or anyone else could do anything, another sword was at his neck. He looked down at the sword and then the person holding it. **"Who the hell are you, kid, and what in the name of Kami are you doing holding the Hiramekarei?"** He asked Chōjūrō, who was standing in front of Mei.

"My name is Chōjūrō and I am a member of the Seven Swordsmen." He declared, holding Zabuza's gaze. "I don't care if you're my senior or not, Zabuza. If you try to harm Lady Mei, I'll send you back to the Shinigami."

The two Swordsmen stared at each other for what seemed a longer. Then Zabuza began to chuckle. **"You've got spunk, kid. And you're willing to attack your senior, who could easily beat you." **He shook his head as he chuckled. **"I like that. You keep that attitude up; odds are you'll do well."** He stopped chuckling and grew serious again. **"But you don't need to worry about me attacking her, so put that thing away, would ya?"**

He didn't move an inch. "It's alright, Chōjūrō, stand down." Mei told him. He stepped away from Zabuza and put his sword away, but he kept his hands near his holsters. "What is it that you need?" She asked Zabuza as she stared at the tip of the Kubikiribōchō.

"**I'm dead, woman, I don't have needs. I do have a want, though."**

"Then what do you want?"

He turned the sword downwards and stabbed it into the floor. **"I want you to make sure this stays in Kiri. You lose it and I will come back to haunt you, understand?"**

"Yes, I do." She took hold of the sword and effortlessly pulled out of the floor. "Thank you, Zabuza Momochi."

He shrugged. **"****Kubikiribōchō is more than a grave marker."** He turned around and jumped off the banister. As he was airborne, he aimed himself down at the waiting area. He flew down towards it and landed in a roll. When he came out of the roll, it was Sokka again.

"Always dramatic, aren't you?" Zuko asked him as he and Akela walked over to him.

"Actually, that was Zabuza. I was content to take the stairs." He answered.

* * *

"So, what do we all think?" Mei asked as she placed the Kubikiribōchō on the side of the chair.

"That Suigetsu kid wasn't bad with the Kubikiribōchō." Ōnoki commented. "And he used the **Mizudeppō no Jutsu** quite well."

"But that was all he was good with." Gaara objected. "Take away those and he didn't have much to use in a fight."

"His temper also led him into trouble."

"Speaking of which, what do we think of Sokka?" Tsunade asked.

"The kid has been trained by a master, there is no doubt. That's why he commanded the bout." Killer Bee stated.

"H-he's right." Chōjūrō agreed, the confidence he had beforehand slowly disappearing. "His swordsmanship was a little stiff, but that was it. He displayed some exceptional movements and knew how to use his sword against a larger sword."

"He also showed tactical thinking when he first attacked. He was testing how his opponent would defend." Mei noted. "It's a shame he's not a shinobi, I would've said he earned the right for Chūnin rank."

"Yes, yes, the Hōzuki boy was bad and the foreigner was surprisingly good." A said rudely. "Let's move on."

"Hey brother, what's put you in a foul mood? You're acting really rude." Bee asked him.

"Damit Bee! Stop it with the rapping! Or do you want the Iron Claw!?" He asked, raising his left hand.

* * *

"Alright, the next match will be Zuko vs. Karin." Genma called out. "Will the two candidates come down?"

Karin looked over at Zuko. She had also thought that the matches with the foreigners would be a walk in the park. But after watching Suigetsu's match, she wasn't so sure. The foreigner wasn't even one of those Benders she had been informed about, but her opponent was one.

She turned to look at said opponent. He was flexing his fingers, stretching them to the limits and curling them back. Every time he stretched them, a small flame would appear in his hands. Every time he curled them back, the flames would disappear. It was a little unnerving to watch someone be able to use fire so easily without any handseals whatsoever. What also unnerved her was the fact she couldn't sense any chakra from him or his friend.

He turned his gaze on her and she stiffened. His golden eyes seemed to look right through her. They showed nothing, except someone who would not be holding back in anyway. The glare on his face and the scar just help enforce the point. However, she then saw something that terrified her to the bone. Encircling him protectively was a dragon the color of fire. Its bright blue eyes looked at her and promised something worse than death.

As he was about to make his way to the stairs, she turned to the railing. "Proctor, I forfeit." She declared in a loud voice. "I withdraw from the match."

This got a lot of booing from the audience. Zuko just walked back over to Sokka and Akela. "Told ya she'd quit." Sokka said.

"Yeah, you were right. I'm glad I didn't bet money on like Naruto and Jiraiya." He replied with a smile. The two shared a small laugh while Karin looked at the two.

"_They were betting on whether or not I would forfeit!?"_ She asked herself in furious silence.

"Due to Karin's forfeit, Zuko wins by default." Genma announced to the arena, getting more boos. "The next match will be between Naruto Uzumaki and Jūgo." That stopped the booing. "Would the two candidates come down?"

Jūgo leapt over the railing and landed on the arena floor. Everyone began to pay closer attention. This was one of the matches they had actually come to see. They wanted to see Naruto in action. However, they still didn't know where he was.

* * *

"Well, where is he?" asked A.

"Will he show?" Mei asked Tsunade.

"He will be here." Gaara told her.

"You seem awfully confident about that, Kazekage." Ōnoki said.

"I know him well enough. He will be here."

"You would be right, Gaara, except for one thing." Jiraiya said.

"And what would that be?"

"He won't _be_ here, he's _already_ here." He looked up at the ceiling. "Right, Naruto?"

"Yeah, yeah, I hear ya." Naruto's voice spoke from above. They then heard the sound of feet walking on roof tiles. "You know you owe me twenty, right?"

"I'm well aware of that. Now get your ass down there!" He ordered. All they saw was a blur leaping down from the roof.

"Jiraiya, how long was he there?" Tsunade asked him.

"About two hours before the Exam started."

"Why did no one see him?" Matsuri asked.

"He was counting on the fact that no one really bothers to look up."

* * *

He landed on the wall, then jumped off of it and landing on the ground. "I'm here." He told Genma.

"So you are." He replied, looking him over. He no longer wore the prison uniform. Instead, he wore white pants that were tucked into his sandals with a shuriken holster strapped on his right leg. He wore a long-sleeved black jacket with his jian slung across his back in his usual manner. Cloth was wrapped around his waist and from that cloth, hung a white half-skirt with black flames at the bottom. It stopped just below his left knee.

* * *

"What's up with the new duds?" Kiba asked.

"I pushed him harder than the other two, so his clothes got ragged." Jiraiya admitted. "We both figured he shouldn't show up looking like a beggar in rags."

You did a good job, Lord Jiraiya. He is hot!" Ino declared as she undressed Naruto with her eyes.

"Uh…Ino, you might want to stop that." Chōji told her.

"Why should I?"

"Do you want to be burned to a crisp, troublesome woman?" Shikamaru asked. She looked over and saw Azula looking directly at her with murderous intent.

"Sorry!" She quickly apologized.

She just glared at her for a brief moment before returning her gaze onto the field. _"She's been acting like that ever sense she found us in the woods."_ Jiraiya thought to himself. _"She's angry at him, but still territorial about him. What kind of argument did she and Naruto have?"_

* * *

"If the both of you are ready, then let the match begin." Genma declared, stepping back.

The two stared at each other. "Are you going to attack? Or are you just going to stand there?" Naruto asked as he pulled out a cigarette and lit it.

"I do not wish to fight you." Jūgo replied, but his body language said different.

"Tough shit, now attack me."

"I will not."

"…You're afraid of me, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"Fine, I'll give you a handicap." He put his hands in his pockets. "I'll just use my feet. That seem fair to you?"

"I still won't fight you."

"In that case, just stand still." He charged forward and threw a kick at his face, which he caught effortlessly. But it left him open and Naruto took that chance to kick his midsection. He gave a grunt of pain and let go of the foot, clutching his midsection.

"Please, don't make me do this."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I wasn't aware you had a choice, _slave_."

"What?"

"You are a slave. You do not the option of choosing something. A man chooses but a slave obeys."

"Don't call me that." He said.

"Call you what? Don't call you a slave?" He barked a harsh laugh. "You _are_ a slave. You have never chosen. You have only obeyed."

"I am not a slave!" He screamed as he charged forward, his skin turning grey and his right arm turned into larger form of itself.

* * *

"What the hell is that baka thinking?" Kiba demanded. "He's gonna get pounded into the ground now!"

"You doubt my ability to train somebody?" Jiraiya asked in a fake hurt voice. "He knows what he's doing."

"But Lord Jiraiya, you saw the same thing we did." Hinata said. "What'll happen if Naruto gets hit by that arm?"

"I'll punish him later for getting hit."

"You sure do have a lot of confidence in him." Katara said.

"I have the same confidence in your brother and in Zuko."

* * *

Jūgo kept swinging his arm, trying hit to Naruto. But all he did in response was either dodge or use a kick to knock his arm aside. "I'm disappointed, Jūgo." He said. "You say you aren't a slave and yet here you are, obeying."

"I don't take orders!" He shouted, more of his skin turning grey.

"Oh really, you are certain of that? You're following orders right now." He leaned back to avoid a punch that would've knocked his head off.

"No, I'm not!"

"Of course you are. Your master has ordered you to kill me and your rage is ordering you to rip me to bloody pieces. Those are orders and you obey them. You are a slave." He roared in anger and swung another punch at him. He dodged effortlessly. "And you continue to disappoint me."

"I am not a slave! I chose to hide myself from everyone. I chose to lock myself away!"

"No, you obeyed what your fears whispered in your ear. That is why you locked yourself away."

"You're lying!" The grotesque arm shrunk back down to a normal size. It remained grey, but instead, an axe grew out of his forearm. The same thing happened on his other arm as well.

"What do you know? You're not just a slave, you're a monster too."

"DIE!" He screamed.

* * *

"I don't believe what my eyes do see. This is something new for the Killer Bee." Bee stated as he watched what happened on the field.

"I must agree with your brother, Lord Raikage." Mei told him.

"What is he?" Gaara wondered.

"It's been a while since I've seen a member of that clan." Ōnoki said.

"What are you talking about, old man?" Kurotsuchi asked her grandfather, her tone annoyed but also curious.

"I have fought many people in my life who hail from the same clan as that boy. They could all do the same things as he can, but they are also struck with the same infection. They are sometimes struck with bloodlust and go berserk. I had to kill more than I would want to count who had destroyed entire villages and I've always lost men every time it happened."

"So you've killed every member of this clan?"

He looked at her. "Obviously not, a few must have gone into hiding."

"What's the name of this clan?" asked A.

"I didn't have time to ask, I was always a little busy trying to make sure my shinobi didn't die."

* * *

He kept swinging his axes at his target, but he kept missing. Naruto did not try to attack at all, nor did he remove his hands from his pockets. He would always step back, evaded or use his legs to kick the attacks away.

As he attacked, he got angrier and angrier. More of his skin turned dark and when it finally came to his eyes, they became yellow and black. He kept on attacking, but he didn't get anything out of it.

"The longer I look at you, the more I see the slave." Naruto told him coldly. "And the more disgusted I am."

"SHUT UP!" He roared.

"Why should I? Do you hate listening to the truth so much?"

His skin had turned completely dark. The nails on his fingers sharpened themselves. His forehead and the sides of his face had turned into hard bone and a black ran down from his forehead to the end of his nose. Multiple things began to emerge from his back. The cloak he wore hindered it, so he cast it off. The blue shirt he wore was torn to rags as multiple pipes spewed charka from them. "I'm gonna kill ya!" He declared with maniacal laughter.

"Try if you can, _slave_." He simply replied.

Laughing like a crazed man about to die, he charged forward, his speed increasing. He shot towards Naruto, axes at the ready. He was faster than before, but Naruto was still able to dodge them. He stopped, immediately turned around and leapt for his back.

He swung around and threw a roundhouse kick at the outstretched hands. The hands caught the leg and slammed it into the ground. He pulled his hands out of his pockets and reached out to the ground. When they touched it, he yanked his foot free and rolled forward.

Jūgo swung his axes down at his back, trying to cleave him in half. He continued rolling to avoid them. He then leapt up out of the roll and turned back around to face him, his hands back in the pockets. "Is that all?" He asked.

"NOT EVEN CLOSE!" He charged forward again, only to stumble and fall when he felt the same immense killing intent directed at him. "Do you think this will stop me? I'm gonna to get back up and then I'm gonna kill ya!" He declared, looking him in the eye.

"That will depend."

"Depend on what?" He asked, trying to stand up.

"Are you going to kill me as a man, or as a slave?"

"What do you mean? Killing is killing!"

"Are you a man or are you a slave, Jūgo?"

"I…am not a slave." He answered, his voice switching back and forth between the crazed tone and his normal one.

"But are you a man?"

"No, I'm…a monster."

"Answer the question, Jūgo! Are you a man or are you a slave?!"

"Neither!"

"Wrong!" He bellowed. "A man chooses, but a slave obeys! Which one are you?!"

"I don't know!"

"Then decide! Will you submit to your feelings of rage and follow your master's orders? Or will you choose to stop fighting."

"I didn't want to fight in the first place!"

"But you still would have. You were going to follow your master's orders to kill me. You did not realize that you were a slave." He walked closer to him, keeping the killing intent on him. "A man chooses, but a slave obeys. Will you choose or will you obey?" He reached down and grabbed him by the shirt, lifting him up until they were face-to-face. "ARE YOU A MAN OR A SLAVE?!" He roared.

"I'M A MAN!" He roared back in his normal voice.

"Then prove it." He released his grip and stepped back, the killing intent vanishing. "If you are a man, choose to quell your rage."

He stayed there on his knees, concentrating. The pipes and axes slowly began to shrink back into his body. Every couple of seconds, it looked like they were struggling to stay out. Eventually, they disappeared into his body. Then his skin began to change back. The dark skin would sometimes struggle to stay in place, but it would be pushed back. In the end, Jūgo sat on his knees, in a tattered shirt and ragged shorts. There was no dark skin showing, his arms did not hold any axes and he did not wear a crazed grin on his face.

"Well? What are you?" Naruto asked him.

He stood up on shaky legs. "I am a man, not a slave." He answered. "I do not obey, I choose. And I choose to forfeit."

"Oh no, we cannot have that, Jūgo." A voice said as someone landed next to him. It was a man with ash-grey hair and glasses covering onyx eyes. Both his pants and his shirt were purple while his undershirt was white. He wore a white cloth waistband and blue sandals as well as a shuriken holster on his right leg. "You have your orders. Kill Naruto Uzumaki."

"I won't do it, Kabuto. I am not a slave." He replied.

"You see, that's where you're wrong. You _are_ a slave. And if you won't obey, then you'll be forced to obey." He quickly pulled out a syringe and aimed it to plunge it into Jugo's neck. The syringe was knocked out of his hand by a shuriken and fell to the ground, the glass shattering on impact. He jumped back to avoid a kick. "You've grown up, Naruto."

"You're still the same, Kabuto, a complete smug, insufferable asshole." He replied. He grabbed Jūgo and pushed over to the proctor. "Get him out of here, Genma."

He nodded and took hold of Jūgo before leaping away. As he leapt away, Zuko, Sokka and Akela leapt into the arena and ran to back Naruto up.

"You brought friends." Kabuto noted.

"And you brought none."

"Who is this man?" Zuko asked Naruto.

"This is Kabuto Yakushi, second-in-command to Orochimaru, the leader of Otogakure and traitor to Konoha." He introduced.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all." Kabuto gave them a mocking half-bow.

"Speaking of the bastard, where is he?"

"I am right here, Naruto." A sinister voice spoke in the air. Then, out of the ground, a man appeared. He slowly rose up until he stood next to Kabuto. Both Sokka and Zuko recoiled slightly when they saw him. His skin was very pale, almost to the point of pasty. His waist-length hair was black. His eyes were amber and had slits in his pupils. Purple markings surrounded his eyes. He wore black pants and a black polo neck with a grey garb over it. Around his waist was a thick, purple rope belt that was tied off in the back. He wore blue tomoe-shaped earrings on his ears with a whimsical, if not a little sinister smile on his face.

"_This guy is giving me the creeps just by looking at him."_ Sokka thought to himself.

* * *

"Huh, who would've thought he'd show up?" Kisame asked.

"It's his home village and the Kyuubi Jinchūriki is back. I guess he was interested too, hm." Deidara said.

"Whoa, is that really Orochimaru?" Tobi asked.

"Yeah, that's the pasty bastard alright." Hidan answered. "I still want to send him to Lord Jashin. What he tries to do is blasphemy."

"You can't attack him, Hidan." Kakuzu told him.

"You think I don't know that?"

"Stop," Konan ordered them. "We will do nothing. We are simply here to observe, nothing more. Right now, we're under diplomatic immunity. If we lose that, then the Five Kages will have an excuse to attack us. Is that understood?"

"Yes." They all answered.

* * *

"What in the hell?" asked A. "Orochimaru's here?"

"We can see him quite well." Mei remarked with a little sarcasm.

"Lady Tsunade, what are you going to do?" Gaara asked.

She simply raised her hand and touched the wireless radio she wore around her neck. "Activate." She ordered.

* * *

"So you've finally shown yourself." Naruto said; his tone of voice even and controlled.

"I think I should be the one saying that." Orochimaru replied. "You disappeared for three years and now, all of a sudden you're back. It was an opportunity I couldn't resist."

"To captured and experiment on me to see what I could do and if you could copy my abilities?"

"Precisely, not mention your new friends as well." He answered with a sadistic grin, making Zuko, Sokka and even Akela shudder. "I take it you all were brought in kicking and screaming?"

"More like knocked out. I was planning on getting us all out, but they offered me a deal sweet enough to make me stay."

"And what was that?"

"The chance to kill you," He answered with a straight face.

A dark chuckle escaped his lips. "Amusing, Naruto, very amusing," He said with a malicious grin. "I would offer you the chance to try, but I and my subordinates must leave now."

A smirk appeared on his face. "You haven't noticed yet, have you?"

"Noticed what?"

"Did you really think your former teammates wouldn't know what you were planing? They knew what you were going to do long beforehand and prepared accordingly." He pulled out a shuriken and threw it up into the air. Once it reached a certain point above the arena, it hit a wall of energy. As the energy rippled, revealing the dome over the arena, the shuriken fell back down to the ground. "A simple Cage Seal, reinforced five times over." He stated. "There's no way you'll be able to get out easily. Oh, and by the way…" He pointed up to the waiting area. "I don't think your subordinates will be joining you."

Orochimaru looked at the waiting area, letting nothing show on his face. He knew the Cage Seal enclosed a certain area, both in the air and underground. If you were powerful enough and knew what to do, it was very easy to break the seal. But when the seal was reinforced, its strength and resilience grew. The more reinforced it was, the more it grew and the harder it was to break it. He also knew that if Karin was not in the waiting area, then both she and Suigetsu had been taken, along with Jūgo.

But he wasn't annoyed, angry or even embarrassed. If anything, he looked interested. "I guess I really should've known better." He admitted as he turned to look up at the Kage box. "Well played, Tsunade, Jiraiya." He called up to his old teammates with a mocking salute. He turned his attention back down to Naruto. "I guess I can entertain you after all, Naruto. A deal's a deal, right?" He flashed through two handseals. **"****Sen'eijashu** (Hidden Shadow Snake Hands)**."** He held out his right hand in a punching motion as snakes emerged from the sleeve and flew towards their enemies.

"Back up!" Naruto told the others. They jumped away as the snakes smashed into the ground where they just were. They landed further away from the two. The two groups stood on different sides of the arena, staring each other in the eye.

"If I am going to fight you, then I might as well make interesting. I was saving this one for a special occasion, and I guess this would be it." He looked over at Kabuto. "Do it." He ordered.

"Yes, Lord Orochimaru." He flashed though handseals at an incredible pace and slammed his hands into the ground. **"****Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei **(Summoning: Impure World Reincarnation)**!"** A coffin rose up out of the ground and stood in front of him. "Are you ready to face your opponent, Naruto? I can almost guarantee you won't be able to fight this person."

The coffin lid fell down to the ground and the person inside stepped out. While Sokka and Zuko were confused about who it was, Naruto kept a straight face. Inside his mind was a different story. **"He didn't."** Kyuubi said in shock.

"_Apparently, he did."_ He silently answered.

* * *

"…I didn't think he'd be that heartless." Kisame admitted as he looked down at the person.

"Huh? Who is that?" Tobi asked curiously.

"That's someone who is well known in this village." Kakuzu answered. "When she was alive, the bounty on her head was fairly impressive."

"That's all you can think about, money." Hidan remarked.

"What do you think about this, Itachi, hm?" Deidara asked him. When he didn't answer, they all looked at him. He was visibly angry, something they thought he would never show on his face and trembling with fury.

"How dare he?" He asked with a growl.

* * *

"Who is that person?" Mei asked.

"I don't know." Gaara answered.

"Is that who I think it is?" Ōnoki asked Tsunade.

She didn't answer, she didn't have to. The fact that both she and Jiraiya looked absolutely dangerous and leaking large amount of killing intent was enough of an answer.

* * *

"DAMN YOU, OROCHIMARU!" Jiraiya roared from the railing. "HAVE YOU NO SHAME!?"

"Lord Jiraiya, why are you so angry?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah, just who is that person?" Aang asked as well.

"Is she someone important?" Suki asked.

He turned to look at them. "He didn't just summon anyone back from the dead. He summoned Kushina Uzumaki."

"Kushina Uzumaki?" Kiba repeated. "Is she from the same clan as Naruto?"

"She's his _mother_."

**End**

**Author's notes:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Okay, so I dropped a few tidbits about what's really going on. If you're going to complain about how I haven't explained everything already or I'm making things seem complicated and/or confusing, don't worry, the full explanation is in the next chapter.

I had Zabuza give the Kubikiribōchō to Mei for two reasons. The first is that he's right. It's more than a grave marker and it belongs to Kiri. The second reason is for later in the story.

I'm guessing a few of you will be mad because I didn't write a fight between Zuko and Karin. In my defense, I did look at videos of her in the Naruto fighting games and quite frankly, I was not impressed. I'm sorry, but bitch-slapping someone with an Explosive Tag does not qualify as a jutsu in my books. Zuko would've creamed her in five seconds, maybe ten if he was slow. That would've been a waste.

Yes, I'm well aware of the fact "A man chooses, a slave obeys," is from _Bioshock_. I've played the game myself. Let's be honest, that statement described Jūgo perfectly. Think about it, he is a slave to his own rage and bloodlust. He was also a slave to Orochimaru. There were very few things he actually chose. It made perfect sense to me.

If you're wondering why Kabuto summoned Kushina instead of Orochimaru, I want you to read the latest chapters of _Naruto_. With any luck, you'll understand why.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	40. Dueling and Leaving

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 40: Dueling and Leaving

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Konoha Arena)

As most of the crowd in the stands looked down at the arena floor, those who knew the person Kabuto had summoned were in a rage. "How can he be that heartless?" Tsunade demanded.

"We knew he would use the **Edo Tensei**, we just didn't know who he would use." Jiraiya said. "We didn't know who he would summon."

"I must admit, it was a good move on Orochimaru's part." Ōnoki said. "It was quite clever too."

"That ain't right, old man. You say that again, I'll bust your head open like an egg going to the pan." Killer Bee threatened him.

"Raikage, restrain your brother. I am appalled as well, but I'm willing to admit the brilliance of what he did."

"Bee, calm down," A ordered his brother.

"I can't calm down, brother. For doing something like that, I want to tear that snake another."

"You're not the only one, Bee. Now calm down."

"Just who the hell is that woman?" Kankurō asked. "Why is she making you all so pissed off?"

"Be respectful!" He snapped. "That is Kushina Uzumaki!"

"Well who is Kushina Uzumaki?! Somebody please, give me a straight answer!"

"She was the wife of the Yondaime Hokage." Baki answered his student's question. "She died with him on the tenth of October, the day Naruto Uzumaki was born."

When he heard that little tidbit of information, he connected the dots and realized what that meant. "Oh fuck."

Those two words summed up the entire situation perfectly.

* * *

"That's his mother?!" Katara repeated, horrified.

"That's what I just said, isn't it!?" Jiraiya replied.

"That bastard!" roared Kiba.

Azula sat in silence, looking down at the woman standing in front of the coffin. _"She's the same woman I met in my dreams after we had gotten out of the swamp."_ She thought to herself. _"She really was his mother."_

"How can he do something like that?" Hinata asked.

"Very easily, it appears." Shino told her.

"This is entirely unyouthful!" Lee declared.

"This is what Orochimaru does." Neji told his teammate, anger and cold fury lacing his voice.

"Is there any way for us to down to the field?" Suki asked.

"If there was, I would already be down there." Jiraiya told her.

* * *

"Well, Naruto." Orochimaru said with gleeful cruelty. "How does it feel, knowing you'll have to fight your mother?"

"His mother!?" repeated both Zuko and Sokka in shock and horror.

"**Naruto, is that really you?"** Kushina finally spoke as she looked at him.

"Yes it is, Kushina." Orochimaru told her. "That's your son over there. I thought I give the two of you time to get to know each other."

"**You bastard, you're going to have the two of us fight."**

"Well of course, why else would you be here if not to be forced to kill your own son?"

"You sick freak!" Sokka yelled when he heard that.

"You have no honor." Zuko told him.

"There's no need to be rude, you two." Kabuto told them condescendingly. "But please don't interrupt; this is something that is none of your concern."

"The same goes for you, Kabuto." Naruto finally spoke. "So shut up."

"You are as brash as ever, Naruto." Orochimaru noted. "I guess three years away has done little to cool your temper."

"**Could he be any more wrong?"** Kyuubi asked from inside Naruto.

"**Three years? What do you mean, Orochimaru?"** Kushina asked.

"Oh, you didn't know?" He asked her for the sake of cruelty. "Your dear son is home in Konoha for the first time in three years, after running away from it. He had gotten tired of how the village treated him and when they decided to banish him for doing what he was ordered, he left. He gave up on being a shinobi. Aren't you proud of him?"

"**Shut up. You shut up. You're lying."**

"Why don't you ask him yourself?"

She looked over at him. **"It's not true. Please tell me it's not true. Why would you leave the village, Naruto?" **He didn't answer her. She was about to speakwhen Orochimaru pulled out a kunai with a red talisman and inserted it into her head.

"That's enough talking." He said. As he withdrew his hand, steam began to hiss and rise from her body. The cracks in her skin began disappear and her skin returned to its original tone. When the steam had dissipated, she looked like she was alive again. Her clothes, a dark short sleeve shirt with tight pants stopping beneath her knees with a shuriken holster on her right leg and the Konoha flak jacket, looked like they were fresh cleaned. Her long, red hair had been tied into a ponytail. The only problem was that her eyes held no life in them, they were completely dead.

"Well, Naruto? Are you ready to fight against your mother?" Kabuto asked him with a smug look.

He took one last drag of the cigarette he had in his mouth, which he had been working on since his fight with Jūgo. He blew the smoke, then took the cigarette out and looked at it. He was quiet as he slowly examined what remained of the cancer stick. He finally dropped it to the ground and snuffed it out with his foot. "Sokka, Zuko, Akela." He said. "You guys fight her."

It was safe to assume that almost everyone there was not expecting _that_ response.

"Are you sure?" Zuko asked him. He knew this was something he'd say, but he wanted to be certain.

"Yes. I am."

"But, this is your mother, Naruto." Sokka said.

He turned to look at him. "She might be my mother, Sokka. But I don't know her." He turned his attention to a tree behind them. "Besides, you'll have a better chance of beating her."

"Yeah, but still…."

"Sokka, remember what we discussed." He walked past them over to the tree and sat down against the trunk. "Have fun."

* * *

"…That was unexpected." Ōnoki said.

"No, that went as expected." Gaara replied.

"Oh? Do you know something we don't, Lord Kazekage?"

"I stayed with Naruto during my vacation. Orochimaru still expected to him to be hot-headed and would charge into things headfirst. But he's changed. He's able to stay calm and make the right decision."

"So Orochimaru's plan just about blew up in his face?" Mei asked for clarification.

"Yes."

"Serves that smug snake bastard right," growled A.

* * *

"Huh, I didn't think he'd do that." Hidan said.

"He certainly is different, hm." Deidara stated. "I thought he'd charged right and start attacking."

"He would have, if it was three years ago." Kisame told him.

"Hey, Itachi, why were you so angry earlier?" Tobi asked him. "You looked like you were going to attack Orochimaru yourself."

"Does that woman mean something to you?" Kakuzu asked.

He stayed silent for a couple of seconds before finally speaking. "There are few shinobi that have my respect. Kushina Uzumaki and Minato Namikaze were two of those few. They always believed in the village and protected it from danger until their last breath. For Orochimaru to have her summoned from the dead to use her to kill her own son is insulting."

"Then it's a good thing he said no." Kisame remarked. "Although, isn't it a little hypocritical for you to talk about respecting someone who defended the village?"

"Enough, Kisame," Konan said. "Who Itachi respects is his choice."

* * *

"_I did not expect this."_ Orochimaru thought. _"He will not fight her, nor will he try to attack me now. This might complicate things. But no matter, once Kushina kills his friends, he'll have no choice but to attack."_

"Sending your friends to the slaughter, Naruto?" Kabuto asked, acting confidently once he saw the smirk on Orochimaru's face. "I didn't realize you'd become so heartless."

"It's only a slaughter if we die!" Sokka retorted as he drew his jian and unhooked his club. Akela stood ready at his side, teeth bared. Zuko drew his swords as well.

"Is that so? Then perhaps we should send you along more quickly." He pulled out a scroll and placed it on the ground. He opened it and folded his hands into a handseal. He muttered a **"Kai."** before slapping his hand down on the scroll. A cloud of smoke sprouted from the paper and when it dissipated, a katana laid there. He picked it up and held out for Kushina. She took it with no hesitation.

* * *

"This just got more difficult." Jiraiya said.

"What do you mean, Lord Jiraiya?" Tenten asked. "Is that katana special somehow?"

"No, but when Kushina wielded a blade when she was alive, she became much more difficult to beat." He gave a sarcastic chuckle. "I guess it was to be expected from the niece of the **Ken no Ryōshu** (Lord of Swords)."

"Wait, Kenji Uzumaki was her uncle?" Katara asked in surprise.

"Yep, she was. She was almost as good as he was."

"…You're right." Toph said. "This did just get more complicated."

They were silent until Hinata noticed Kiba acting strange. "What's the matter, Kiba?" She asked him.

"How can he act like that? How can he act like she doesn't matter to him?" He asked in outrage. "She's his mother, Kami take it!"

"It's because she's his mother that he's acting like this." Jiraiya told him.

"Well, can't he use that Soulbending of his to break her free or something?"

"No, he can't." Azula said. "The soul is already being used."

They all looked at her. "What do you mean?" Neji asked.

"He can't use her because she's already being used."

"Start making sense!" Kiba barked at her.

"Watch it, mutt." She snapped back at him.

"Azula, please, just tell us what you mean?" Suki said.

She drew in a breath and exhaled. "Naruto explained it to me a bit once. There are two requirements to use Soulbend. The first one is obvious."

"You need an object of a person in order to use their soul?" Katara asked.

"Correct. The second requirement is that you _must know_ that the object belong to the person."

"What does that mean?" Ino asked.

"Think of it this way." She took off one of her gloves and held it out for them to see. "This glove is mine and Naruto knows that. If I die, he would be able to use my soul by wearing this glove because he knew it belonged to me. However, if a different Paragon does not know this glove belong to me, then they can't use it to summon my soul."

"That still doesn't explain why he can't Soulbend her." Shino pointed out.

"And I thought you were the smart one in your team." She put the glove back on. "You know that no two people can wear the exact same glove at the same, right? It can only be worn by one person at a time. The same goes for souls."

"I guess you have a point." Chōji said. "Still, I'd thought Naruto would completely angry right now. Instead, he's just calm."

"You're wrong; he's not calm at all." She told him. "As a matter of fact, he's furious."

"How can you tell?" Shikamaru asked.

"Lesson Number 8: Your emotions do not control you, you control them. He's forcing himself to be calm right now. But once he's done, whoever's going to be on the receiving end of his fury will probably deserve it."

* * *

They stood in silence as they face each other, three to one. Orochimaru and Kabuto stood back, giving the combatants more room. Naruto hadn't moved from where he sat against the tree.

Sokka made the first move. He charged straight at Kushina, swinging the sharp end of the club at the shoulder of her sword arm. _"If I can dislocate her shoulder, she won't be able to use it as effectively."_ He thought.

As the club was about to hit her, she moved. She swung the katana up and caught the club in its hook. She continued the swing and yanked the club of his hands, sending it flying. Not one to be deterred, he tried to plunge his jian into her stomach, but she caught with her own sword when she continued the swing, bringing it downward.

That was when Zuko moved in. He ran in to support Sokka and then leapt high into the air. He aimed himself at her and swung his Dao swords at her head. Looking up to see who was about to attack her, she kick Sokka away and brought her sword up in a defensive position. The blades clanged against each other as Zuko landed. Akela charged in and went for the legs.

She sidestepped to the right and pushed his swords away. Not stopping, she brought the sword down into a slash, aiming for Akela. The wolf leapt away to avoid being struck and she took the opportunity to swing the blade at Zuko. The blades clashed again but this time, Zuko was pushed back. She took that opportunity to form a handseal. **"****Katon: Gōryūka no Jutsu** (Fire Style: Great Fire Dragon Jutsu)**!"** She cried before spewing out a giant dragon head made of fire from her mouth.

The dragon head flew at Zuko, intending to burn him to a crisp. However, neither Orochimaru nor Kabuto were aware of what Zuko could do. He stood his ground and sliced the head in two using his Dao swords. He then bent the halves into two streams of fire and sent them back at her, intertwining them as they went.

She rolled out of the way of the two streams, but Akela saw an opportunity. He lunged forward and grabbed her leg with his teeth. Pulling with what he had, he tore the leg off just below the knee. He tosses the leg away and moved back.

"Nice job, Akela." Sokka told him. "That should keep her down."

"Are you sure of that?" Orochimaru asked them with an amused smile. The torn leg broke apart, turning into dust and ash. The stuff flew over to the body and began to reattach back to the body. They watched in horror as the leg was literally remade in front of their eyes. Once the damage was fixed, she stood back up.

"You've got to be kidding." Zuko said in disbelief. Sokka couldn't answer due to the fact she suddenly charged them.

"**Shinkūken **(Vacuum Sword)**!"** She said, swinging the sword in her hand. A gust of wind sprang from the slash she swung and flew towards them. They leapt to different sides to avoid it, but came back together to attack her. Sokka swung high while Zuko swung low. She blocked both strikes by holding her sword out in front of her with the tip pointing to the ground.

She pushed the sword up, bringing theirs up along with and then drew it back. She swung it down in a slash, aiming for both of them. Though they stepped back, she still managed to nick their sides. Rather than press her advantage, she lowered her sword and sheathed it.

Both Zuko and Sokka grew confused. "What is she doing?" Zuko asked. They got their answer when she suddenly rushed them at a blindingly fast pace. When she reached them, she drew her katana and slashed at them in the same motion. It was only due to the hellish month of training Jiraiya put them through that they were able to block her strike. Had they tried to stop her a second later, they would've been sliced in half.

While the three of them were in a deadlock, Akela lunged for Kushina. He leapt over the blades and slammed into her chest, sending the both of them to the ground. He tried to tear out her throat out, but she wrapped her legs around him and twisted, slamming him to the ground. She let go, stood back up and then flashed though handseals. **"Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu** (Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Jutsu)**!"** She cried as she spewed several at the wolf.

But it never touched him. Zuko bent the fire towards himself and onto his swords. He then swung them back at her, bending the fire into arcs. She flipped over them, dodging effortlessly. When she landed, Sokka was there. He swung his jian at her head, but she blocked it effortlessly.

Knocking the jian aside, she tried to slice him from shoulder to hip. He blocked her and then tried to knock her feet out from under her by hooking his leg behind hers and tripping her. However, as she fell, she pulled herself into backflip. She landed back on her feet, only to duck as Sokka threw his boomerang at her head.

As it flew over her head, she stood back up and attacked him. She aimed a thrust at his stomach, but he parried and cut her side. He tried to slice off her legs, but she swatted the jian away. Before she could attack again, the boomerang came back and sliced through her left shoulder. Sokka caught the boomerang as her entire left arm just fell to the ground.

"Sokka, hit the ground!" ordered Zuko. He did so, giving the Fire Nation prince a clear shot of Kushina. While Sokka had been attacking, he had been preparing and now, he was ready. He opened his mouth and breathed lightning, which he directed straight at her heart. She didn't react in time and the lightning hit her in full force. She flew back a couple of feet and fell to the ground when the lightning stopped. There was a hole where her heart had been, it had been a through-and-through.

"Please tell me that was enough." Sokka said as he stood back up and moved away from her corpse. But what he was asking for wouldn't happen. Ash and dust began to fill up the hole and also began to reattach the arm. When the hole was filled and the arm was back in place, she stood back up. "This is getting annoying." He declared.

"Will the two of you stop playing around?" Naruto asked from where he sat. "Just finish her off already."

"Oh? You're sure your friends can beat her?" Kabuto asked him before laughing. "How amusing that you think they have a chance. Your friends are weaklings. They couldn't even possibly compare to Kushina, who became famous during the Third Shinobi World War."

"Orochimaru, why is your donkey braying? It's annoying everybody here."

"A donkey," He repeated.

"He sounds like an ass." He turned his attention back to his teammates as Orochimaru wore an amused smirk and Kabuto looked offended. "Guys, finish it."

They nodded in agreement and turned to face Kushina. A memory of what happened during the month of training came back to them.

(Flashback)

They all sat around the fire, eating their dinner. "Today was decent." Jiraiya told them. "You did well in some places, but not as well in others."

"And that's why you're training us." Naruto replied.

"Indeed. That reminds me." He turned to the other two humans there. "Sokka, Zuko, did the two of you learn from the same teacher when it came to the sword?"

"What makes you say that?" Zuko asked. "We wield different kinds of swords."

"Yes, but both of you take the same basic stance and some of your forms look similar too."

"Well, I don't know about Sokka, but I learned from Piandao."

"Wait, Piandao?" Sokka repeated. "I learned from him as well."

"That answers the question." Jiraiya said to himself before returning his attention to them. "May I see your swords?"

The two of them look at him like he was crazy. "You want to what?" Zuko asked.

"I wish to examine them."

"You're not going to do anything to them?" Sokka asked.

"No."

"You're not gonna steal them and hide them from us?"

"Why would I do that?"

"I don't know."

"I promise to do nothing but examine them."

They shared a look with each other before cautiously handing their swords over to him. He took them and drew them from their scabbards. He looked them over until his eyes settled the same inscription on the different swords. "What is it?" Naruto asked him.

"How does your master know this phrase?" He asked Sokka and Zuko.

"He said that he learn it from his master." Zuko answered.

"Who was his master?"

"I don't know. I never asked."

"Um…I think it was a guy named Kenji Uzumaki." Sokka told him.

"What? Are you sure of that?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. People called him the **Ken no Ryōshu**, right?"

"Yeah, that's right." He sheathed the swords and handed them back. "So the rumors were true after all…"

"What rumors?" Zuko asked him.

"There were rumors that Kenji Uzumaki had trained a student in both swordsmanship and in forging, teaching him the most kept secret of the Uzumaki. Apparently, his clan raised a fuss over it due to the face he hadn't trained a clan member or even a shinobi."

"And how do you know all this?" Naruto asked him.

"Later in his life, he also trained his niece, Kushina Uzumaki."

"…My mother?"

"…Yes." He answered. _"The Kyuubi must have told him."_

"What does this have to do with our swords?" Zuko asked.

"These aren't just swords, they're Zanpakutōs."

"A Zanpakutō?" repeated Sokka. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. Kushina told me that the Uzumaki clan was the best in Fūinjutsu and Kenjutsu. But their true skill was in the art of forging."

"If that's true, why aren't there Zanpakutō's by the dozen?"

"Firstly, the secret to creating them was closely guarded. Only one person in the clan knew the secret and they would only tell it to their student when they were ready. The second reason was that being the holder of the secret meant to you had to be a good judge of character. If you felt that person was worthy enough, you could forge a Zanpakutō. According to Kushina, no one in the history of the Uzumaki clan was worthy enough to have a Zanpakutō. The third reason was because Uzushiogakure was destroyed."

"Uzushiogakure?" repeated Naruto.

"It was the Shinobi village of the Uzumaki clan, in the Land of Whirlpools. Its destruction sparked the Third Great Shinobi War."

"…Who destroyed it?"

"We don't know. No one ever came forward and announced it. That was partly why the war happened."

"What about the clan?"

"Most of them were killed in the attack, the rest scattered to the four winds. I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize, you didn't attack them."

He turned his attention to Sokka. "How is it you know what a Zanpakutō is?"

"Sifu told me when I found the tomb."

"Who is Sifu?"

"Don't worry, I know him. We can trust what he says." Naruto told him. "What do you mean tomb?" He asked Sokka.

"You know how Sifu was the last master of the first Paragons?" He nodded. "Well, their master before him was the one who taught them how to make Zanpakutōs. According to Sifu, he only taught how to do it to five people, four of which were the first Paragons."

"Who was the fifth?" Zuko asked.

"He didn't know, only that it was someone he taught long before the first Paragons."

"So that's how they knew the secret." Jiraiya muttered to himself.

"What are you talking about?" Naruto asked.

"Do you know the legend of the Sage of the Six Paths?"

"Yeah, I actually paid attention that day in class."

"Do you remember the part about his sons?"

"Yeah, the eldest felt cheated and challenged the youngest to a fight. Their fight would continue through the generations as the descendants of the elder became the Uchiha and the descendants of the younger became the Senju."

"Did they also tell you that the Uzumaki are distantly related to the Senju?"

"…They left that part out. Where are you going with this?"

"If the Uzumaki are descended from the Sage of the Six Paths and they knew how to create a Zanpakutō…?"

"Oh, I get it."

"Do you mind telling us what in the name of Agni you are talking about?" Zuko asked.

"We know who the fifth person was, that's all."

"But the main question is have you learned their names?" Jiraiya asked both Sokka and Zuko, looking them straight in the eye.

"They have names?" Sokka asked in confusion.

"From what Kushina told me and what I could research, each Zanpakutō has a spirit and the spirit has a name."

Both Sokka and Zuko remembered the dreams they had. _"That must've been the spirit."_ They thought to themselves. "So how do we find out their names?" Zuko asked.

"They have to tell you themselves."

"But how do we hear them?"

"I'm not sure. Kushina told me that it had something to do with going to them."

"What? How are we supposed to go to them? They're right here!" Sokka protested as he gestured at his jian.

"Well, she also mentioned something called **Jinzen** (Blade Zen), but she never actually explained it."

"Jinzen?" repeated Naruto. "You're going to have them meditate in order to reach the spirit inside their sword. Unless you have some kind of accelerant, Jiraiya, that process could take longer than a month."

I know that, Naruto." He fell silent. As he tried to think of a solution, he noticed something. "Sokka, why are you sweating?"

"Huh? Sweating?" He repeated.

"Yes, you're sweating. Why? It's a nice night and you're the only one who is sweating."

He wiped his hand across his forehead and looked at the sweat. "I guess I'm still not use to this warm a climate."

"It's been half a year since you left the South Pole." Zuko pointed out. "You should've gotten use it by now."

"This is coming from the guy who was shivering as he stood in warm water today." He retorted.

"Wait." Naruto interrupted. "Say that again."

"This is coming from the guy who was shivering as he stood in warm water today?" He repeated, confused.

"Sokka's right, Zuko, that water was warm. You shouldn't have been shivering."

"It felt cold to me."

"And while the weather is warm, it's not warm enough to make you sweat, Sokka." He looked over at the Toad Sage. "You thinking what I'm thinking?" He asked.

He smiled. "I'm thinking that we just found our accelerant."

* * *

The next day, as the sun set, Sokka and Zuko were preparing themselves to attempt Jinzen. Both had stripped down to their undergarments. Sokka sat in front of a blazing fire while Zuko sat beneath a waterfall. Both were affected by what was happening to them. Sokka looked like he was sweating buckets while Zuko looked like he was two steps away from turning blue.

"Are you sure this is necessary?" Zuko asked, trying to make sure he didn't stutter from the cold.

"Yes, it is." Jiraiya told him. "Now, are the both of you ready?"

"I'm sweating out my existence here." Sokka remarked. "Just tell us what to do already."

"Alright, I want you both to focus on your swords and only your swords. Sokka, I want you to let the fire fill of all of your senses, except for your focus. Zuko, I want you to the same thing with the water."

They nodded and then turned their attention to their swords. Sokka's jian was stabbed into the ground in front of him while Zuko's Dao swords rested on his lap. They focused solely on their swords, trying not to let anything else distract them. As they concentrated, their senses were slowly overcome by one thing. Soon, Sokka could only hear the crackle of the fire and feel the heat on his skin. Zuko could only hear the sound of rushing water and feel its weight pounding relentlessly on his back. Even though they could feel what the fire or water was doing to them, they kept their concentration on their swords.

Sokka blinked once, but when he opened his eyes again, he wasn't sitting in front of the fire. He was back in the forest. "So, you've come." He heard the voice of the black wolf. He turned around and saw him sitting on the same rock.

"Yeah, I have." He answered.

"**Why?"**

"So I can learn your name."

"**Learn my name?"** The wolf repeated. **"Do you think it would be that easy? Do you think you can learn my name because I belong to you?"**

"Weren't you the one who was trying to tell me it the last time we met?"

"**Do not patronize me! Your fear hangs around you like a cloak. Had you been an animal, you would be dead. It is because of that fear you cannot hear my name."**

"Then how do I hear your name?"

"**You must decide."** It stood up, lifted its head up and howled into the night. All around the clearing, from behind the trees, other wolves began to appear. They slowly came into view, padding down into the clearing. **"These wolves will attack you. If you smell of fear, they will tear you limb from limb. If you try to run, they will easily take you down, for there is no escape. So what will you do? Will you flee? If you do, then you don't deserve me." **It turned around and padded away, leaving him alone in the clearing.

The wolves crept in closer and closer. Soon, they surrounded him. Their eyes all looked at him like he was something that was to be eaten. _"How the hell am I going to get out of this one?"_ He asked himself silently. _"I'm outnumbered here. Every instinct is telling me to run and hide. But I can't do that; they'll be on me in a second. What do I do?"_ He tried to think of a solution, all the while,the wolves moved closer. They bared their teeth and growls began to go off. The growling snapped him out of his thinking and made him look at the wolves.

That was when he realized something. _"Hang on. All the things I'm thinking of are because of fear. These wolves will try to attack me because I smell of fear. If I want to defeat them, I must be rid of fear."_ He took a deep breath and stared out at the wolves. "So, who will be the first to try and kill me?" He asked them.

A single wolf growled louder and lunged for his throat. As it was airborne, he reached out and grabbed it by the neck. He slammed the wolf into the ground and snapped its neck, killing it. He turned back to the others. "Who's next!?" He demanded. "If you want to try and kill me, remember that I am not the prey here. You all are!"

The growls stopped. The wolves slowly backed away until they turned back around and ran back for the forest. **"Well done."** The black wolf told him as it reappeared, leaping down into the clearing. **"You have proven yourself to be able to get rid of your fear. Now you'll be able to hear my name."**

"That's what I was hoping for." He turned his gaze on the dead wolf. "I just wish I didn't have to kill him to earn that privilege."

The wolf gave a wolfish grin. **"Who said you killed anyone here?"** It walked over to the dead wolf and gave it a lick on its face. The wolf opened its eyes again. It stood up, its neck clearly unbroken, and nodded its head to the black wolf. It took off for the forest. **"In here, if you don't want it to be dead, it doesn't have to be."**

"That…was really cool." He stated as he watched the wolf disappear into the forest.

**"Are you ready to hear my voice, Sokka?"** The black wolf asked.

He turned to face it. "Yes, I am."

**"Then listen well. My name is…"**

* * *

Zuko opened his eyes after blinking. He found himself on the same mountain ledge. **"What are you doing here?"** He heard the person from before ask. He turned around and saw him standing out on the air.

"I came here to find out your name." He replied.

**"Are you serious? After all you did, you have the gall to want to know my name?"** He all but shouted. "**Of all the insufferable, egotistical, unbelievable…"**

"Is this going to take a while?"

**"Shut up! I'm ranting here!"**

"I heard. But we need to move on. You can rant later."

**"I CAN RANT LATER!? OH NO, I'M RANTING NOW!"**

"NO YOU'RE NOT!" He yelled back. "I AM NOT GOING TO STAND AND LISTEN TO YOU COMPLAINING ABOUT EVERYTHING I DID WRONG! I CAME HERE SO I COULD KNOW THE NAME OF MY SWORDS!"

The echo of his shout rang out through the entire place. The spirit floated in the air, staying silent. **"…If you want to know my name, then you'll prove yourself to me. It's the least you can do after everything I had to put up with you."**

"What do I have to do?"

**"Simple."** He turned around and started to walk away. **"You must follow me."**

"What? There's nothing but air! If I try to follow you, I'll fall!"

He turned back to face him. **"That's your fear talking. Have you already forgotten the first part of the creed?"** He continued walking until he had disappeared from sight. **"Make your choice soon, there's a storm coming."**

As he spoke, thunderclouds appeared overhead and rain began to fall. The ledge soon became slick with water, if he made a wrong step, he could fall. _"I can't stay here. I'll be forced over the edge by the rain and the wind."_ He thought to himself. _"But if I try to follow him; I'll fall off the edge anyway. And what in the name of Agni did he mean by the creed? What first part?"_ He tried to figure out what the spirit meant. That was when it came to him. _"He meant the inscriptions! The inscriptions are the creed! The first part said to abandon my fear."_ He eyed the edge. _"That's easier said than done. But if I want to live, I have to do it."_ He took a breath, lifted a foot and took a step over the edge.

As the foot came back down, a small cloudbank formed underneath it and held it. Looking down at it, he took another step and another cloudbank formed underneath that too. He took a few more hesitant, then grew more confident and started to run. The cloudbanks kept forming underneath his feet until they formed a road for him. He ran and ran, never stopping. He wasn't sure, but he knew that if he stopped, he would fall.

Within a few minutes, he saw the spirit again. He doubled his speed and charged straight at him. When he was within a few feet of the spirit, he stopped. "You wanted me to follow you. Here I am." He declared.

**"I guess so."** The spirit admitted. **"Take a look around and tell me where we are."**

He did look around. They stood at the peak of a mountain. Even though the storm still lashed out around them, not a single drop of water or a gust of wind touched them. Above them was a hole in the storm clouds, showing blue skies and the sun shining down on them. "We're in the eye of the storm." He declared.

**"This is also where you must be whenever you fight."** The spirit told him. **"You must be able to wield power, but also keep a calm mind whenever you do. If you keep this state of mind, my power is yours to wield. Do you understand?"**

"Yes, I do." He looked at the spirit. "Have I earned your trust?"

"**Yes, you have. You may now learn my name."**

"Then who are you?"

**"I am…"**

(End Flashback)

They stood firm with their blades drawn. Zuko held the Dao swords with the blades down and the tips touching. Sokka also held his sword in both hands, pointing downwards. **"Do you remember what to do?"** The spirits of their Zanpakutōs asked.

"_Abandon our fear. Don't give an inch. Advance and never stop. If we retreat, we will age. Be afraid and we'll die."_

**"What are we to do?"**

"Defend your kingdom of snow-covered forests!" Sokka chanted.

"Ride the storm with cries of lost honor!" Zuko chanted.

**"THEN CALL OUR NAMES!"**

"**Kuroga** (Black Fang)!" cried out Sokka. The jian split into two and grew heavier in his hands. The blades were a little longer and thicker. He held them in a reverse grip.

"**Sōryū** (Twin Dragon)!" shouted Zuko. His two swords retained their basic forms, but underwent some changes. The cross-guards were replaced with dragon heads, their open mouths holding the blades. Glowing line also came from the mouths, like the dragon heads were breathing something. On the right sword, the color was red and on the left, they were blue. Chains were attached to the hilt and were embedded in his arms.

"_What are those swords?" _Kabuto asked himself. _"They've changed shape and feel different somehow."_

"_How interesting,"_ Orochimaru thought to himself. "Do you think just because your swords are different, you are safe?" He gave a sinister laugh. "Kushina, please disprove their theory." He ordered the silent dead corpse. As this was all going on, she had sheathed her sword again.

Resting her hand on the hilt, she rushed them in the fast pace as before. But before she was even halfway across, she was forced to draw her sword to protect herself from Sokka, who suddenly appeared in front of her. They stood there, in deadlock. Then, to the surprise of both Orochimaru and Kabuto, he began to push her back.

"What? How is this possible?!" Kabuto asked.

"When I release **Kuroga**, my speed and my strength are increased." Sokka explained. "You'll find it more difficult to kill me now." He pushed her back until he heard the crackle of lightning behind him. He broke the deadlock and stepped off to the side, giving her a clear view of Zuko.

He held the left sword by the chain, which somehow elongated itself, and was twirling it in the air like a fail. The blade was covered in lightning and it was spinning so fast that it looked an actual circle of lightning spun above his head. He swung the sword done and when it hit the ground, a wave of lightning shot at her. She rolled to the side and charged him, her sword raised high.

He swung the right sword at her. It flew out of his grip, extending the chain, as it was covered in flames. She took a step back to avoid the sword cutting through her neck, but the arc of fire left behind in its wake caught her by surprise. She was pushed back, burns showing on her face, arms and through the holes burned in the shirt.

"When **Sōryū **is released, it gives me control over lightning and fire, which are imbued in these swords." He told them. "The chains allow me to fight at a distance and where the chains are, my fire and lightning can go."

"Impressive, boy, but you're forgetting that Kushina cannot be harmed. You've seen her regrow a leg and a heart. Mere burns will disappear in seconds." Orochimaru told him.

He smirked. "Are you sure about that?" He looked at Kushina and the others followed his gaze.

"What? The burns should have been gone by now!" Kabuto protested. The burns were still there and showed no signs of healing.

"Hey, Orochimaru," Naruto spoke. "Your teammate had a particular theory about these swords. He believed that any damage they cause to a person brought back to life by the **Edo Tensei** would be permanent. I guess he was right." He laughed when he saw the surprised expression on the traitor's face. "No need to have that look on your face, you should've realized that Jiraiya knew you would use the **Edo Tensei**. Regardless of who you summoned, they would've faced Sokka and Zuko. Finish this fight, guys." He ordered.

Sokka charged straight at her with both swords at the ready. She raised her sword in ready to defend, but he was too fast for her. He charged passed her, his Zanpakutō appearing in a blur. When he stopped, both of her arms simply fell off. Before anything else could happen, Zuko threw both swords at her. The left became a bolt of lightning and plunged through her heart. The right became a ball of fire and hit her head, setting it afire.

He pulled them out of her. As they flew back to his hands, the corpse fell to the ground. The fire spread to the rest of the body. They all watched as the corpse burned. When the fire finally died, all that was left was the charred and blacken remains.

"How?" asked Kabuto. "How is this possible? How could she lose to a bunch of weaklings?"

"Just because you don't know them, doesn't mean they're weaklings." Naruto told him as he stood up. "And who said you could talk? You still sound like an ass. Just shut up and save us the earache."

"Who are you to tell me what to do, Naruto? You are nothing. You are still the same pathetic shinobi three years! You couldn't—!" Whatever he was going to say next couldn't come out; due to the fact Naruto suddenly appeared in front of him and rammed his knee into his face, breaking his nose and his glasses.

"I believe I told you to shut up." He said. He quickly and methodically broke his legs, ignoring his screams of pain. He then pulled out a syringe from his back pouch and injected it into his neck. The screams died as he fell asleep.

"A knockout drug," Orochimaru noted. "Weren't you supposed to use that before you broke his legs, Naruto?"

"It'll keep him out cold for about five days." He replied without looking at him.

"Such a long time, are you that worried he might somehow come to my defense?"

"Something along those lines, yes."

He chuckled. "I believe earlier you said you were offered the chance to kill me."

"Yeah, I plan on doing it real soon."

"Then why wait?" His neck elongated and his head flew at him, his mouth opened and ready to bite. Naruto reacted by swinging his legs into a kick, knocking his head away. Using his heads to push off from the ground, he sprang into a kick and aimed for his midsection. He hit home and Orochimaru went flying, crashing into the coffin and shattering it.

"Sokka, Zuko, Akela, back off." He told them. "This is personal." They nodded in acknowledgement and walked over to the tree, their Zanpakutōs returning to their sealed state.

"Personal, is it? I'm honored." Orochimaru remarked as he stood back up and his neck returned to normal. **"Sen'ei Tajashu **(Many Hidden Shadow Snake Hands)**!" **He cried, making the same punching motion as before. But instead of a few snakes coming out of his sleeve, many came out and they all flew at Naruto.

He reached into his holster and pulled out multiple shuriken. He threw them and then quickly folded his hands through a series of handseals. **"Fūton: Shinkūjin **(Wind Style: Vacuum Blade)**!"** He spewed wind onto the shurikens, coating them and sharping them. They tore through the snakes and flew at his opponent.

"**Fūton: Daitoppa **(Wind Style: Great Breakthrough)**!"** A huge gust of wind flew out of his mouth. It hit the shurikens and turned them around, sending them back at Naruto, who ducked down to avoid them. **"Mandara no Jin** (Formation of Ten Thousand Snakes)**!"** Snakes fell from his mouth and slithered over to Naruto, their mouths open ready to attack.

He leapt backwards into the air, his hands already going through the motions. **"Fūton: Renkūdan** (Wind Style: Drilling Air Bullet)**!"** He fired off multiple air bullets at the snakes, destroying them.

"Impressive, Naruto, very impressive. You've grown." Orochimaru praised him as he landed.

"Fighting in a war will do that. You should know."

"Indeed, I should." He put his hands on his stomach and pressed upwards. His mouth bugled out and as he opened it, the head of a snake appeared. It opened its mouth and a sword handle appeared. He grabbed it and pulled the rest of the sword out, revealing it to be a katana.

"Why can't you just have that in a scabbard like the rest of us?" He asked as he eyed the **Kusanagi no Tsurugi **(Grass-Mowing Sword). "I swear you get a kick out of being disgusting."

He chuckled. "Why don't you draw your jian, Naruto?"

"I'll draw it when I feel like it. It's not like you can make me do it any sooner."

"Why don't we put that suggestion to the test?" He lunged forward, his sword in a thrusting position. He aimed for the stomach, but his opponent bent backwards so the sword would just pass over him. He brought himself into a handstand and then swung his legs into a rotating kick.

The first kick hit his opponent's midsection, but he caught the second kick with his free hand. "You'll have to do better than that." He remarked. He grabbed the leg and yanked it, sending him crashing down to the ground. He swung the **Kusanagi** at his head, but he caught it with his hands.

"I know." He replied. He folded his legs back and then shot them at his stomach. The force and power of the kick forced the traitor to step back, pulling the sword with him. It sliced opened Naruto's hands, letting blood spill out as he stood back up.

"Why don't you use the **Rasengan **(Spiraling Sphere), Naruto? I'm surprised you haven't used it yet." He remarked as he watch the cuts on his hands heal themselves.

His answer was to reach into his holster and throw shuriken at him. He lifted his sword and swatted them aside with casual ease. But that was what Naruto was counting on. As soon as Orochimaru had raised the **Kusanagi **up to swat the shuriken aside, he charged forward, already concentrating his chakra into his hand. **"Rasengan!"** He yelled as he rammed the completed jutsu into his chest.

The jutsu expanded and sent Orochimaru flying away. As he crashed into the ground, there was a big hole in his shirt along with blood seeping from a large wound in his chest. As both Sokka and Zuko began to think he was dead, his mouth opened and two hands emerged from it, followed by the arms and the rest of a slime-covered Orochimaru.

"Shedding your skin, I guess you are a snake after all." Naruto remarked as he watch the previous skin of Orochimaru rapidly decompose before breaking apart and drifting away on the wind.

"That's just gross. It's impressive, but still gross." Sokka commented from the side.

"I see you've gotten better at using the **Rasengan**." Orochimaru praised Naruto. "But I am disappointed you did not try to add your element to it."

"Who says I didn't?" He asked.

"Then please, by all means, try it on me."

"…Nah, it'd be a waste of chakra. Besides, I'm winning."

"And how do you figure that?"

"Your reactions are getting slower, your attacks are getting stiffer and you're supposed to be fast enough to shed your skin while flying backwards from a jutsu. Instead, you shed it after landing." His face sprouted a smirk. "The body you have is rejecting you, isn't it? You figure this is would be quick and easy so you didn't bother switching bodies, how lucky for me."

"Jiraiya told you all of this, didn't he?"

"I was training with him for a month and we both knew you'd be coming. Late night discussions did come around."

"And to think, he tried to convince me to come back to the village once."

"Yeah well, he stopped trying a long time ago."

"Indeed he has. Now he tries to have me killed."

"You brought it on yourself when you crossed the line."

"And which line would that be?"

"You know damn well which one."

He chuckled. "How ironic that you, who acted once much like my old teammate, chose to leave the village while Sasuke, who is almost identical to myself, chose to stay. Tell me, Naruto, if Sasuke had been successful in coming to me, would you have stayed in Konoha?"

"…I guess it'd depend on whether the Civilian Council would have me killed or not."

"Fair enough of an answer. Shall we finish this fight?"

"No. I'm ending it."

"And do you plan to do that? Although you might have experience in war, I do as well and mine far outstrips yours. I am quite capable of beating you, even in this weaken state."

"It's not the amount; it's what you learn with it. Weren't you the one who wanted to master all the jutsus out there? You've must learn all of the names of the jutsus created. If that's true, then you must know this one." He drew his jian, brought it into a salute, then brought back down to his side and flipped it into a reverse-grip. As he did that, his chakra flared up and took visible form. The blue energy raced upwards and covered him completely, making it look like he was standing in the midst of a blue inferno. Then, to the shock of everyone who didn't know what he was doing, his chakra separated from him and flew upwards. It condensed itself more and more, until it had become a circle. The circle began to spin around. It became faster and faster and every few seconds, a piece would break off. That piece would get bigger and longer, growing a tail, claws and a head. After the circle did this nine times, it disappeared. What remained of his visible chakra had taken the form of nine dragons, floating in the air behind him.

When he saw that, Orochimaru's eyes went wide. "How is this possible?" He demanded.

"It's my birthright." Naruto told him.

"But it was lost! It was lost when Uzushiogakure was destroyed! Both Konoha and I searched for it!"

"It left Uzushio long before its destruction."

* * *

"What is that, hm?" Deidara asked.

"I don't know, but it looks scary." Tobi replied.

"Hey, Kakuzu, have you seen this before?" Hidan asked his partner.

"No, my bounties have never used this kind of jutsu." He answered.

"Kisame, why are you crying?" Konan asked, getting everyone's attention. They all turned to look at him. He was indeed crying, but he was smiling as well.

"It actually exists." He whispered reverently.

* * *

"It's been a long time since I've seen that jutsu." Ōnoki remarked quietly. "I was never sure if I wanted to see it again."

"What on earth are you talking about, old man?" Kurotsuchi asked him.

"Never mind him, what kind of jutsu is Naruto using?" Kankurō demanded.

"You think I know?" Temari asked back.

"Why are you crying, Chōjūrō?" demanded Ao. "What happened to that confidence you had earlier!?"

"The-these are tears of happiness, sir." He explained. "I never thought I would get the honor of seeing this jutsu."

"Chōjūrō, what is this jutsu?" Mei asked her bodyguard.

"Just watch, Lady Mizukage." Jiraiya told her.

"Now you're crying, Bee. What is going on?" The Raikage asked his brother.

"Brother, if you were a swordsman, you would know what this jutsu is. And you too would weep with joy at the honor of seeing it." Bee told him. The way he said made everyone in the box look at him. He had spoken without rapping. The shinobi from Kumo knew that if Killer Bee had spoken without rapping, what came out of his mouth was to be treated seriously.

* * *

"What kind of jutsu is that?" Ino asked as they watched.

Both Neji and Hinata activated their **Byakugan **to see if that was really chakra. They immediately deactivated it and cried out in pain. "Hinata!" cried Kiba as he and Shino checked their teammate.

"What's the matter, Neji?" Tenten asked.

"That's really his charka." He answered, covering his eyes.

"It's so bright, so bright." Hinata repeated, covering her eyes as well.

"What is so bright? Would someone tell me what's going on?" Toph demanded.

"Naruto called up some sort of blue energy and it transformed into nine dragons." Katara told her.

"That 'blue energy' is his chakra." Jiraiya explained.

"Lord Jiraiya, what is that jutsu?" Lee asked him.

"And why is every shinobi carrying a sword crying?" Shikamaru also asked.

He looked at the crowds and saw what Shikamaru was talking about. "They're crying because for them, this is an honor that they never thought of having. They are also crying because this will probably be the only time they will see it."

"Why does this jutsu mean so much to them?" Suki asked.

"It's a legendary jutsu, having been used only by a few. It is called the **Uzumaki Kenjutsu: ****Kuzu Ryū no Danmaku **(Uzumaki Sword Technique: Barrage of the Nine Dragons)."

"I can see where one part of that comes from." Azula remarked. "So how does it work?"

"It's a simple barrage of punches, kicks and sword strikes. Each dragon is nine sword strikes, nine kicks and nine punches. All-in-all, the total amount of hits is two hundred and forty-three."

"Doesn't it sound a little…much?" Ino asked.

"Kid, this is the jutsu that ended the First Shinobi World War." Jiraiya told her.

"You serious?" asked Kiba.

"You guys know that the Land of Water is a collection of islands, right?" He asked the shinobi. They nodded while the others looked both interested and curious. "Before the First World War, it used to be one _big_ island."

"You're kidding!" Chōji said.

"No, I am not. This jutsu was used when the head of the Uzumaki clan at that time and the Shodaime Mizukage fought each other. The last attack of the jutsu, the **Tenryūtei no Hōkō **(Roar of the Heavenly Dragon Emperor) killed the Mizukage and caused the outermost parts of the island to break off. Some drifted away little bit, others fell beneath the ocean. The Land of Water was in a hectic time after that."

"And now, Naruto knows how to use this jutsu." Shikamaru stated. "What a drag."

* * *

As Naruto stood across from his enemy, the nine dragons staring at the Snake Sannin with hate in their eyes, he remembered how it was he came to know this jutsu.

(Flashback)

They were taking a small break for lunch while Jiraiya told them of how they were doing. "You are all doing a little better, but I can still read you like an open book. Even though the two of you have been practicing with your Zanpakutōs, it's still easy to beat you." He told Zuko and Sokka.

"Well, you are a Sannin. It'd probably take us more than a month of hellish training to beat you." Naruto remarked.

"I wouldn't put that on a scroll yet."

"Oh! That reminds me!" Sokka said before reaching over for his bag. He dug through it before pulling out what he was looking for. "Here it is."

"What is that?" Zuko asked.

"It's a scroll Master Piandao gave me after training me. It's supposed to only be opened and read by an Uzumaki." He offered the scroll to Naruto. "So it's yours."

He took the scroll and looked it over. "What's with the complicated knot?" He asked aloud.

"I don't know. I guess it's there to ensure only an Uzumaki can untie it."

"Well, I guess it's a good thing I know how to untie it." He pulled out a kunai and cut through just below the knot.

"You are definitely an Uzumaki." Jiraiya stated drily as the remains fell to the ground.

"Thanks for telling me something I already know." He opened the scroll and looked at it. "Hey, do the words **Kuzu Ryū no Danmaku** mean anything to you guys?"

"…Say that again."

He was mystified, but complied. "Do the words **Kuzu Ryū no Danmaku **mean anything to you guys?"

He quickly walked over and took the scroll out of his hands. His eyes quickly roamed over its contents. "Merciful Kami, it survived."

(End Flashback)

He looked directly at Orochimaru. "So, shall we get this over with?" He asked rhetorically. The first dragon roared and lunged for the traitor. He tried to avoid it, but the dragon caught him easily and held him in place with his claws. Naruto charged him and began the barrage. When he stopped, the dragon tossed him away like a rag doll. He tried to stand and move, but the second dragon pinned him to the ground.

The assault continued. After twenty-seven strikes were given, Orochimaru was released from the grip of a dragon. But within a few seconds, the next dragon would barrel into him and take hold of him, starting the process again.

But when the eighth round was done, the dragon threw him up into the air. The ninth and final dragon flew upwards. But when it reached him, it didn't take hold of him. Instead, it just encircled him. The reason was soon made clear when Naruto ran up the wall and leapt for him. He used the dragon as a stepping stone as he pummeled Orochimaru. He would take a step, strike his enemy, leap for the wall, jump back and repeat the process (nobody bothered to ask how he could step on the dragon, considering it was made from chakra, because they were too busy watching him give someone a well-deserved ass-whooping).

After he gave the twenty-sixth hit, he did something different. Instead of leaping for the wall, he leapt upwards. He flew up into the air, going higher and higher, until he reached his zenith. He hung there, in the air. As the dragon encircling Orochimaru disappeared, he closed his hand into a fist and drew it back. That was when gravity took control of him again. As he fell, he angled himself to fall faster and towards his target. He began to channel chakra into his arm. As he reached Orochimaru, he slammed his fist into his stomach. **"Tenryūtei no Hōkō!" **He roared. The chakra in his arm surged forward and into Orochimaru, taking the form of a dragon larger than the others and much more majestic and regal. It took the Snake Sannin in its jaws and flew towards the ground. It slammed into the earth, causing a shockwave that everyone could feel and a large cloud of dust.

When the dust cleared, Naruto had landed on the ground and there was a fifteen inch crater where Orochimaru had crashed. If one was to take a look at him, they would see that he was a mess. Multiple bruises and cuts littered his body. It looked like it would be painful for him to move, let alone stand up. But he did stand up, only to fall to his knees. His mouth bulged and opened, revealing another Orochimaru covered in slime. But even the new Orochimaru looked like he had just come out of a beating. Granted, he didn't any cuts or bruises, he was the way he held himself. He collapsed to the ground after fully shedding his skin. When he heard the sound of footsteps getting closer, he struggled to raise his head.

He looked up and saw Naruto standing over him. "How…how is this possible? How can you beat me?"

"I told you already, you crossed the line. I've hated you for the past three years and now, I can finally get satisfaction." He told him coldly.

"Please…have mercy on me." He asked, trying to get away by any means.

His eyes turned red. "HAVE MERCY!?" He roared as he grabbed his shirt and yanked him up so they looked each other directly in the face. "YOU WISH TO HAVE MERCY AFTER ALL YOU"VE DONE!?" Turning around, he hurled him out of the crater. He sailed through the air and slammed into the wall.

He fell to the ground and struggled to sit up. When he did, he saw Naruto slowly walking towards him, his eyes back to their normal blue. But he didn't just see him, he saw the Shinigami hovering behind him, with a grin both malicious and sadistic. For the first time for a long while, his arrogance had disappeared and was replaced with fear. He was afraid that death would finally claim him. _"I don't want to die."_ He thought to himself in a panic. "Please, don't kill me." He begged. "I'll give you anything you want."

Naruto stopped in front of him and placed his jian on his throat.

* * *

"No! Don't do it!" Aang cried out as he stood up from his seat. He tried to leap down over the railing, but was held back by Suki and Katara.

"Aang, what are you doing?" Katara asked.

"I have to stop him from doing this. I can't let him kill him! He asked for mercy!"

"There's nothing you can do, Twinkle Toes. That guy is going to do die." Toph told him in a somber voice.

"Not if I can help it. He doesn't need to be killed!"

Azula suddenly reached out, grabbed him and pulled him back into the seat. "Aang, you are going to sit down and you are going to shut up." She ordered. "That man is going to be killed, whether you like it or not."

* * *

"Anything I want, huh?" Naruto asked. "You would offer me money?"

"Yes!" Orochimaru said.

"Power beyond my wildest imagination?"

"Of course!"

"All the jutsus you ever had or found at my command?"

"I would give them to you myself!"

"You give me anything and everything I asked for?"

"YES! PLEASE, LET ME LIVE!"

He stared at him for what seemed to be a very long time. Finally, he scoffed, withdrew his jian, turned around and walked away. Orochimaru stood up on shaky legs. As he watched him walk away, his fear turned into anger, anger at being beaten easily and being humiliated by begging for his life. With a snarl of anger, he lunged for Naruto, intent on killing him with his bare hands.

Before anyone could shout out a warning to him, he turned around to face him and threw his jian at him. The sword spun through the air and struck the Snake Sannin in the throat, pinning him to the wall. He walked over to the dying man and took hold of the handle. He leaned in to his ear and said "I want my Jiji back, you son of a bitch." He pulled the jian out and beheaded the traitor with one swing.

Everyone just watched in silence as the head of the traitor of Konoha flew the air before landing on the ground.

* * *

"I don't believe it." Mei said with surprise.

"Neither do I, but he's done it." A told her.

"I guess the kid will want a medal for this." Ōnoki remarked.

Tsunade and Jiraiya shared a quiet look. She nodded once and touched the wireless radio. "Take it down." She ordered.

* * *

"He did it. He actually did it." Chōji said in shock.

"We know he did it. We saw it too." Ino told him.

"Yeah, but still…"

"Yeah, go Naruto!" Kiba whooped.

"Our friend is so very youthful!" Lee declared with tears falling down his face. "He has proven himself to be a hero to Konoha!"

"Keep it down, Lee." Tenten told him. "We might agree with you, but you don't need to tell to everyone here that."

"He can tell it to Naruto himself." Neji said. "The seal has been deactivated."

They all looked up and saw that the seal was visibly coming down. When it had disappeared, they were going to leap down and congratulate him when smoke began to sprout up in the stands, the Kage Box, the booths and on the field.

"What the hell? Who threw the smoke bombs?!" Kiba demanded.

"Are we under attack?" Hinata asked.

"Who would be attacking us?" Ino asked.

"Maybe this isn't an attack." Shikamaru said, concentrating. "This could be a…" His eyes went wide at the realization.

"This could be a what?" Chōji asked him.

"…It could be a distraction." He finished. As he said that, the smoke in the arena began to clear. When it was all gone, the body and head of Orochimaru were still there. But Sokka, Akela, Zuko and Naruto were not.

"They're gone!" Lee cried out. "Where did they go?"

"They are not the only ones who are missing." Shino told him. The seats holding Aang, Toph, Suki, Katara and Azula were empty. Jiraiya was gone too.

(Location: Team Avatar)

They raced down an empty street. "Is everything ready?" Naruto asked Jiraiya as they ran.

"Of course, they're waiting for us outside the Avery. I have a clone watching them." He answered.

"What are you talking about?" Katara asked. "Who are they?"

"No time to answer, just run!" Naruto ordered her. They kept on running until they hit the Avery. Standing outside of the building was Momo, Fǎn Yìng and Appa. They were being watched by another Jiraiya who, when he saw the original, disappeared in a plume of smoke.

"Is everyone here?" Jiraiya asked as they gathered around the animals.

"Looks like it." Sokka answered as he and Zuko counted heads.

"Let's move it along, Jiraiya." Naruto told him. "Not unless we want company."

"I'm already done." He replied, finishing the handseals. He slammed his hand onto the ground and a seal array appeared around them. The array glowed white and they were engulfed in smoke. They all felt a brief moment of being squeezed tightly together. But when the feeling disappeared and the smoke cleared, they saw that they were not in Konoha.

They were in the Royal beach house back on Ember Island.

"Wha…How can we be…?" Aang tried to ask, but he was too stunned.

"Thanks for doing this, Gerotora." Jiraiya thanked a nearby toad, who was standing over a used seal tag.

"Not a problem. I'll see you later." He replied before disappearing in a plume of smoke.

"Are we really back?" Katara asked.

"Yeah, we're back. I recognize this ground." Toph told her.

"Ah, finally, we're out of Konoha." Naruto declared with a sigh of relief as he took out a cigarette and lit it. "That took way too long."

"What are you talking about?" Suki asked him.

"It's time for you to spill, Naruto." Sokka told him. "Both you and Jiraiya have secretive the entire month we were training and you knew things even before then. What was going on?"

Both Naruto and Jiraiya shared a look with each other. "Alright," Naruto said, shrugging his shoulders and blowing out smoke. "I guess you all can know what had happened now. Even though the trip to Konoha was not intentional, the month-long stay was."

"It was?" Katara repeated.

He gave her a look. "Come on, Katara. Do you really think I'd stayed there for a month with no plans of escaping? I would've been able to break us out of there within a week, easy."

"Then why didn't you?" Zuko asked.

"It actually goes back a couple of months." Jiraiya told them. "It started when Tsunade had just sent Team Guy and Team Asuma to help you guys."

(Flashback)

The thought of Naruto being a shinobi that hasn't been seen since the Clan Wars chilled them. But that was a momentary thought. "You didn't come back here just to discuss Naruto." Tsunade said. "What else did you bring?"

"My contacts have been telling me disturbing news. It seems that Orochimaru has been sending shinobi to track Sasuke every time he leaves the village."

"Kami take it." She swore. "Have there been attempts to take him?"

"No, right now they just seem to be observing him. But if this keeps up, Orochimaru might make a move to take him."

"I'll put an ANBU squad on standby. Whenever Team Kakashi leaves the village, they'll follow and make sure Sasuke isn't kidnapped."

"…Tsunade, sooner or later, we will have to take care of Orochimaru."

"I know that, Jiraiya. But would you be able to kill him?"

"To be honest, I don't know."

"Neither do I. Besides, it's not exactly easy to find him. Besides a few lucky times when you've found where he was, Orochimaru is practically invisible."

"Well, what if we didn't go after him, but make him come to us?"

"And how are we going to do that?"

He smiled. "I've got an idea."

(End Flashback)

"Originally, the plan was to have Sasuke be a proctor for the Exams. We figured Orochimaru wouldn't have been able to resist the idea of kidnapping him and humiliating Konoha in the process. It was shaky at best, but it was all we had to go with." He told them.

"So what happened to change the plan so much?" Zuko asked.

"What happened was the gaki here took control of Ba Sing Se." He pointed a thumb at Naruto.

(Flashback)

Tsunade sat in the chair, watching Teams Guy, Asuma and Kurenai leave the room. "Jiraiya, get in here." She ordered.

He appeared on the windowsill. "I'm right here, Princess." He said, stepping into the room.

"Well, there goes our attempt to bring him back." She grumbled.

"Actually, it gives me the perfect opportunity to go after him. And it could possibly help us with our snake problem."

"How will you be able to get him when the others couldn't?"

He gave her a look. "Okay, number one: it's me, remember? Number two: since he had effectively kicked the others out of there, he'll think he's safe from us. I'll be able to use that to my advantage."

She was silent for a few minutes. "…Wait until they write the reports. After you read all of them, you can go after him."

"Thank you, Tsunade. I remember how this works." He replied sarcastically as he left the room.

(End Flashback)

"After that, I came to the Bending Countries and spied on Naruto." He told them. "A few days before I kidnapped you guys, I had sent word to Tsunade. She started leaking information that Naruto would be in the upcoming Chūnin Exams."

"And that's when I came into this." Naruto took over the explanation. "When I first awoke in the prison, Jiraiya was there."

(Flashback)

He came awake, but he did not show it. The last thing he remembered was inhaling knockout gas and hearing a voice he hadn't heard in three years. _"I have to figure out where I am, where the others are and how we're going to get out."_ He thought to himself.

"Kid, if you're going to pretend to still be asleep, do it on some other person." That same familiar voice told him.

He opened his eyes and saw that it was Jiraiya. "Oh great, it's you. I guess that means I'm in Konoha, huh?"

"It's nice to see you too, kid." He replied.

He tried to stand up from where he lay and took notice of where he was. "Why am I in a prison cell? And what's with the chains?" He asked.

"Well, you are a fugitive from Konoha and an ex-shinobi."

"Fair enough," He replied before sighing and sitting down on the bed. "How long were you watching me?"

"Since you came back to the Fire Nation," He answered.

"Let me guess, she wants me back?"

"That is one part of it, but it's a secondary issue. The main reason we brought you back was to make you an offer."

"Like what?"

"How would you like the chance to kill Orochimaru?"

He lifted his head up and looked him straight in the eye. "Keep talking."

(End Flashback)

"He then told me everything that they would be planning. In order to fool any spies that would be watching, I still had to act somewhat hostile and unwillingly to be in the village."

"So the whole thing was an act?" Suki asked for clarification.

"Well…not everything. But that just made the whole thing more believable. Even Tsunade and Jiraiya were acting, even if they were alone."

"Why would they do that?" Toph asked.

"They were never sure if there were spies watching them, so they had to go with it."

"That would explain the conversation I had with Tsunade." Azula remarked shortly.

"So she told you, huh?" She didn't reply. "I guess she knew you would keep them in line the best."

"What are you talking about?" Katara asked.

"As a part of the acting, Tsunade had given orders to the Konoha Eleven. They were to accompany us when we came so they could keep an eye on me. Once the Royal Flaming Asshole was taken care of, I would've come back to Konoha. If I refused and tried to resist, they would've knocked me unconscious, brought me back and wiped away the past three years."

"WHAT?" Everyone (except Azula) shouted.

"Those orders would never be carried out. They were to fool both the spies and the Konoha Eleven. Tsunade told Azula this to make sure you guys didn't know."

"Why?" Sokka asked.

"Because there are a few members of this team that have moments of stupidity that are of epic proportions," He answered as he looked pointedly at both Katara and Aang. "She told Azula so that she could stop the conversation before you started to ask about what the Konoha Eleven were talking about. Each team has a blabber, so there was a good chance you might've heard of the orders."

Katara, Aang, Toph and Suki remembered that during the past month, Azula had changed the conversation or told the shinobi that they had to go quite often. They didn't think anything of it; they just thought it was her being a little impatient. "How do you know all of this, Naruto?" Suki asked.

"He told me when we were in the _Meat Bar_." He pointed at Jiraiya.

"But what were you doing in there before that?"

"Personal business," He answered shortly.

"Again with the secrets?" asked Azula coldly.

He looked at her, but she turned her gaze. Sighing, he turned his attention to the others. "Fine, I was apologizing to somebody."

(Flashback)

He walked into the place and when the people who worked there turned to see who it was, they froze. "Is she up in her room?" He asked Ai. She nodded. He walked over to the steps, but was cut off by a young woman. "May I go up the stairs, Akiha?" He asked her.

She responded by slapping him across the face. "Why are you here?!" She demanded.

"Akiha, please, you're going to make a scene." A nearby man told her.

"How're you doing, Aito?" Naruto greeted. All he got was a glare in response.

"He's not going up until I know what he's doing here." Akiha stated.

"I'm here to apologize." He answered.

"Apologize to whom, exactly? There are quite a few people here who deserve an apology from you."

"He's going to apologize to Mama." Ai told her quietly.

She looked at her and then at him. "Is that true?" She asked. He nodded. "Then get up there." She stepped out of his way and he started to climb the stairs. He climbed up and up, until the noise downstairs became nothing but a dull sound. Finally, he stopped at a door. Reaching out, he knocked on it.

"Mama, are you in there?" He called out. "…It's Naruto."

There was silence for a few seconds before he got an answer. "Come in." A woman's voice ordered him. He opened the door and started to walk in, only to get a hard fist in his stomach.

"Kami, I think I preferred it when you smack the back of my head." He wheezed out.

"After what you did, you deserved that." A middle-aged woman told him curtly. She removed her fist from his stomach and walked back into the room.

"Yeah, I know." He followed her into the room.

"So why are you here?"

"To say I'm sorry."

She turned to face him, her gaze hard. "Sorry for what?"

"…I'm sorry for leaving without saying goodbye. I know I should've, but I just…couldn't."

"And why is that?"

"If I said goodbye, everyone would've tried to convince me to stay. They probably would've told me that everything would've turned out alright. I didn't want to face that, not after what I had just gone through."

"This entire place has thought of you as family." She told him with fury in her voice. "We gave you food and shelter. When someone tried to hurt you, we protected you. You were always welcomed here, and you spat on that by not even giving us the decency of saying goodbye when you left the village for places unknown."

"I know. How many times will I have to apologize?"

She marched right up to him and looked him in the eye. He readied himself for another punch or a slap. Instead, she pulled him into a tight hug. "You've apologized enough already." She told him. He returned the hug with equal measure.

When they broke the hug, they both noticed Jiraiya was at the door. "Hey." He said.

"How long were you there?" She asked.

"I walked in as you were hugging."

"What do you need, Jiraiya?" Naruto asked him.

"You, kid." He looked over at her, who simply nodded. "Come on." He turned around and walked down the stairs. Naruto followed him. They walked down the stairs and out of the building.

"Where are we going?" He asked as they walked through the streets.

"You'll see." He answered shortly. They kept on walking until they stopped before a gate. "We're here."

"Why are we at the cemetery?"

"I figured you wanted to pay your respects to someone." They walked through the cemetery until they stopped in front of a statue of a flame. On the base that held the statue were the kanjis for Hokage. "Do you want some time alone?"

"…No." He answered after a few seconds of silence. "Do you miss him?"

"I miss everyone I've lost. But yeah, I miss him. What about you?"

"Every single day, there are times when I've missed the smell of his pipe." He heard the sound of hands digging through pockets. He looked over and saw Jiraiya holding out a pack of cigarettes to him. "What are those for?"

"It's the brand he used to smoke before he switched to the pipe. I always carried a pack around for…sentimental reasons. If you miss the smell, this might help a bit."

He took one, placed it in his mouth and lit with the help of lighter Jiraiya held. He took a drag and began to cough. "How do you people do this?" He demanded as he wheezed.

"It takes a little practice. Try going slower on the next drag."

They stood in silence as he figured out how to properly smoke. Once he had figured it out, he looked over at the Toad Sage. "So, what's going to happen?" He asked, becoming all-business.

"Tsunade will give the Konoha Eleven orders. They are going to think that after the Exams, they will follow you back to the Bending Countries to help with the Fire Lord. Once he is taken care, they will return to the village and you are supposed to come with. If you refused, they will take you back by force and wiped your memories of the past three years."

"That's harsh. I'm glad that's not happening. Is it all the members of the Konoha Eleven?"

"Asuma, Guy and Kurenai will know the truth, but will have orders not to tell their students."

"Good to know. Is there anyone else in on the game?"

"Only a few people the Hokage has told herself. We have to keep things as genuine as possible. Not even Shizune knows what we're doing."

"And why is that?"

"We don't know if the spies will track her as well. Just keep in mind that at least one person in each Exam will know what we're doing."

"And what are the Exams?"

"Exactly the same as the last one you took. That way, you know what to do."

"Nothing will be changed."

"Not a thing."

(End Flashback)

"So that's how you got your information." Sokka declared.

"Pretty much, yeah," He agreed. "But the information wasn't all. The Exams themselves were rigged."

"Really?" asked Zuko.

He nodded. "In the first Exam, the Chūnins failed Genin who hadn't been caught cheating five times. In the second Exam, there were ANBU squads waiting in the Forest of Death to ambush any remaining Genin squads."

"What for?" asked Suki.

"So that only my team and Orochimaru's got to the final Exam. It was my job in the first Exam to target them and let the proctors know who they were. That way, they wouldn't be touched until the final Exam. That was when we would so thoroughly embarrass them that Orochimaru would have no choice but to show himself."

"So you could kill him." Aang stated in an almost accusatory tone.

"That was the deal. I kill him; the old hag lets us come back with some backup." He pointed at Jiraiya when he said backup.

"Him?" asked Katara. "He's our backup? The Hokage couldn't have sent more?"

"Katara, we've trained under him." Sokka told her. "If his training methods are anything to go by, he's enough."

"Well, we're back. Now what are we going to do?" Toph asked.

"Let's go make sure our things are all still here. Then we get some food." Zuko suggested. Everyone agreed and they all walked away. Jiraiya followed in order to find a room he could use.

In the end, all who were left in the courtyard were Naruto and Azula. Neither of them said a word to each other. Finally, Naruto was the first to speak. "Azula…" He began to say, only to stop when she gave him a cold glare.

"I have to go make sure all my things are still here." She told him curtly before walking away and leaving him in the courtyard.

He stared at her as she walked away. **"Out of the frying pan and into the fire, huh, kit?"** Kyuubi commented as she disappeared into the house.

"_You shut up."_ He ordered silently as he walked into the house as well. _"You were the one who caused _this_ fire."_

"**So were you, kit. So were you."**

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

No doubt there are a few of you who are going to be mad at what I wrote and how I wrote it. Let me ask you this: where exactly in the rules of Fanfiction does it say that Naruto has to fight whoever's been resurrected by the **Edo Tensei**? You show me that rule and I might rewrite that bit. Otherwise, you can take your complaints and shove them where the sun doesn't shine. This is my story, not yours.

Yes, the Zanpakutōs are finally here. If you're going to ask where Naruto's Zanpakutō is, that's later in the story. If you have trouble imagining what they look like, for Sokka, just think two black Roman gladiuses and for Zuko, think Kratos's swords from the _God of War _series without the hooks in the blades.

I would like to thank Aragon Potter for his help with the Japanese names and titles. He has taken the time to answer each of my questions and without him; I think I wouldn't be as far as I am today. I can only hope that he will continue to help me in chapters to come.

For those of you who are going to throw a fit about the fact that Team Kakashi wasn't there, I'll just say this: we're not done with Konoha.

I have read the latest chapters of _Naruto_, so I do know what Orochimaru is doing. But I've planned this long before that came around. Let's face it, everybody pretty much wants to see that bastard dead.

I know that what Naruto whispered in Orochimaru's ear just before he killed him pretty much came from The Princess Bride. That's the reason I took it. That line is one of the most badass lines I have ever heard. It's right up there with "Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die."

I'll see you all next chapter! And a late Happy Anniversary to me! Forty chapters in one year (what can I say except…yikes).


	41. Arguing and Finding

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 41: Arguing and Finding

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Beach house)

It had been a full day since they came back. They had gotten lucky as they still had a few days before the Comet. Now, they sat down to breakfast. "Everyone sleep well?" Katara asked.

"I slept well enough." Suki answered.

"Same here," Toph said.

"I know our stay in Konoha wasn't by any means harsh, but it's nice to be back." Aang told her.

"Yeah, you're right." She agreed before looking around. "Hey, where are Sokka and the other guys?" As if to answer her question, the sound of a body hitting the wall was heard right outside. They ran outside to see what was going on.

What they saw was a three-on-one fight between Sokka, Naruto, and Zuko against Jiraiya. The younger three were working as a team, fighting in tandem to take down their opponent. One would be aiming high, another targeted his midsection and the third would go low.

But despite what they did, Jiraiya looked like he wasn't even trying. He blocked their attacks with ease and only moved when he had to. His facial expression was one of mild amusement. The fight went on until all their feet were on the ground. He crouched down and swept their legs out from underneath them. They fell to the ground and he stood over them with an amused smile. "How's the view?" He asked.

"We're looking at your ugly mug." Naruto replied as they stood back up.

"What are you talking about? The ladies love this mug."

"You keep telling yourself that, F.S.–sensei."

"What does that mean?" Katara asked.

"Fucking Sadist–sensei," Sokka answered her.

"That's a horrible name."

"It's a well-deserved one. If you trained under him for a month, you'd call him that too."

"I still do not appreciate being attacked that early in the morning." Jiraiya berated them.

"You did it to us, so it's only natural we return the favor." Zuko told him.

"How long were you guys fighting?" Suki asked.

They all looked at each other. "Um…what time is it?" Naruto asked.

"About eight in the morning," Aang told him quietly. Ever since he watched him kill Orochimaru, he didn't really want to be around him. He didn't say it outright, but everyone knew that was what he was doing.

"Then we've been fighting since about five."

"That long?!" asked Suki.

"That's nothing. Some of our fights have gone on for much longer." Sokka told her.

"What in the sake of the Spirits for?"

"That entire month we were training, not one of us was able to beat him. Whether it was on our own or when we worked as a team, it didn't matter." Zuko answered.

"You kids still have a ways to go if you want to beat me." Jiraiya stated cheerfully.

"Thankfully, I happen to know what his one weakness is." Naruto said.

"And what is that exactly?" He challenged.

He looked up at the sun, measuring the time. "I do believe that the morning swimmers are coming down to the beach right about now and most of them are women…"

Jiraiya was gone quicker than they could blink. "What the…where'd he go?" Katara asked, looking around.

"He's a super pervert, remember?"

"How long were you waiting to use that one?" Zuko asked him.

"The entire month," He answered.

"…After what we've been through, he deserves it." Sokka declared.

"That's the idea, I said they were women. I didn't say how old they were." That got a laugh out of almost everyone there. Everyone except for Azula, that is. She had just stood there in silence, watching them.

He took notice and stopped laughing. Soon, everyone stopped laughing as the two just looked at each other. He opened his mouth to speak but before he could, she turned around and walked away.

"What exactly happened between the two of you?" Toph asked.

"It's a private matter." He told her curtly before going after Azula.

They watched as he ran out of the beach house. "Anyone want to tell me what that was all about?" Suki asked.

"Hey, we're as much in the dark as you guys are." Sokka told her. "All we know is that the two had a fight."

(Location: Azula)

She walked through the forest with angry steps. She felt conflicted about Naruto. She knew that she shouldn't trust him because of his secrets and should feel hurt because of them. But she still couldn't help loving him.

"_For Agni's sake, what is wrong with me?!"_ She asked herself. _"He's been keeping secret after secret from me! I shouldn't be able to trust him after all the things he's kept from me. But every time I look at him, I can't help but be in love with him." _She gave a mental scream._ "Why is this happening with me!?" _

"Azula," Naruto said from behind her, making her spin around to face him. "We need to talk."

"We need to talk?" She repeated. "You should've done that a long time ago!"

"I had my reasons for keeping my secrets, you know that."

"And you couldn't tell me because you were afraid I'd looked at you differently, is that it?" She asked sarcastically.

"You're doing it already."

"This is not me knowing about your little furry problem. This is me being angry at the number of secrets you have!"

"**Little furry problem!?" **repeatedKyuubi. **"Excuse me, but I am a BIG furry problem!"**

"_Would you keep quiet?"_ He asked. "You've never had a problem with my secrets before." He told her.

"No, I had a problem, but I never pushed you about it."

"So why now?"

"You damn well know why!"

"And you know why I didn't tell you."

"Stop using that excuse!"

"It's not an excuse, it's a reason!"

She gave a yell of frustration and threw a fireball at him. He ducked down and let it sail overhead, hitting a tree. "You are completely frustrating!" She screamed at him.

"Calm down, Azula!" He ordered.

"No, I will not calm down! I don't what to think of you and that's annoying me!"

"So bending a fireball at me is a better alternative?!"

"Shut up and hold still so I can hit you!" She bent a stream of fire at him, which he dodged by stepping to the side. She kept throwing fireball after fireball at him, but he kept dodging. He stayed low and kept moving forward to her.

When he finally reached her, he tried to grab her hands. However, she remembered how he stopped her the last time that happened. She drew her hands back, crouched down and knocked his legs out from under him.

He fell to the ground and rolled out of the way from a fireball. He leapt up and then lunged for her midsection. They crashed to the ground together as he grabbed her. They rolled around the ground a couple of times before getting untangled.

They rolled away from each other and leapt back onto their feet. "How can you do this kind of stuff to me!?" demanded Azula.

"What kind of stuff?" He demanded back.

"I should be mad at you, but I can't! I can't help but love you and it's driving me nuts!" She bent an arc of fire at him. He rolled under it and when he stood back, she threw a punch at his face. He blocked it and then grabbed the arm. He turned around and threw her over his shoulder. She was able to land on her feet.

She turned around and drove her fist into his midsection, making him grunt slightly in pain. She tried to hit him again, but he yanked his hand out of hers and blocked it. She threw another punch, but he blocked it as well. They stood there, hands in deadlock, staring at each other.

They weren't quite sure who moved first. But the next thing they knew, they grabbed each other's face and pulled it in for a kiss, a kiss that was hot, passionate and involved a good game of tongue hockey. Their hands fumbled around, trying to open the other's shirt so they could feel more skin.

He pushed her up against a tree, his hands going to her hips. She grabbed fistfuls of his hair in response, making him wince. He pulled her closer, pressing their hips together. They stayed like that until their bodies demanded air.

They broke the kiss and stood there, gasping for breath. "Well," Naruto said as he rested his forehead against hers. "That's one way to stop a fight."

"Do you want me to attack you again?" She threatened half-heartedly.

"If it leads to this again, yes please."

"I'm still angry at you."

The grin he had on his face disappeared. "I know." He said as he stepped back from her. "I'm sorry."

She shook her head. "You had your reasons. I was being selfish. You had the right to keep that secret. I should've realized that."

"Then why didn't you?"

"I was angry, angry at the fact that you didn't tell me. But I was also ashamed."

"Why would you be ashamed? I kept things from you."

"I was ashamed at that fact I found your secret, but not from you. But I guess I focused more on my anger then my shame. It was easier." She gave a laugh laced with irony. "All of this, is over one little secret."

"Will you be alright?" He asked, concern filling his voice.

"I'll be fine, I think."

"You think?"

"I wish…I wish I could talk to my mother right now."

He was a little surprised by that. "Why's that?"

"Even though I was cold to her when I was little, she still loved me and wanted to help me." She wore a small smile. "I remember one night, there was a vicious thunderstorm. I was so scared of the noises and the lights flashing outside my windows. I tried to go to sleep, but I couldn't. I started to cry and somehow, she heard me. She came into my room, walked to my bed and asked if I was alright."

"Did you tell her to go away?"

She shook her head. "No. I leapt for her and hung on to her, asking to make the noises and the lights go away. She held me close and rocked me to sleep." She looked up to the sky. "If she hadn't left, what do you think I would've turned out like?"

"…I think you're asking the wrong person." He told her truthfully. "The right person would probably be her."

"That may be. But we don't know if she's actually dead or not and if she is alive, where she is hiding." Silence fell between the two of them. Finally she stepped away from the tree. "I'm going to head back."

"You go ahead. I need to think something over." He stood in silence as she walked past him. "…Azula, you might want to consider fixing your shirt. I don't know about you, but I really don't feel like fending off an enraged Zuko."

She looked down and saw that her shirt and her vest were still open, exposing her bust for anyone to see. She blushed and began to fix it. "Pervert," She accused.

"If I remember correctly, you did the same thing to me." He replied with a grin. She just huffed in annoyance as she walked away. But if he had tried to look at her again, he would've noticed the smile she wore.

Instead he stood in silence as she disappeared from his sight. _"Hey Kyuubi, you got a minute?"_ He asked the fox.

"**Little furry problem indeed."** Kyuubi muttered to himself. **"I am not little in any way shape or form."**

"_OI, FURBALL!"_

"**WHAT?"**

"_I'm trying to talk to you here."_

"**Then what do you want, kit?"**

"_I want to run a question by you."_

(Location: Beach house)

Jiraiya had returned in a depressed mood. The "women" who were at the beach turned out to be prepubescent girls with their younger siblings. When he came back to the house, he chased Sokka and Zuko around for a good twenty minutes. Azula came back at the tail-end of it, so she saw the Toad Sage holding the two by their leg and shaking them. The whole thing looked pretty funny to her, so she laughed.

By the time lunch had come around, Naruto had rejoined them. "There you are!" Jiraiya said as he looked him straight in the eye. "Gaki, you are in a lot of trouble."

"What? Just because you were misinformed, doesn't mean I need to be punished." He replied.

"Oh yes it does. Now come here!"

"No thank you." He stepped away from his grasp and quickly walked into the house.

"Hey, Naruto," Toph greeted him without turning around.

"You know he's going to come after you, right?" Sokka asked him.

"Yeah, I know. But I'll just avoid him for now."

"He is going to get you, even if we'd have to hold you down." Zuko stated.

He wore an expression of mock hurt. "Why would you betray me like that?"

"We got caught. It's only fair you do too."

"Naruto, come here!" Jiraiya ordered as he stepped into the room. "I'm going to make you regret you did that."

"Before you do that, there's something I need to do." He replied.

"And what is that?"

He looked over at Azula and Zuko. "You two, come with me."

"Why?" Zuko asked.

"There's something you guys need to see." He looked over at Jiraiya. "This might take some time, so you'll have to wait on punishing me."

"Is it important?" He asked.

"Yes."

They held a staring contest for a few minutes before he sighed. "Fine, but when you get back, you are going to be in a whole lot of trouble."

He shrugged. "If you want to think that, go ahead."

"Just get going."

"Going, going," He said, looking over at the siblings. "Come on, you two." He walked out of the room and they followed.

"What's going on, Naruto?" Zuko asked him. "What are you doing?"

"Something the two of you need." He answered. They walked over to Fǎn Yìng, who looked ready for flight. "Before we go," He said, turning to face them as he stood next to the dragon. "You guys need to put these on." He pulled out two blindfolds and held them out.

"What? Why?"

"You have to, it's a must."

"Naruto, what are you doing?" Azula asked him.

He looked her straight in the eye. "I'm going to show you one of my secrets. But in order to do that successfully, I need you two to put the blindfolds on. Just trust me on this, okay?" The two siblings looked at each other and then took the blindfolds. They climbed aboard Fǎn Yìng and put the blindfolds over their eyes. "Thank you." He climbed aboard and took the front. "Let's fly, Fǎn Yìng." The dragon unfurled its wings and took off.

"So how will we have to keep these blindfolds on?" Zuko asked as he and Azula held on.

"Until I say otherwise," He answered.

"This had better be a real good secret."

"You'll thank me for it later."

They flew on in silence. For Zuko and Azula, the words "flying blind" took on a whole new meaning. _"This is what Toph must feel like when she was on Appa."_ Zuko thought to himself.

"_This is very, very weird."_ Azula thought. _"If I fall, I'm going to kill Naruto."_

The two soon lost track of time as they flew on. All they could feel was the wind flying past their faces and the sound of wings flapping in the air. And yet, despite not being able to see, there was an odd serenity about the whole experience.

Finally, they felt Fǎn Yìng began to descend. "Are we there?" Zuko asked as they landed.

"No, we have to walk for a bit." Naruto told him as they climbed off the dragon.

"How much is a bit?"

"About ten, fifteen minutes," He answered. "Let's get moving." He grabbed both of their hands.

"What are you doing?!"

"You don't want to get lost, do you? Trust me, this feels just as weird for me too."

"If you two are done, can we get moving now?" Azula asked pointedly.

"We're going, Azula, we're going." He turned to the dragon. "Try to stay out of sight." He ordered. Fǎn Yìng looked at him like he just said the most obvious thing in the world. "Hey, just be thorough." He walked forward, bringing the two along with him.

"Can you tell us where we're going now?" Zuko asked.

"No, you cannot see anything until I tell you otherwise."

"What's with all the secrecy, Naruto?"

"Let me put it to you this way: I'm very close to breaking an oath by doing this." They walked on in silence. Both Azula and Zuko tried to figure out where they were by using the other senses they had. They didn't succeed, considering the fact that they still relied on their eyesight to find their location. Finding it with their other senses would take a little more practice.

Finally, they stopped walking. "We're here." Naruto told them. They heard him walk up and knock on a door. "It's me." He said aloud.

"Are you alone?" They heard a muffled voice asked from the other side of the door.

"No, I brought two others with me."

"Then leave."

"They have no idea where they are, okay? You're still safe."

"Why are they here?"

"They need to talk to you. Just take a look at them and you'll understand." They didn't hear a response from the other voice. After a few moments of silence, they heard the door open. He grabbed their hands again and walked through the door. Once they were in the room, he stopped and let go of their hands. "If you need me, I'll be outside." They heard him walked out of the room and closed the door behind him.

For a brief moment, all they heard was silence. Then the other voice spoke. "You don't have to wear those blindfolds now. Take them off." It told them.

They went completely still. Now that the voice wasn't muffled anymore, they knew who it belong to. Slowly, they reached up and untied the blindfolds, taking them off. They opened their eyes and looked at the person sitting at the table in front of them.

It was Ursa, the wife of Fire Lord Ozai and their mother.

"Mo-mother?" asked Zuko, hope filling his voice. "That's really you?"

She smiled and stood up from her chair. "Yes, Zuko, it's really me."

He walked over to her and pulled her into a tight hug. "I'm so glad that you're alive." He said with relief.

"And I am glad to see the two of you again." She looked over at her other child. "Will you hug me, Azula?"

"Your hands seem pretty full at the moment." She remarked drily. "This looks like a drink is needed for all of us before we continue."

"There's a pot of tea in the kitchen." She told her as she and Zuko broke the hug.

"I'll go get it." She walked into the kitchen, taking a look at the house as she did. Despite being well-furnished, the place was sparsely decorated. She decided to keep her opinion to herself as she put the tea pot and three cups onto a tray. She walked back to the table and placed the tray on the table, sitting down as well. Tea was poured and cups were taken.

Zuko drank first. "This is very good." He said. "Did you make this yourself?"

"Yes, I did. But when did you become a critic of tea?" She asked with an amused smile.

"I spent three years with Uncle on a ship. You tend to learn the different kinds of tea out there quickly."

The smile disappeared. "Yes…You would have, after what happened to you. I am so sorry you had to go through that, Zuko."

"Who told you?"

"Naruto did. He always tried to keep me informed of what the two of you were doing. The last time I heard from him was a couple of months ago, at the end of winter."

"So he hasn't told you what occurred recently?"

"No. Why don't you tell me what has happened?"

And so he did. He told what happened to him and Iroh during their exile and the return home. He told her about Akawan, Ba Sing Se, and the failed invasion of the Fire Nation capital. He told her about them joining the Avatar's group and also busting Naruto out of jail. He decided to omit the part about being kidnapped, being sent to the other side of the world and getting involved in a plan to kill someone (mainly because he figured Naruto didn't want anyone in the Bending Countries to know about it).

"The two of you did all of those things in a few months?" She asked.

"Pretty much," Azula answered shortly.

She smiled and chuckled. "It's nice to see that you two have gotten my spunk. It brings back memories."

"What do you mean?" Zuko asked her.

"I was a little troublemaker when I was a child. Granted, I never did anything on the scale of what you two have done, but I liked to think I left impressions."

"I can see how you and Naruto would get along." Azula remarked. "How did he find out about you anyway?"

"I'm not quite sure myself how he did it, but he managed to track me down and find my location. After he found me, I made him swear never to tell anyone where I was."

"Another secret he's kept." She muttered to herself.

"What's wrong, Azula?"

She looked at her. "Can I talk to you…alone?"

She nodded once. "Zuko, can you please go outside with Naruto? Azula and I need to have a private conversation."

"Alright, I'll leave you two alone." He stood up and walked towards the door. "Naruto, I'm coming out." He called out.

"Put the blindfold on before you do." Naruto told him from the other side.

"Oh come on, you've got to be kidding."

"Do it, Zuko."

He gave an annoyed sigh and put the blindfold on. He grabbed the door handle, opened the door and walked outside. He closed the door behind him, leaving both mother and daughter alone. "What's bothering you, Azula?" Ursa asked her daughter.

She didn't answer. She just looked around the house until her eyes settled on a painting. "That's you, isn't it? When you were younger?" She asked.

She followed her gaze until she saw the painting as well. "Yes. That was painted when I was just a few years older than you are now."

"That man standing beside you…that's not Ozai."

"No, it's not."

"Who is it?"

"A boy from my childhood, his name was Ikem. We were going to get married, but then your grandfather found where I was and had me engaged to your father."

"Ozai is not my father." She replied. "Not anymore." She continued to stare at the painting. "In another life, would he have been my father?"

"Possibly, but that's not what bothering you, is it?"

"No."

"Then what is?" She didn't get an answer. She stood up from her seat and walked over to her daughter. "Azula," She said, kneeling down in front of her. "I'm right here. You don't have to hide anymore."

"Do…do you think I was a monster?" She asked quietly.

She smiled and shook her head. "Not once. You were my daughter and I loved you. I still do."

That was the one thing she needed to hear. She began to tear up and pulled her mother into a tight hug. Ursa didn't resist, she just returned the hug. They stayed there until Azula stopped crying. "Thank you." She said as her tears subsided.

"Are you better now?" She asked as she broke the hug.

"A little bit."

"But there is still something bothering you."

"Yes." She took a deep breath to calm herself down. "It's about Naruto."

"Oh? You have boy problems?" She asked a playful smile. "I'm glad to see you have normal troubles."

"I'm being serious here."

"Oh, I know you are." She laughed.

"Why does he have to keep secrets from me?"

"Well, why do you think he keeps them?"

"To protect others from his past, I guess."

"And do you hate him for it?"

"No." She protested. "I just feel frustrated that I've been with him for three years and yet, it seems like I hardly know him."

"Azula, every person you will ever know will have at least one secret they don't tell others."

"But how can I trust them if they have a secret."

"It's not a matter of trusting them if they're keeping a secret from you. It is how much you trust them _despite_ the secrets they're keeping from you."

"What? I don't understand."

"Oh?" She wore a smirk. "Would you tell Naruto that until you were eight, you use to wet the bed?"

"No!"

"And yet, he still trusts you despite the fact you haven't told him that."

"Well, why would I tell him something like that?"

"And why would he tell you every single secret he has? Even if it means that you don't really know him?"

"…It's because he thinks it's for the best. And I would still trust him with my life."

"There you go then."

They heard a knock on the door. "I'm sorry ma'am, but we have to go back now."

"I understand."

"Are you going to come with us?" Azula asked hopefully.

"I can't, not yet."

"But we'll see you again, right?"

"Do you want to see me again?"

"Of course I do! Both me and Zuko, we want you back home."

She smiled. "I'm glad to know that. But I can't come back. I have to stay hidden for now."

"You'll be able to come home soon, Mother, I promise you that."

"Thank you, Azula. I'll hold you to that promise." She gave her another hug. "Go on. You and Naruto go mend your relationship. You're still in love with each other, so it won't be too hard."

"What? How did you know?"

She laughed. "Why else would you have boy problems because of him?"

She turned around and headed for the door. She put the blindfold back on and opened the door, walking outside. Naruto took the door handle and closed it. "Let's go." He said as he took their hands and started walking.

They made their way back to Fǎn Yìng and climbed aboard. The dragon took off. They flew back the way they came. Like the last time, both Zuko and Azula lost track of time. However, they felt a little more used to it. "Hey Naruto," Azula said as she held onto him. "Were you aware of the fact that my mother knew about us?"

"I think she knew before either of us did."

"What makes you say that?"

"She once threatened to kill me if I ever let anything harm you and I believed her."

"How is that new? You get death threats all the time."

"Azula, your mother is one of the few people on this planet that I am utterly terrified of. If she is mad and I'm the reason for it, I will be on my knees, bowing low and begging for mercy and/or forgiveness."

She laughed. "That's funny considering it's coming from you."

"You might laugh, but I'm still afraid of her." That comment made the other two passengers laugh. The rest of the flight was quiet. When they finally landed, both brother and sister gave a sigh of relief.

"I can understand why Toph was freaked out at first with flying." Azula stated as she took off the blindfold.

"It is definitely terrifying." Zuko agreed as he removed his own blindfold. He looked around. "Where is everyone?"

"I don't know. Look, why don't you go look for them. Naruto and I need to talk alone."

He looked at both of them and then nodded. "Alright then, you guys do that." He walked away, leaving the two of them alone.

"…Maybe we should go somewhere a little more private?" Naruto suggested as they stood in silence.

"You want to talk in your room or mine?" She asked back.

"Mine. Come on." He walked off and she followed. They walked in silence until they reached his room. "Alright, what do you want to talk about?"

"I wanted to apologize."

"What?" He asked, turning to face her.

"I'm sorry for being angry at you. It's your decision to tell your secrets, not mine. If you wish to tell me any other secrets, that's up to you. If not, then I will respect your decision."

"…Thank you, Azula." He replied, relief showing in his voice. "So you're okay with the fact I have a demon with nine tails living inside of me?"

"Well, I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact." She admitted.

"Would it help if you were able to talk with him?"

That took her by surprise. "What?"

He sat down against the wall, crossing his legs in a meditative position. "Do you want to meet the Kyuubi?"

"Will it do anything to me?"

He chuckled. "No, he won't. You'll be safe, I promise."

"Then I'll meet him."

"Okay then. Sit down in front of me." She did so. He reached for the zipper on his jacket and pulled it down. After he opened the jacket and took it off, he also removed the shirt underneath as well, leaving him topless and Azula struggling not to blush. He placed his hands into a handseal and focused. A strange design, one she hadn't seen before, appeared on his stomach. It consisted of a black swirl and markings around it.

"What exactly is that?" She asked.

"It's the seal that keeps him inside." He told her. "I need to place your hand on it."

"Are…are you sure about that?"

"Yes, I am. It's the only way for you to get to him."

"Okay." She hesitantly placed her hand on it.

"Now close your eyes and breathe in and out. I'll take care of the rest." She did as she was told. She closed her eyes and focused on her breathing. After a few moments, she suddenly found herself standing in water. "Alright, you can open your eyes now." She heard him tell her.

She opened them and almost took a step back in surprise and shock. She was standing in front of a large gate in a room where the floor was flooded. On the gate was a piece of paper that had the kanji for seal. But it was the thing behind the gate that made her almost stepped back.

What she saw was a _very_ big fox sitting behind the gate. Its fur was orange-red, except for around the eyes and the insides of its ears, which was black. Its eyes were red and looked very intimidating. The strange thing was that the upper body did not look like it belonged to a fox or even a canine. It looked like it belonged to a human. It even had opposable thumbs on its front hands.

"Azula, meet Kyuubi." Naruto said. "Kyuubi, meet Azula."

"**You!"** roared Kyuubi when he noticed Azula. **"I've got a bone to pick with you, woman! Do I look at all small?! No, I do not! I am quite big and I am proud of that!"**

"You're still harping on about that?" He asked. "Kami, give it a rest already, would ya? It's not that big of a deal."

"**That's easy for you to say. You weren't the one who got picked on because you took the longest to get bigger."**

"Why would you be picked on for that?"

"**Hey, you try living with eight siblings who are more or less the same as you. You tend to fight over various things."**

"No thank you. Living with one of you is enough for me."

During the entire conversation the two had, Azula just watched them in stunned fascination. Finally, she couldn't help it anymore and began to laugh. Her laughter echoed throughout the entire room and got the attention of both Naruto and Kyuubi. "The two of you are too much!" She declared.

"Uh….what?" asked Naruto.

"**Real intelligent, kit," **Kyuubi told him. **"Could you sound any dumber?"**

"I don't hear you saying anything back."

"**That's because I'm smart enough not to, you idiot."**

"Please stop, you're going to kill me." Azula told them, still laughing.

"**What is so funny, woman?"**

"The two of you are what's so funny. I don't know what I was going to think of you together, but it sure wasn't this!"

"**Oh wonderful, we're a comedy act now."**

"Would you stop talking?" Naruto asked before turning his attention to Azula. "If you weren't expecting this, what were you expecting?"

"I really don't know." She answered as she finally stopped laughing. "I guess it would've been something along the lines of him threatening to kill you or take control of your body."

"**How stereotypical of you,"** The fox remarked. **"For the record, I don't want to take over his body. I have my own, thank you very much."**

"Yes, we know. It's right here in its entire furry splendor." Naruto said with a little sarcasm.

"**Nice to know you've notice."**

"It's kinda hard not to. You're right there." He looked at Azula. "So what do you think of him?"

"I like him. I kinda wish I had him in my head."

"Trust me, you don't want that."

"Why not?"

"He gets a tad…perverted once in a while."

"…What do you mean?"

"Remember all those times you either fought or trained near me?" She nodded. "Every once in a while, he would try to look at your ass."

"I**t's a nice ass." **Kyuubi protested. **"It's got great curves and it's both firm and soft all in the right places. Besides, don't try to be on the moral high ground here, Naruto. We both know that you've taken looks at it as well."**

"Oh, you did?" Azula asked him with a dangerous tone, pinning him with her gaze. "And did you look at my bust too?"

"**Well, we didn't see it a lot, considering you kept wearing clothes over them. But the few times you have shown them, I've managed to get a good look. They're a decent size right now, but there's always room for improvement. Also****—****"**

"Stop talking already!" Naruto interrupted. "You're putting us in a deeper hole."

"No, please, let him continue." Azula said in that same tone of voice.

"Look, I'm sorry about that. Like I said, he sometimes gets a tad perverted."

"**Hey, being stuck in here while I have to watch you refusing every single female who throws herself at you gets boring after a while. I have to do **_**something**_** to alleviate the boredom."**

"Okay, that's it. We're done here." He reached over and touched Azula on the forehead. It sent a jolt through, forcing her to close her eyes. When she opened them again, she found herself back in Naruto's room, sitting across from him. "Well?" He asked as he opened his eyes. "Do you find it easier to accept him now?"

"Yes, I do. But I'm also interested in the fact that you were looking at my rear."

"Well…sometimes, it was kinda hard not to."

"Is that an excuse?"

"No, it's a simple fact. I really can't help myself."

"Oh?"

"I'm a teenage guy. I'm going to notice these kinds of things."

"So that's why, huh?"

"Yeah, pretty much." He fell silent as she stared at him, her eyes roaming up and down his body. "Uh…What are you doing?"

"I'm a teenaged girl. I'm going to notice these kinds of things." She repented his words. She leaned forward and placed her hands on either side of his body, effectively trapping him. Their faces were just inches away from each other. "But unlike you, I tend to do something about it."

"Oh? Like what?"

She just leaned in closer. They were about to kiss when someone started banging on the door. "Hey! The two of you have been in there long enough." Jiraiya's voice said from the other side. "Get out here and join the rest of us for dinner."

"**What a way** **to kill the mood, huh?"** Kyuubi asked his container, who ignored him.

"I want to castrate that old man." Azula growled.

"I think you may have to get in line, Azula." He told her. "We better get going, if we stay any longer in here, he'll bust the door down."

"You're right, but I still want to castrate him."

He laughed at what she said. "…So, are we good?" He asked after he was done laughing.

She looked him straight in the eye. "I meant what I said back in Konoha. You're not my bodyguard anymore."

His face fell. "Oh…I see."

"But," She said, getting his attention. "I would like you to be my boyfriend."

"I would too." He told her. She kissed him on the lips and he returned. It was a brief kiss, but it was enough for now. "Come on. We need to get going."

"You're right." She backed away from him and stood up. She walked to the door, but stopped as she reached for the handle. "Hey, Naruto?"

"Yes? What is it?" He asked as he put the shirt back on.

"This is just my opinion, but I think you should tell the others about him. If you don't want to, I won't complain. But I still think you should do it."

He fell silent as he looked at the jacket in his hands. "…Why should I?" He finally asked.

"Would you rather have them find out the same way I did? It's just something to think about." She told him as she walked out of the room.

He stood there in silence as he put on the jacket. "What do you think, Kyuubi?" He finally spoke, asking the fox.

"**It's your choice, kit. I really don't have a say in the matter, do I?"**

"It is about you."

"**Still doesn't change the fact I don't have a say."**

"I guess you're right. It's my choice alone." He walked out of the room and through the house. He found the others sitting in the courtyard, eating dinner.

He was about to join them when Jiraiya came up to him. "Alright gaki," He said. "You've gotten out of your punishment for most of the day, but now you're mine."

"How long will this take?" He asked.

"Long enough, I will make you pay for fooling me."

"Well, that's a shame. If you take your time with me, you might miss it."

"Might miss what?"

"Well, now's about the time the young women on the island go skinny dipping."

"Ha! You really think I'll buy that?" He asked with a snort.

"It's true, I swear. Thais is something you wouldn't lie about."

"Sorry, not buying it." He said, holding his ground, but Naruto could tell he was weakening.

"That is such a shame. You're going to miss all those young, beautiful women swimming naked in the sea. I think there have been a couple of times when things have gotten a little hot and steamy down there…"

"Damn you, gaki!" He said, giving in. "If they're not there, I'm gonna kill you!" He ran out of the house with a big perverted grin on his face.

"Well, that was easy." He said as he walked over to the others.

"You do realize you're dead when he comes back, right?" Katara asked.

"No I'm not."

"How can you make that guy fall for the same old lie?" Toph asked.

"Who said I was lying this time?" He asked back with a smirk.

They all stared at him. "You mean…you mean there are women out swimming…na-naked?" Aang asked with a huge blush.

"Yep, pretty much."

"How do you know this?" Suki demanded.

"An evening walk alone can lead to extraordinary things."

"Why would you tell him something like that?" Zuko asked. "I thought we're going to torment him with this kind of thing."

He shrugged. "Sometimes, it doesn't hurt to throw the guy a bone. Besides, it gets him off our backs, doesn't it?"

"He's got a point there." Sokka said. "Besides, if we're lucky, the women will find him and kill him."

Zuko scoffed. "I doubt it'll go that far, he'll probably come back with a beating."

"Hey, we can dream, right?" His question made everyone laugh.

As Naruto laughed, he looked around at the others. He finally stopped at Azula. _"She's right."_ He thought to himself. _"I should tell them."_

"**Like I said before, kit," **Kyuubi told him. **"It's your decision."**

"Hey, guys." He said aloud, getting everyone's attention. "I've got something to tell you."

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Yes, we have finally meet Ursa. If you're wondering about how I did it, let me explain. Ursa's location is pretty much up for grabs at this point, but considering the fact that we have two more parts of a comic that deal with her, I decided to play it safe. That is why I had Azula and Zuko wear blindfolds, so that they don't even know where she is.

Also, Ikem is a character from the comic. Since I don't know what happens to him, I kept it short.

If you're going to say that my girl talk didn't really sound girl talk, sue me. I'm the middle of three brothers, so I don't a single clue as to what girl talk even is, no man does. I do know this though: the man who is able to figure and understand girls completely, even deciphering their complex, ever-changing language, will be revered as a god amongst men. However, he will also be wanted dead by women everywhere, because they cannot let a man like that live.

Yes, I've made the Kyuubi slightly perverted. But that is completely different from being very perverted. Being very perverted is having the fox tell his host that he should mate every single beautiful woman out there. Being slightly perverted is having him commenting on how on good an ass looks and other whatnot. I think that Naruto would rather have to deal a slightly perverted fox then a really perverted one. He's already got a super pervert to deal with.

Yes, I'm well aware of the fact I'm skipping the explanation of the Kyuubi being in his stomach. You all know it by heart anyway if you've read other Naruto stories. It's the same thing every time. So I just decided to skip it.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	42. Stands and Missing

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 42: Stands and Missing

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Beach house)

As the others lounged on the stairs, Aang was practicing his Firebending under Zuko's and Azula's supervision. "More ferocious!" ordered Zuko as he watched. "Imagine striking through your opponent's heart!"

"I'm trying." Aang told him.

"Trying isn't good enough." Azula stated. "Now let us hear you roar like a tigerdillo!" He spun and roared lightly, breathing a small amount of fire. Realizing he did it wrong, he smiled sheepishly. "That sounded pathetic! I said ROAR!"

He did it again and this time, he actually roared. Three jets of fire came to life, two from his hands and one from his mouth. The amount of fire and heat scared Momo, who ran behind Zuko's leg and held onto it. Zuko, as while as Azula, gave a small nod of approval.

"Who wants a nice cool glass of watermelon juice?" Katara asked, holding up two watermelons with holes and straws.

"Ooh, ooh! Me, me, me!" said Aang, turning around to face her. He tried to make a run for it, but Zuko grabbed him by his robe.

"Hey! Your lesson's not over yet!" He told him. "Get back here!" He hoisted him up off the ground.

"Come on, Zuko." Suki said. "Just take a break. What's the big deal?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Naruto asked as he lay on the top step with a cigarette in his mouth.

"Fine," Zuko growled. He let go of Aang, who immediately ran for the watermelon in Katara's hands. "If you want to lounge around like a bunch of snail-sloths all day, then go ahead!" He walked away.

"Maybe Zuko's right." Sokka said. "Even though we got back from Konoha a few days ago, we've done nothing but sit around the house. It's made us kinda lazy."

"And do you suggest we do?" Azula asked as she walked to the stairs.

"I know just the thing." He stood up and pulled his clothes off, revealing swim trunks underneath. "Let's hit the beach and party!"

Naruto groaned. "No. Please, let's not do that."

"What's the matter? Can't swim?" Suki asked.

He looked at her. "Please remember the fact that if we want to experience a stampede of Fangirls, all I have to do is get wet. I'd rather not go that again, thank you."

"Yeah, we heard what happened at Tóng." Katara said with a giggle.

"Anyway, it's decided. Let's go to the beach!" Aang shouted. They all grabbed the necessary stuff and went down. Naruto decided to stay on the cliffs and work on his book. Jiraiya decided to help out a little bit.

The others went down to the beach. Sokka leapt in first, hitting the water with a splash. Katara decided to surf the waves using her Waterbending to make a surfboard out of ice. Suki decided to sit on a blanket and relax. Azula also sat on a blanket, but she was further back so she could watch all of the chaos.

"Check out my Appa sand sculpture." Aang told them as he finished said sculpture. It truly did look like Appa, complete with arrow and horns. Even Appa (the real one) was admiring it. Akela took one look and went back to sunning himself.

"Not bad, baldy." Toph complimented him. "But I've been working on my Sandbending. You're gonna love this." She bent the sand to form a fairly big replica of Ba Sing Se.

He walked closer to it and peered down, amazed at what he saw. "Wow, you even made a little Earth King and Bosco."

"Try and top _that_, Sokka." She challenged him as he worked on his own sculpture.

"Oh, I know I'm not going to beat that." He replied. "But here's mine." He stepped, reveling a sand sculpture that no one really knew was.

"Is that a…blubbering blob monster?" Aang asked.

"It's Suki." He answered, shocking the Airbender. Both he and Toph started laughing.

"Suki, we'll all understand if you break up with him over this." Toph told her.

"I think it's sweet." She replied, getting her a kiss from Sokka.

"It's the thought that counts." Azula agreed.

"But it doesn't even look—" He was interrupted when a fireball came out of nowhere and smashed into the sculpture. Looking through the dust cloud, he saw Zuko leap off the cliffs, shooting fireballs at him. He leapt across the Ba Sing Se sculpture (which got hit by a fireball) and hid behind his Appa sculpture. "What are you doing?" He asked Zuko, who had landed on the sand and went after him.

"Teaching you a lesson!" He answered, throwing another fireball at him. He leapt out of the way, letting it destroy the sculpture. He leapt for the cliffs and Zuko followed by climbing up them.

"What happened?" Katara asked as she landed back on the beach.

"Zuko decided to stage a surprise attack." Azula said. "He's chasing Aang right now."

"We're going after them, aren't we?" Naruto asked from above. His only answer was the others running back up to the house. "Come on, Jiraiya." He stood up from where he sat.

(Location: Zuko & Aang)

As Aang ran for his life, he ducked down to avoid a fireball thrown at him. He ran up a big rock and leapt into the top of a nearby tree. Zuko leapt over the rock and onto the ground, bending another fireball at him. He leapt for the roof as the fireball hit the tree, setting the leaves on fire.

"Get a grip before I blast you off this roof!" He told Zuko, who joined him on the roof via climbing.

"Go ahead and do it!" He replied. He threw another burst of fire at him, forcing him back over the roof. He hopped over an edge and then slid down the other side before leaping into the house through a window.

He skidded through a doorway and hid behind a nearby dresser. As he peeked past the edge, he saw Zuko crash down from the roof and take a stance. He gave the dresser a hard shove and sent it flying at him, which he destroyed effortlessly.

He followed Aang into the hallway. Bending his fire into circles, he set the surrounding area on fire. He then augmented the fire into a tunnel and sent towards the Airbender. He kept on running, but the tunnel soon caught up with him. He reacted by using his Airbending to extinguish the fire where he stood.

"Enough!" He shouted, bending the air into a tunnel of his own. It barreled its way towards Zuko, extinguishing the fire and sending him flying out of the house. He crashed into a tree and fell down to the ground.

"What's wrong with you?" Katara demanded as the others stood in front of him. "You've could've hurt Aang!"

"He wasn't even trying." Jiraiya commented.

"Now's not the time." Naruto told him.

"What's wrong with me?!" Zuko repeated. "What's wrong with all of you? How can you sit around having beach parties when Sozin's Comet is only three days away?" Everyone (except for Naruto, Azula, and Jiraiya) just stared at him. "…Why are you looking at me like I'm crazy?"

"What's going on?" Azula asked.

"About Sozin's Comet, I was actually gonna wait to fight the Fire Lord after it came."

"After?"

"What?" Naruto asked.

"I'm not ready." Aang confessed. "I need more time to master Firebending."

"And frankly, your Earthbending could use some work too." Toph told him, making him grimace.

"Aang, hold still," Naruto told him. "I'm going to kill you." He gave a small yelp and stepped away. He was still weary of the Paragon, but it wasn't because of what was inside of him. In fact, after he had told them about the Kyuubi, they took it rather well (Sokka had stated that considering the things they had gone through, a demon fox sealed inside him was still surprising but not by much). He was still nervous around him because of what he did in Konoha.

"So, you all knew Aang was going to wait?" Zuko asked the others.

"I didn't." Jiraiya answered.

"Honestly, if Aang tries to fight the Fire Lord now, he's going to get killed." Sokka stated.

"The whole point of fighting the Fire Lord before the Comet was to stop the Fire Nation from winning the war. But they pretty much won the war when Naruto took control of Ba Sing Se. Things can't get any worse."

"_Somebody always says it."_ Both Naruto and Jiraiya thought.

"You're wrong." Zuko told her, turning away. "It's about to get worse than you can even imagine."

"What do you mean?"

"The day before the eclipse, my father asked me to attend an important war meeting. It was what I dreamed about for so many years. My father had finally accepted me back."

(Flashback)

He walked into the room and made his way to his place. "Welcome, Prince Zuko." Ozai greeted him. "We waited for you." He walked up the stairs and stood at his father's right side. He bowed once and then sat down. He noticed that Azula was sitting on the other side and that Naruto was leaning against a nearby pillar. However, he also noticed that Yāo Jing was sitting with the generals. "General Shinu, your report."

"Thank you, sir." He stood up and walked to the other end of the map. "Ba Sing Se is still under our control. However, Earthbender rebellions have prevented us from achieving total victory in the Earth Kingdom?"

"What is your recommendation?"

"Our armies are spread too thin, but once the eclipse is over and the invasion defeated, we should transfer more domestic forces into the Earth Kingdom."

"Hmm, Prince Zuko," He said to his son. "You've been among the Earth Kingdom commoners. Do you think that adding more troops will stop these rebellions?"

He broke eye contact. "The people of the Earth Kingdom are proud and strong. They can endure anything as long as they have hope."

"…Yes, you're right. We need to destroy their hope."

"Well, that's not exactly what I—"

"I think you should take the hope, as well as their land and burned it to the ground." Yāo Jing said aloud.

Despite surprising mostly everyone by speaking aloud, Ozai seemed to take her words seriously. "Yes…yes you're right, Yāo Jing." He stood up from his seat and began to walk down the stairs. "Sozin's Comet is almost upon us, and on that day, it will endow us with the strength and power of a hundred suns. No Bender will stand a chance against us."

"What are you suggesting, sir?" Shinu asked.

"When the Comet last came, my grandfather, Fire Lord Sozin, used it to wipe out the Air Nomads," He told them. "Now, I will use it to end the Earth Kingdom permanently." That statement surprised Zuko, Azula, and Naruto. "From our airships, we will rain fire over their lands." He stated, walking across the map. "A fire that will destroy _everything_; and out of the ashes, a new world will be born, a world in which _all_ the lands are Fire Nation and _I_ am the supreme ruler of everything!"

The generals began to clap at what he said, when Naruto spoke. "You'll be the supreme ruler of everything, huh?" He asked. "I take it that means you're planning on attacking the Elemental Countries as well?"

"Of course, I mean what I say, Lord Naruto." He answered. "I trust you will be there to help us conquer those lands."

He laughed. "You would have your ass handed to you within five minutes of getting there. Maybe less if any of the Countries decided to fight against you together."

"I think you're overestimating your former home."

"No, you're underestimating them. But since you won't believe me, I'll just say this." He suddenly disappeared from everyone's view. But before anyone could do anything, he reappeared right next to Ozai, his jian resting its edge on his throat. "If you even think about setting your sights on the Elemental Countries, you will not live to see its shores." He threatened quietly.

(End Flashback)

"I would've loved to seen that." Jiraiya declared. "Nice going, gaki."

"I can't believe this." Katara said as she absorbed everything Zuko and Naruto had said.

"Oh, it gets even better." Naruto said in a fake cheerful voice. "Yāo Jing also plans to make the purge go more quickly. She's having an army mass at the northern part of the colony territories and move south. She had the Royal Flaming Asshole's complete approval."

"I always knew the Fire Lord was a bad guy, but his plan is pure evil." Sokka said.

"What am I going to do?" Aang asked.

"I know you're scared," Zuko told him as he stood up and walked over. "And I know you're not ready to save this side of the planet. But if you don't defeat the Fire Lord before the Comet comes, this side of the planet will be gone."

"Well, why didn't you tell me about your dad's crazy plan sooner?" He demanded as he turned around and walked away.

"That would be because we thought you were still going to fight him before the Comet came." Azula answered. "But apparently, you decided to keep us out of the loop."

"This is bad." He declared, cradling his head and falling to his knees. "This is really, really bad."

"Way to state the obvious." Naruto told him.

"Aang, you don't have to do this alone." Katara assured him.

"Yeah," Toph agreed as the others joined. "If we all fight the Fire Lord together, we got a shot at taking him down."

"Ladies and gentlemen, Team Avatar is back!" Sokka declared.

"Fighting the Fire Lord is going to be the hardest thing we've ever done together." Aang said. "But I wouldn't want to do it any other way." Sokka, Toph, Suki, and Katara all laughed as they walked over and have him a group hug.

"Come on, you guys." Katara told the others. "Being part of the group also means being part of group hugs."

While Zuko did join the hug, Naruto, Azula, and Jiraiya held back. "No thanks, I'll just hug my girlfriend." Naruto told them.

"Plus I can see the incoming sky bison." Jiraiya said.

"What?" Aang asked. As if to answer his question, Appa flew in and landed right next to them. It kinda looked like he was trying to join the hug; the problem was he knocked everyone in the hug down. Both Jiraiya and Naruto got a laugh out of it.

(Location: Beach house courtyard)

After they managed to get Appa off, Zuko took Aang back into the courtyard. "There's one technique you need to know before facing my father." He told him. "It's how to redirect lightning. If you let the energy in your own body flow, the lightning will follow it." He explained as he showed the movements. "You turn your opponent's energy against them."

"That's like Waterbending." Aang noted as he followed the movements.

"Exactly, my uncle invented this technique himself by studying Waterbenders."

"So, have you ever redirect lightning before?"

"Twice, against Naruto and my father," he answered.

"What did it feel like?"

He stopped the movements. "Exhilarating…" He said, remembering the moments when he threw the lightning back at his opponents. "But it's also terrifying." Aang's hopeful smile fell. "You feel so powerful holding that much energy in your body. But you know if you make the wrong move it is over."

"Well, not _over_ over." He said. "I mean there's always Katara and a little Spirit Water action, am I right?" He asked Katara, who was sitting nearby.

"Actually, I used it all up after Yāo Jing shot you." She told him.

"Oh." He said with a disappointment.

"You'll have to take the Fire Lord's life before he takes yours." Zuko told him before walking away.

Yeah, I'll just do that."

(Location: Cliffs)

Later, on the rocky part of the cliffs, Sokka was preparing for a training exercise. "Gather round, Team Avatar." He ordered as he put a watermelon over a mannequin. "In order to take out the Fire Lord-or in this case, the Melon Lord-our timing has to be perfect." He took a nearby stick and knelt down. "First, Suki, Naruto, and I will draw his fire. Then Katara, Azula, and Zuko charge in with some liquidly hot offense." He explained as he drew out the plan in the dirt. "And while the Melon Lord is distracted, Aang swoops in…and bam!" He swiped the third line through the Melon Lord symbol. "He delivers the final blow."

"Uh…what about me and Jiraiya?" asked Toph.

"F. S.-sensei is sitting this one out. As for you, you're the Melon Lord's forces.

"So I get to chuck flaming rocks at all of you?"

"You do whatever makes the training feel more realistic."

"Sweetness," She declared.

"Try not to go too overboard." Jiraiya told her.

When they were ready, Toph stood in front of the Melon with big rocks covered in grease and a couple of small fire pits. She also decided to laugh evilly. The others placed themselves in the lower section of the cliffs; the Melon Lord sat on the highest part.

Sokka looked out at the Melon Lord and then motioned the others to go. He, Suki, and Naruto charged forward, but were blocked by soldiers made out of stone. They swiftly cut them down or knocked them down and kept moving up. One of the big rocks was set on fire and thrown at them. Suki flipped over the top while Sokka and Naruto went around the sides.

"Watch it, Toph!" Sokka yelled.

"I am not Toph! I am Melon Lord!" She replied before laughing evilly.

"Remember that thing I said about not going overboard?" Jiraiya called out from his observation spot.

She lit another rock and threw it at the second team. Zuko, Azula, and Katara dodged it and kept on running. They were surrounded by rock soldiers and they decimated them with virtually no effort. Both teams continued to make their way up the slope.

"Now, Aang!" called Sokka.

Aang leapt from his spot and flew through the air, staff ready. As he flew towards the Melon Lord, he looked at it and his feelings turned from anger into uncertainty. He landed in front of the target, but stopped himself just before he struck the fetal blow. When he saw this, Naruto gave Jiraiya a discreet nod.

"What are you waiting for!?" Zuko demanded from behind him. "Take him out!"

"I can't." He said.

Sokka climbed up the slope until he stood in front of him. "What's wrong with you!?" He demanded. "If this was the real deal, you'd be shot full of lightning right now."

"I'm sorry, but it just didn't feel right. I didn't feel like myself."

He sighed. "Then we have no alternative."

"What?"

"Aang, kill the Melon Lord or Katara dies!" Jiraiya shouted from behind. Whipping his head around, he saw the Toad Sage held her in a tight grip and had a kunai at her throat. "Do it!"

"I can't! I can't kill him!"

"Then she dies."

"Sokka, stop him!" He pleaded.

"Kill the Melon Lord, Aang, or let Katara die." Sokka told him coldly. "Those are your choices."

"But I can't do either of them."

"Then you've made your choice." Jiraiya declared. With no hesitation, he slit Katara's throat. He dropped her to the ground, the blood seeping out from her neck onto the rock. "Congratulations, because of your hesitation, you've lost one of your teammates."

As Aang just stared in shock, Sokka drew his jian. "This is how it's done." He swung the sword once and the Melon Lord's head fell in half. "But thanks to you, my sister is dead."

"You could've stopped him!" He accused. "You just stood there!"

"Let's go everyone." Naruto said aloud. "This exercise is over." When that was said, the blood flowing out from Katara disappeared and she stood back up with no cut on her throat.

"What…How?" Aang tried to ask.

"A Genjutsu," Jiraiya answered. "It was to make you think she was dead. I used it to see how you would react to the idea of having to kill someone to save one you know."

"And because of your indecisiveness, she was killed." Zuko told him.

"Wait, you knew?" He asked.

"We all did." Toph told him. "Naruto and Jiraiya told us what they were going to and ordered us not to interfere. This test was for you alone."

"And guess what?" Naruto said. "You failed."

(Location: Beach house)

Night had fallen as they ate their dinner. Aang sat away from the others as he stared down at his food. "I have a surprise for everyone!" Katara announced as she joined them with a rolled up piece of paper.

"I knew it! You did have a secret thing with Haru!" Toph crowed in triumph.

"…Where did that come from?" Azula asked.

"Anyway," Katara continued. "I was looking for cooking pots in the attic and I found this." She opened up the paper to reveal a painting of a baby on the beach, a big smile on his face. "Look at baby Zuko. Isn't he cute?" She cooed, making the others laugh, except for Zuko and Azula. "Oh lighten up. I'm just teasing." She told him when she saw he wasn't laughing.

"That's not me." He told her. "It's my father."

"Huh…I can see the resemblance." Naruto stated.

"But he looks so sweet and innocent." Suki protested.

"Things change over time." Jiraiya told her with a serious tone in his voice, his face had a grim expression.

"That sweet little kid grew up to be a monster." Azula stated.

"And the worst father in the history of fathers." Zuko added.

"But he's still a human being." Aang protested, getting everyone's attention.

"You're going to defend him?"

"No, I agree with you." He put his food down and stood up, turning to face them. "Fire Lord Ozai is a horrible person, and the world would probably be better off without him. But there's got to be another way."

"Like what?"

"I don't know." He immediately got an idea and perked up. "Maybe we can make some pots of glue, and then I can use Gluebending to stick his arms and legs together so he can't Bend anymore."

They just stared at him in silence. "…All those in favor of beating the stupidity of him, say aye." Naruto said. Quite a few of them said it.

"This goes against everything I learned from the monks." He said as he began to pace. "I can't just go wiping out people I don't like."

"Well, if you've got a good excuse, I don't think people will care." Sokka remarked.

"This isn't a joke, Sokka!" He yelled at his friend. "None of you understand the position I'm in!"

"Aang, we do understand." Katara said. "It's just—"

"It's just what, Katara?" He asked, cutting her off. "What?"

"We're trying to help!"

"Then when you figure out a way to beat the Fire Lord without taking his life, I'd love to hear it!"

"That's it!" Naruto unexpectedly roared. He lunged forward, grabbed Aang by the neck, and shoved him into the nearby rock wall. "You need to grow the fuck up, Aang, and stopped acting like a kid."

"But I am a kid!"

"No you're not! You stopped being a kid the moment they told you that you were the Avatar. Ozai has to die, accept that fact already!"

"And what if he asks for mercy? Or forgiveness?!"

"Doesn't matter, you kill him either way."

"Oh, like you did back in Konoha? That man asked for mercy from you. He practically begged you to let him live and you killed him!"

"THAT MAN DESERVED TO DIE!"

"NO, HE DIDN'T!"

"Yes, he did." Jiraiya spoke up. "Naruto, let go of him." He ordered.

"Fine," He growled, releasing his grip and letting him go.

"And how would you know if he deserved death?" Aang demanded as he rubbed his neck.

"I know better than anyone else." He stood up. "Orochimaru was part of the Sannin and my teammate. He performed experiments on people, people he had kidnapped. Some were even from Konoha. He would use them like guinea pigs and even killed some of them. All for the sake of achieving immortality and finding every single jutsu that was ever created. He eventually fled the village when his secrets were discovered and became a traitor."

"If he did all of that, then why didn't you kill him? Why did you let him run wild?"

"…Would you have been able to kill Sokka if he became a traitor? Or if Katara became one?"

"Of course not, they're my friends!"

"He was mine once too. That's why I couldn't kill him."

He tried to argue the point, but his mouth couldn't say any words. Finally, he gave a shout of frustration and walked away.

"Aang, don't walk away from this!" Katara told him. She started after him, but Zuko stopped her.

"Let him go." He said to her. "He needs time to sort it out by himself."

(Location: Aang)

He sat on the porch in a meditative position. Sitting on a table in front of him was food, water and four candles. As he meditated, Momo flew in and landed in front of him, placing his paws on his lap. "Hey, Momo," He said, petting the lemur's head. "I don't suppose _you_ know what I should." Momo just squawked. "I didn't think so." He continued to meditate as the lemur moved to the side and put his head down.

Later, after the candles had been extinguished and he had fallen asleep, something had appeared off the shore. He woke up, walked to the railing and jumped down to the ground, waking up Momo in the process. The lemur flew after him he walked mechanically down to the beach. When he got to the shore and looked out at the island that had mysteriously appeared, he walked into the water and began to swim towards it.

When he saw what he was doing, Momo flew after him.

(Location: Beach house)

The next morning, everyone stood outside in the courtyard as Sokka packed everything into Appa's saddle. "Okay, that's everything." He declared as the sky bison ate his breakfast.

"No it's not. Where's Aang?" Toph asked.

Everyone shared a look. "Oh boy, here we go." Naruto groaned.

"Less talking, more moving, gaki," Jiraiya told him as the others ran inside.

"Aang? Aang!" called Zuko.

"Come on, lazy bones, let's go." Toph shouted.

"Split up and look for him." Azula ordered. No questioned the order, they just did it.

As Azula, Toph, Naruto, and Zuko searched each room on one side of the house, the others did the same on the other side. But Aang was nowhere to be found. As Sokka wandered out onto the porch, he noticed something. "He left his staff." He announced as he picked up said staff. "That's so strange."

"Aang's not in the house." Zuko announced as the other party joined them.

"I think I know a way to find him." He held the staff out for Akela. "See if you can get his scent." He told the wolf. Akela sniffed the staff and then sniffed the air. He then jumped over the railing and onto the ground, following the trail he had. "Follow the wolf, people."

They ran out of the house and followed Akela down to the beach. "Hey, I see his footprints." Naruto told them.

"It ends here." Sokka noted as they looked at the trail of footprints, which ended at the waterline.

"So, he went for a midnight swim and never came back?" Suki suggested.

"Maybe he was captured." Katara suggested as well.

"There's no sign of a struggle." Jiraiya told her.

"I bet he ran away again." Toph said,

"Uh-uh. He left behind his gilder and Appa." Sokka said.

"Then what do _you_ think happened to him, oh sleuthy one?"

"Maybe he's on a Spirit World journey."

"Wouldn't his body be here if he was?" Naruto asked. "I don't think even Aang is stupid enough to leave his body on a beach close to the water."

"Good point."

"Then he's got to be somewhere on Ember Island." Katara said. "Let's split up and look for him."

"I'm going with Zuko!" Toph declared as she grabbed hold of his arm, making the others stare. "What? Everyone else went on a life-changing field trip with Zuko. Now it's my turn."

"You do that, Toph." Naruto told her. "The Fucking Sadist and I will hold down the fort."

"And why are you doing that?" Azula asked.

"I would stick out like a sore thumb." He pointed to his hair. "And he would make a pass at every woman that comes into his eyesight."

"I take offense at that." Jiraiya told him.

"It's true, isn't it?"

After they took the fight back to the house, the others got to work. Azula and Sokka took Appa and flew around the perimeter of the island. Katara and Suki checked the towns, one in which they encountered actors from the play-that-shall-not-be-named (they had to refrain themselves from causing a massacre). Toph and Zuko checked the beaches. Toph tried to tell Zuko her life story before he told her that they should focus on looking for Aang. After she heard that, she declared this to be "the worst field trip ever".

But they didn't find him. They made their way back to the beach house, where Sokka and Azula met up with them. "Judging by the looks on your faces, I'm guessing you guys didn't find Aang either." Sokka said, jumping down to the ground.

"No." Zuko answered. "It's like he just…disappeared."

"Hey, wait a minute." Toph said. "Has anyone noticed Momo is missing too?"

Sokka looked at Akela. "I thought I told you that you couldn't eat the lemur." He said. The wolf managed to look offended and barked his protest. "Don't give me that. I've seen you eyeballing Momo."

"Sokka, Akela didn't Momo." Naruto told him. "I think we would've noticed if he did."

"Yeah, Momo's probably with Aang." Katara agreed.

"Besides, we have a real problem here." Zuko said. "Aang is nowhere to be found and the Comet is only two days away."

"Then what should we do?"

He stood up. "I don't know." The others just kept looking at him. "Why are you looking at me?"

"Well, you, Azula, and Naruto are kind of the experts on Aang."

"Yeah, if anyone's got experience tracking the Avatar…it's you guys." Toph agreed.

"How kind of you to notice that," Azula remarked.

"Be nice." Naruto told her. "Although, we should the one with the most experience speak first." He looked at Zuko, making everyone do the same.

"…Sokka, is everything packed up and on Appa?" He finally asked.

"You know it is. You helped." He answered.

"Then everyone saddle up." They all climbed aboard their respective animals (Zuko, Naruto, and Azula on Fǎn Yìng, everyone else on Appa) and took off, flying away from Ember Island and from the Fire Nation.

"Why are we heading to the Earth Kingdom?" Suki asked. "Aang's not there."

"Just trust me." He told her as they flew on.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

A ship stood ready at the docks, waiting for Ozai. The Fire Lord was being carried to the ship by palanquin. A good distance behind him was another palanquin; this one carried his recently legitimized daughter, Yāo Jing.

As they passed soldiers bowing low to the ground (their heads were touching the pavement), Yāo Jing felt that she was getting there slower than her father. "Come on you idiots! Faster!" She ordered the bearers, who began running to the ship. By the time she had gotten there, Ozai had already exited his palanquin and walked up the steps to the ship. "Sorry I'm late, father." She apologized after she had run up the stairs and knelt down on one knee. "Good palanquin bearers are so hard to come by these days. So, is everything ready for our departure?"

"There has been a change of plans, Yāo Jing." Ozai told her.

"What?"

"I've decided to lead the fleet of airships to Ba Sing Se alone. You will remain here in the Fire Nation."

"But I thought we were going to do this together. At least let me have command of the second force."

"My decision is final."

"You can't treat me like this." She protested, standing up. "You can't treat me like a castoff, like you did with Zuko and Azula!"

"Yāo Jing, silence yourself."

"But it was my idea to burn everything to the ground! I DESERVE TO BE AT YOUR SIDE!"

"Yāo Jing!" He barked once, turning his head slightly to look at her. She closed her mouth, crushing the next protest she had, and lowered her head. "Listen to me. I need you to watch over the homeland. It's a very important job that I can only entrust to you."

"Really?" She asked, a small amount of hope showing in her voice.

"And for your loyalty, I've decided to declare you the new Fire Lord." He turned around completely to face her.

"Fire Lord Yāo Jing? It does sound appropriate, but what about you?"

"Fire Lord Ozai is no more." He told her as Fire Sages began to dress him in armor. "Just as the Bending Countries will be reborn in fire, I shall be reborn as the supreme ruler of these lands." A helmet was placed on his head. "From this moment on, I shall be known as the Phoenix King!" He raised his hands up into the air.

A giant banner was raised up behind him with the emblem of a phoenix on it. Imperial Firebenders in black armor raised smaller banners with the same emblem next to the flag of the Fire Nation. Two Firebenders bent their fire into the pots at the bottom of the poles, causing fire to sprout out of phoenix's heads on the side of the poles.

The crowd bowed before the Phoenix King. Yāo Jing did so too, but inside, she felt cheated. She grew up believing that the position of the Fire Lord was the position that held the most power. She had just gotten that position, but her father gave it to her like it was old and boring.

The one who held the most power now was the Phoenix King.

(Location: Earth Kingdom)

"We're here." Zuko announced as they flew to a tavern. They landed nearby and got off.

"You guys go on in." Naruto told the others. "Jiraiya and I will stay out here." They started walking to the tavern.

"Where am I out here?" Jiraiya asked.

"To help me make sure the animals don't do anything and to keep me company." He answered.

"That's fair." He noticed something standing behind him. "Naruto, look out!"

He turned around and saw what was standing in front of him. "Hello ugly." He greeted.

* * *

They walked into the tavern and saw that a fight was going on. "And the reason you brought us to a seedy Earth Kingdom tavern is what now?" Katara asked Zuko.

"June." He answered, pointing at a young woman with black hair as well as a skull adornment holding her top-knot and with snake tattoo on both of her shoulders. She sat at a table with a cup of tea in hand.

"Oh yeah, that weird bounty hunter with the giant mole," Sokka remembered as they watched her fight against two opponents while still holding onto the tea.

"Mole?" repeated Suki. "Her skin is flawless."

"No, she has this giant mole creature she rides around on."

"The shirshu," Zuko said. "It's the only animal that can track Aang's scent anywhere in the world. It's the one shot of finding him."

June dodged her opponent's punches while also backing up. She tossed the cup into the air, grabbed hold of the opponent as he threw another punch and tossed him at a nearby table, taking him out of the fight. She grabbed the cup as it came back down and drank with both ease and nonchalance.

"That was impressive." Azula said.

"Yeah," Toph agreed. "I don't know who this June lady is, but I like her."

(Location: Aang & Momo)

Aang woke to the feeling of Momo licking his face. "Hey Momo," He greeted as he sat up. "I just had the strangest dream." That was when he noticed the surrounding area looked a little different. "Wait." Both he and Momo looked out to the sea and didn't see Ember Island anywhere in sight. "Where are we?"

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Okay, I know that there are going to be a few of you who will be disappointed about how I wrote the reaction of Team Avatar to the whole Kyuubi thing. But let's face the facts, they've had to deal with a panda spirit that can turn into a grotesque monster, meeting your past life, pirates, a giant fish-monster made out of water, wild animals that will either kill them or help them somehow, sneaking into a city and then trying to bust someone free, getting stuck in a swamp that showed them people they will meet or have known, a giant owl who is obsessive about his library (and is also somewhat homicidal), a very big water serpent before helping someone give birth, destroying a giant drill, politics while trying to find their bison, escaping a coup and pretending they're dead, sneaking the enemy's own land, dealing with an old woman with a hell of a grudge, leading an invasion and escaping when it failed, accepting their former enemies as allies, finding out that dragons still do exist, arranging a prison escape, and of course, being kidnapped and taken to the other side of the planet and getting involved in a plan to kill a traitor. Finding out that one of your allies has a nine-tailed demon fox sealed inside him is rather tame after all that.

The reason I have wrote in a second force of Fire Nation soldiers intent on burning the Earth Kingdom down is quite simple: I needed something else so I could use all the characters effectively and in such a way that they don't overcrowd each other.

If you think about it, Naruto is right. The minute Aang was told of him being the Avatar was the same moment he should've realized that his childhood was over. If he had realized that and acted like it, some of the more stupid things would probably never have happened. I know there are going to be some of you who will argue that he was only twelve, it doesn't matter. It was time to put on the big boy pants, and he didn't.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	43. Reflections and Masters

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 43: Reflections and Masters

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Earth Kingdom tavern)

They watched as June kicked a seat away from a table and sit in it. "So she helped you attack them?" Azula asked her brother for clarification.

"Yep," He answered. "Back in the good old days." He walked over to the bounty hunter and the others followed.

"Oh great, it's Prince Pouty." June said when she saw them come over. "Where's your creepy grandpa?"

"He's my uncle." He replied. "And he's not here."

"I see you work things out with your girlfriend." She said when she noticed Katara.

"I'm/she's not his/my girlfriend!" The two of them shouted at her after blushing.

"Okay, okay, sheesh. I was only teasing" She took a drink. "So what do you want?"

"I need your help finding the Avatar."

"Hm. Doesn't sound like fun."

"Does the end of the Bending Countries as you know it sound more fun to you?!" He demanded.

* * *

Appa and the shirshu were growling at each other before the sky bison gave it a big lick. Akela and Fǎn Yìng just watched the two with blank expressions. Naruto and Jiraiya, however, were watching with amusement. "That has got to be one of the oddest things I've ever seen." Jiraiya commented. "And considering how old I am, that's saying something."

"I'm sure it is, considering how many toads you've live with." Naruto told him.

"And what's wrong with toads?"

"Nothing, I'm just pointing out the fact."

"Of course you are." He turned his attention to the tavern. "They're coming out."

He looked over the incoming group and fixed his gaze on June. "I see you're still hanging out with this ugly thing." He called out, pointing at the shirshu.

"And I see you're still an idiot who doesn't know when to shut his mouth." She replied, narrowing her eyes at him.

"I'm not the one who fell asleep in an inn and somehow woke up out at sea."

"No, you're just the one who walked right into an enemy's trap without even knowing it."

"You wanna go right now, bitch?" He asked in a growl.

"Try me, pretty boy." She replied. They walked towards each other with the intent to kill or at least, maim. But as they stood in front of each other, they did something no one expected. They slapped their hands together and began to arm wrestle. At first, it looked like it was a draw, but then Naruto began to push hers down. "You've gotten better." She noted.

"Or you've gotten sloppy." He replied. Finally, he pushed her hand all the way down. "I win." He declared with a grin.

"Yes, you have." She said, before breaking out a grin as well. "How've you been, Naruto?"

"I've been doing well, how about you June?"

"Fine, I've been hitting a good streak lately."

"Good to hear."

"Hold on, you two know each other?" Zuko asked, surprised.

"We've worked together on a few things."

"How did you guys meet?" Sokka asked.

"I was tracking a bounty who also happened to be a deserter from the Fire Nation army." June answered. "We ran into each other and agreed to work together. Since then, we stayed on good terms and helped out the other whenever we met up again."

"Speaking of helping, weren't we doing something?" Naruto asked pointedly.

She turned to the shirshu. "Nyla," She called lovingly, holding a piece of meat. She threw it at him and he caught it, chewing it up before swallowing it. "Who's my little, hmm, Snuffly-Wuffly?" She asked in a cooing voice, petting his head.

"Snuffly-Wuffly?" repeated Naruto. "That's a new one." The shirshu heard him and shot his tongue out at him.

"Whoa! Careful there," She told the creature before turning to face the human. "What did you say to him this time?"

"All I said was 'Hello ugly'." He protested.

"Why would you keep making him mad?"

"It's not my fault he takes offense at being called that. He's the one who looks like he was spawned out from under a half-rotten log."

"I take it the two of you don't get along?" Katara asked.

"Let me put it this way: I don't know anything that is as unnerving and disturbing then waking up and seeing a creature without any eyes giving you the hairy eyeball."

"He can do that?" Suki asked, surprised.

"He can do it very well."

"Why would he be giving you the hairy eyeball?" Sokka asked.

"Well, there was that one time where June and I had to share a tent for the night."

"What?" Azula asked.

"Don't worry; nothing happened, on my part." He looked pointedly at June.

"Hey, I didn't do anything." She protested.

"I'm sorry, who was the one who rolled over in the middle of the night in a cramped tent?"

"Okay, who's got something with the Avatar's scent on it?" She asked, changing the subject.

"I have Aang's staff." Katara said, climbing atop Appa, grabbing the glider staff and handing it to her. She offered it to Nyla, who took in the scent. He started to sniff the air and pace the area, sorting out the scents. When he was done, he came back over her, lay down on the ground and covered his nose.

"Well, what does that mean?" Zuko asked her.

"Means your friend's gone," She answered as she petted Nyla's head.

"We know he's gone. That's why we're trying to find him." Toph said.

"No, I mean he's _gone_ gone." She replied as she stood up. "He doesn't exist."

"Of course he isn't." Naruto remarked sarcastically. "Why in the name of Kami would he try to make this easy?"

(Location: Aang)

"Where are we, Momo?" Aang asked as he walked through the forest while Momo chased furry things. "Maybe I'm in the Spirit World? But wait. You can see me." He told the lemur as he walked under a fallen tree. "We could both be in the Spirit World." He took a stance and bent the air. "No, my Bending works. Maybe if we climb to the top of the island, we can figure out where we are."

(Location: Tavern)

"What do you mean Aang doesn't exist?" Sokka asked. "Are you saying he's dead?"

"Nope, we could find him if he were dead." June told him. "Wow. It's a real head-scratcher. See ya." She climbed aboard Nyla.

"Helpful, real helpful," Toph said sarcastically.

"She's a businesswoman, Toph." Naruto told her.

"Wait. I have another idea." Zuko said. "There's one another person on this side of the planet who can help us face the Fire Lord. I'll be right back with a smell sample." He told June before running over to Appa. He came back holding a sandal that smelled and had flies buzzing around it.

"You saved your uncle's sweaty sandal?" Sokka asked as he covered his nose.

"I've seen weirder mementos." Jiraiya said, not batting an eye at the smell.

"Like what?" Naruto asked.

"Well, there was this one mission where I met a woman who had this shrine to a vibrator and—"

"Stop right there before I get nightmares. Forget I even asked."

"I think it's kinda sweet." Toph said.

Nyla lurched forward and smelled the sandal. "Let's do this." June said, yanking Nyla off the sandal. The shirshu ran down the road, away from the tavern.

"Hey, wait up!" Zuko yelled as they got on Appa and Fǎn Yìng and went after her. They raced through the night and then through the day. Even though there were able to keep up, they were still surprised to see Nyla run that much without resting.

As the sun disappeared and evening began, they stopped. "So Iroh is in Ba Sing Se?" Azula asked as they landed outside the hole in the Outer Wall.

"Your uncle's somewhere beyond the wall," June told them. "Nyla's getting twitchy, so he can't be far." She turned Nyla around. "Good luck. See you around, Naruto."

"Bye, June. Remember, you still owe me that forty." He replied.

"I'll pay you back next time." She and Nyla ran back the way they came.

"You always say that!" He shouted at her retreating form.

"Alright, everyone set up camp." Jiraiya told them, taking command. "We'll start the search in the morning."

(Location: Aang)

He walked up the slope with Momo around his neck. As they went up, they found a peculiar shape in the ground that was looked like it dug to the rock. "It's a hexagon." He said as he walked down onto it. "It doesn't seem like normal rock." He told the lemur as he knelt to look at it closer (Momo had jumped down from his neck). He took an Earthbending stance and tried to bend it, only to fail. "It's not made of earth. This is so strange. I wish I had help right now. I wish I had Roku." He said as he sat down. He then realized something important. "I _do_ have Roku."

He took a meditative position and closed his eyes, breathing deeply. Momo scurried off as blue mist began to surround Aang's body. The mist broke off and moved in front of him, where it took the image of the pervious Avatar, Roku. **"You're right, Aang."** The spirit told him. **"All the Avatars, all their experience and wisdom, are available to you if you look deep inside yourself."**

"So, where am I, Roku? What is this place?"

"**I…don't know, Aang."** He admitted. **"But I see you are lost in more ways than one right now."**

"I am. I need to figure out what to do once I face the Fire Lord."

(Location: Outer Wall)

Everyone was sleeping. Since they were too tried to set up the tents, they slept on either Appa's legs, or in the saddle. The only ones who weren't sleeping there were Jiraiya, who was sleeping lightly with his back to rock, and Toph, who was sleeping underneath an earth tent.

Feeling vibrations in the earth, she woke up and bent the earth tent into the ground. Jiraiya was five seconds ahead of her. "Everyone, wake up!" He ordered as he stood up. The others did, but it was too late. A fire spread from the hole and encircled them. The only way out was through the hole. As they looked at the hole, they saw four people standing on top of the rubble, looking down at them. But the confusion on some of their faces melted away and excitement was replacedwhen they saw who the four were.

"Well, look who's here!" Bumi declared as he laughed and snorted.

(Location: Aang)

"Everyone expects me to take the Fire Lord's life, but I just don't know if I can do that." Aang told Roku.

"**In my life, I tried to be disciplined and show restraint."** Roku said. **"But it backfired when Fire Lord Sozin took advantage of my restraint and mercy. If I had been more decisive and acted sooner, I could have stopped Sozin and stopped the war before it started. I offer you this wisdom, Aang: You must be decisive."** His image faded away and disappeared, leaving evaporating blue mist.

(Location: Outer Wall)

"What's going on?" Toph asked. "We're surrounded by old people."

"Not just any old people." Katara told her. "These are great masters and friends of ours." She walked up and bowed to the first one. "Pakku," She greeted her former Waterbending master.

"It is respectful to bow to an old master." He replied as he returned the bow. "But how about a hug for your new grandfather?"

Both Sokka and Katara were surprised by that. "That's so exciting!" She cheered, giving him a hug. "You and Gran-Gran must be so happy to have found each other again."

"I made her a new betrothal necklace and everything."

"Welcome to the family, Gramps-Gramps!" Sokka declared as he gave him a hug.

"You can still just call me Pakku." He said as he pushed him away.

"How about just Gramps?"

"…Fine."

"And this was Aang's first Firebending teacher." Katara told Zuko and Azula as they before the second person and bowed to him.

"Jeong Jeong." He introduced himself.

"The Deserter?" asked Azula.

"Yes."

"And we'll keep it at that." Zuko told her.

"Master Piandao." Sokka greeted the third with a bow.

"Hello, Sokka." He greeted back with a bow of his head.

"So, you're Piandao, huh?" Jiraiya asked.

"Yes, and you are?"

"My name is Jiraiya. It's an honor to meet the student of Kenji Uzumaki. I would also like to thank you for holding on to the scroll he gave you, it was a priceless treasure."

"So wait. How do you all know each other?" Suki asked.

"All old people know each other, don't you know that?" Bumi asked her before laughing.

"We are all part of the same ancient secret society. A group that transcends the divisions of the four nations," Piandao told them.

"The Order of the White Lotus," Zuko said, realizing who they were.

"That's the one." Bumi said.

"The White Lotus has always been about philosophy and beauty and truth." Jeong Jeong explained. "But about a month ago, a call went out that we were needed for something important."

"It came from a Grand Lotus: your uncle, Iroh of the Fire Nation." Pakku told Zuko and Azula.

"Well, that's who we're looking for." Toph said.

"Then we'll take you to him." Piandao replied.

"Wait!" Bumi interrupted. "Someone's missing from your group. Someone very important." He got up in Sokka's face. "Where's Momo?"

"He's gone…and so is Aang." He answered.

"Oh well. So long as they have each other, I'm sure there's nothing to worry about. Let's go!" He bent the earth underneath him to send him flying back over the wall.

They all watched as he flew through the air. "Has he ever thought about cutting down on the rock candy?" Naruto asked aloud.

(Location: Aang)

"Avatar Kyoshi, I need your wisdom." He said aloud as he stayed in his meditation position. The blue mist appeared again, taking the form of the pervious Earth Kingdom Avatar.

"**In my day, Chin the Conqueror threatened to throw the Bending Countries out of balance."** Kyoshi told him. **"I stopped him. And the world entered a great era of peace."**

"But you really didn't kill Chin." He protested. "Technically, he fell to his own doom because he was too stubborn to get out of the way."

"**Personally, I don't see the difference. But I assure you, I would have done whatever it took to stop Chin. I offer you this wisdom, Aang: only justice will bring peace."** The image shrunk and disappeared.

"I knew I shouldn't have asked Kyoshi." He stated with a scowl.

(Location: Team Avatar)

"So, Bumi, how did you end escaping your imprisonment in Omashu?" Sokka asked as they walked along stone trail.

"Escape?" repeated Bumi. "I didn't escape. Everyone else escaped. There I was back in Omashu, waiting for just the right moment. I didn't know what or when, but I'd knew I'd know it when I knew it."

(Flashback)

He hung in his iron cage, swinging in the air. He looked up and saw the moon blocking the sun. "An eclipse," He said. "That should do it." He bent the roofs beneath him to break up into rocks and flew up. They struck the sides of the cage door and cracked it open, letting him jumped down to the ground.

As he landed, nearby guards ran up to him. "What do you think you're doing?" The lead guard demanded. He tried to bend fire, but got nothing. He and the other guards tried again, but still got nothing.

"Taking back my city!" He declared with a grin. "You've got no firepower. And it's payback time!" He leapt into the city and used his Earthbending to push houses that had pieces of Fire Nation factories out of Omashu. He had removed a good chunk of the city and then he turned his attention to the giant metalstatute of Ozai standing at the top. He threw several chunks of rock into the statue and then used those to bring the statue down. The hard part was pulling out from the ground but once he had tipped it, gravity took effect. The statue fell onto one of the mail chutes and slid down the mountain, eventually destroying the front gate and the bridge that connected the city to the rest of the land.

As he watched this all happen, he laughed and ate a piece of rock candy.

(End Flashback)

"Wow! You took back your whole city all by yourself!" Suki said, impressed.

"I'm glad you kept your promise, Bumi." Naruto told him.

"I do try to keep them." He replied. "So what about you guys? Did you do anything interesting on the day of the eclipse?"

Both Zuko and Sokka shared a look. "Nah," Zuko said.

"No, not really," Sokka said.

(Location: Aang)

He held his head. "I need to look deep inside myself." He said quietly. He closed his eyes again. The blue mist took the form of a man in Water Tribe clothing. Although it wasn't knowledge he was actively aware of, he knew this was the pervious Avatar of the Water Tribe.

"**I am Avatar Kuruk."** He introduced himself. **"When I was young, I was always a go-with-the-flow kind of Avatar. People seemed to work out their own problems, and there was peace and good times in this part of the world. But then, I lost the woman I love to Koh, the Face-Stealer. It was my fault. If I had been more attentive and more active, I could've saved her. Aang, you must actually shape your own destiny and the destiny of these countries." **He disappeared like a ripple in the water.

(Location: Team Avatar)

"Well, here we are." Bumi said as they walked into the camp. "Welcome to Old People Camp."

"Bumi, please stop calling it that." Pakku told him.

"Where…where is he?" Zuko asked as he looked around.

"Your uncle's in there, Prince Zuko." Piandao said, pointing at a tent.

He walked over to the tent and stared at it. He took a step towards the entrance, but stopped and sat down. "Are you okay?" Katara asked as she walked over to him.

"No, I'm not okay." He answered. "My uncle hates me, I know it. He loved and supported me in every way he could, and I still turned my back on him. How can I even face him?"

She knelt down beside him. "Zuko, you're sorry for what you did, right?"

"More sorry then I've been about anything in my life."

"Then he'll forgive you. He will."

He looked at her and then stood up. "Azula, are you going to come in as well?" He asked without turning around.

"No, you can go first." She told him.

He took a deep breath and walk into the tent. "Uncle?" He called out quietly as he walked in. He found Iroh sleeping in the bed and snoring loudly. He smiled to himself and sat down in front of him.

(Location: Aang)

"All these past Avatars," Aang said to himself and Momo. "They keep telling me I'm gonna have to do it. They don't get it." Momo chittered at him. "You're right. Maybe an Air Nomad Avatar will understand where I'm coming from." The lemur just stared at him. "I know you can't really talk. Pretending you can just helps me think." He was chittered at again. "I'm going to pretend I didn't pretend to hear that." He began to concentrate again as Momo scurried off.

The blue mist took the form of a young woman in Air Nomad clothing. Just by that simple he knew that she was the pervious Avatar of the Air Nomads. **"I am Avatar Yangchen, young Airbender."** She introduced herself.

"Avatar Yangchen, the monks always taught me that all life is scared. Even the life of the tiniest spider-fly caught in its own web."

"**Yes. All life is scared."**

"I know, I'm even a vegetarian. I've always tried to solve my problems by being quick or cleaver. And I've only had to use violence for necessary defense. And I've certainly never used it to take a life."

"**Avatar Aang, I know that you're a gentle spirit, and the monks have taught you well. But this is not about you. This is about the Bending Countries."**

"But the monks taught me that I had to detach myself from the world so my spirit could be free." He protested.

"**Many great and wise Air Nomads have detached themselves and achieved spiritual enlightenment. But the Avatar can never do it, because your sole duty is to these countries. Here is my wisdom for you: selfless duty calls you to sacrifice your own spiritual needs, and do whatever it takes to protect the world." **She disappeared as the blue mist disappeared from a small gust of wind.

"So that's it, huh?" He asked. "Even an Air Nomad, one of my own people, is telling me to kill the Fire Lord. Is there anyone else I can ask for help?" An idea came to him. "No. There's one more person I can try. The first Avatar! He or she must've gone through something similar; she or he can help me." He closed his for the fifth time.

The blue mist rolled off his body and moved in front of him again. At first, it took the form of Roku, then it changed into Kyoshi, then Kuruk, then Yangchen, until the images of past Avatars began to blur together. One face would change into the next as he concentrated. Finally, the mist stopped moving and took on a form. He opened his eye and was surprised. Sitting in front of him was a boy a few years older than he was. He wore an old suit of armor and had a good amount of hair on his head. But there was no mistaking the arrow tattoo on his forehead or the face he wore. "You're…me." He said in surprise.

"**It seems that you are not just my spiritual successor, but my physical one as well."** The first Avatar noted.

"What is your name?"

"**I do not have one. It was taken from me." ** He looked Aang straight in the eye. **"What is it you need?"**

"I need your advice. Everyone expects me to kill the Fire Lord and I don't know if I can do it. I've asked my predecessors and they have all told me that I have to kill him. I thought that since you were the first Avatar, you could help me."

"**If the Avatar is now the title of the person who carries the powers, then I** **am not the first."** He said curtly. **"I am simply the last host of the Tyrant. Whatever destiny I had was taken from me when he took control of my life. He used me as his vessel as he ruled a vast empire that was terrifying and ruthless. When the four leaders of the rebellion attacked me and by extension him, the one who struck the killing blow was my older sister."**

"What? How could she do that? You were her brother!"

"**And it was for that fact that she hesitated before striking me down and shed tears afterwards. If I had not told her to do it, all they did would've been for naught. It was her duty to kill me, whether I was her brother or not did not matter. I was the host of the Tyrant and so I had to die. If you wish for my advice, I will tell you this: if killing this Fire Lord will ensure the safety of the Bending Countries, then do your duty."** His shape faded away, as did the mist.

He sat in silence as the lemur came back to him. "I guess I don't have a choice, Momo." He told the creature. "I have to kill the Fire Lord."

(Location: Iroh's tent)

Morning had come and Zuko hadn't moved from his spot. When Iroh awoke, he stretched and yawned, but he didn't turn his head to look at his nephew. "Uncle," Zuko began. "I know you must have mixed feelings about seeing me." The Dragon of the West stayed silent. "But I want you to know," He began to cry. "I'm so, so, sorry, Uncle. I'm so sorry and ashamed for what I did. I don't know how I can ever make it up to you. But I—" He didn't finished what he was saying, due to the fact that Iroh turned around and pulled him into a tight hug, crying as well. "How can you forgive me so easily? I thought you would've been furious with me."

"I was never angry with you." Iroh told him. "I was sad because I was afraid that you had lost your way."

"I did lose my way." He admitted.

"But you found it again." He released him from the hug. "And you did it by yourself. And I am so happy you found your way here." He hugged him again.

"It wasn't that hard, Uncle. You have a pretty strong scent."

(Location: Aang)

He had fallen asleep on the strange rock alongside Momo. When he woke up, he yawned and sat up. Then he noticed something. "Wait. Is it just me, or are those mountains getting bigger?" He asked as he saw mountains on a nearby shore. After sharing a look with Momo, he used his Airbending to jump to the tallest tree on the island to get a better look. Both he and Momo looked at the mountains and behind them, seeing a wake left in the water. "They're not getting larger, they're getting closer!"

He leapt down form the tree and ran down the slope. "The whole island is moving!" He declared. Reaching the edge, he leapt off the island and sailed into the water. He swam down to investigate the bottom of the island. As he looked, he saw something out of the corner of his eye. He turned to look at it, only to swim backwards in order to avoid a large paw moving through the water.

He swam back up to the surface, breathing in the air. "It's amazing Momo!" He told the lemur, who had landed nearby. "It's the biggest animal in the world! I've gotta swim around and find its face." He started swimming and Momo flew after him.

(Location: White Lotus Camp)

Everyone sat in a group for breakfast. "Uncle, you're the only person other than the Avatar who can possibly defeat the Father Lord." Zuko told him.

"You mean the Fire Lord." Toph corrected him.

"That's what I just said!"

"No, you definitely said Father Lord." Azula said with a smirk.

"Save the teasing for later, Azula," Naruto told her.

As Iroh stared at his breakfast in silence, Zuko continued. "We need you to come with us!" He urged.

"No, Zuko, it won't turn out well." He finally answered.

"You can beat him! And we'll be there to help."

"Even if I did defeat Ozai, and I don't know if I could, it would be the wrong way to end the war. History would see it as more senseless violence, a brother killing a brother to grab power."

"Iroh, I'm going to sound a bit blunt, but fuck history." Naruto told him. "Let historians haggle and debate about us later on. We need to focus on now."

"I am focused, Naruto." He replied. "The only way for this war to end peacefully is for the Avatar to defeat the Fire Lord."

He gave an annoyed sigh. "It was that kind of attitude that made the war last for a century."

"He's still right, gaki." Jiraiya said. "If we want to end this war with minimal bloodshed, Aang has to be the one to beat Ozai."

"If he did that, would…would you come back and take your rightful place on the throne?" Zuko asked Iroh.

"No." He answered. "Someone new must take the throne, an idealist with a pure heart and unquestionable honor. It has to be _you_, Prince Zuko."

"You're not going to complain about how it should be you?" Sokka asked Azula.

"During the invasion, I told Ozai I was no longer his daughter. I had effectively casted myself out of the Royal Line."

"Unquestionable honor?" repeated Zuko. "But I've made so many mistakes."

"Yes, you have. You've struggled; you've suffered, but you have always followed your own path. You've restored your _own_ honor, and only you can restore the honor of the Fire Nation."

"…I'll try, Uncle."

"Well, what if Aang doesn't come back?" Toph asked.

"Sozin's Comet is arriving and our destines are upon us. Aang will have to face the Fire Lord." He fell silent for a minute. "When I was a boy, I had a vision that I would one day take Ba Sing Se. Only now do I see that my destiny is to take it _back _from the Fire Nation, so the Earth Kingdom can be free again."

"That's why you gathered the members of the White Lotus." Suki said in realization.

"Yes." He turned his attention to his nephew. "Zuko, you must return to the Fire Nation, so that when the Fire Lord falls, you can assume the throne and restore peace and order. But Yāo Jing will be there, waiting for you."

"I can handle Yāo Jing." He replied.

"Not alone, you'll need help."

"Don't worry about that, Uncle." Azula told him. "I'll be going too."

Zuko nodded his thanks and turned his attention to Katara. "Katara, how would you like to help us put Yāo Jing in her place?" He asked.

"It would be my pleasure." She answered.

"What about us?" Sokka asked. "What is our destiny today?"

"What do you think it is?" Iroh asked back.

"I think that, even though we don't know where Aang is, we need to do everything we can to stop the airship fleet and that second army."

"And that means when Aang does face the Fire Lord, we'll be right there if he needs us." Toph declared.

"Then you, Sokka, and Suki take care of the airships. Jiraiya and I will deal with the army." Naruto stated. "We may have to borrow Appa to get there."

"Why's that?"

"How else are we going to get to them? Zuko's group can take Fǎn Yìng to get to the Fire Nation."

"What about us?" Suki asked.

"I can answer that." Piandao told as he came over. "Finish your food and come see me when you're done."

They did so and once they were done, they packed the things they needed and rejoined the sword master. Naruto and Jiraiya climbed aboard Appa and surprisingly, Akela joined them. "I guess we have an extra member." Jiraiya commented.

Meanwhile, both Toph and Suki had got on an eel hound. "Nothing runs faster over land or swims quicker than giant eel hound." Piandao told Sokka, who wore his armor and helmet. "The airship base is on a small island just off the Earth Kingdom shore." He told him as he handed him a map. "You should be able to intercept the fleet within a day's journey."

He opened the map and quickly looked over it. "Thank you, Master." He said. They bowed to each other and then he gave his teacher a hug.

Off to the side, Zuko and his group had already climbed aboard Fǎn Yìng. "So, if I'm going to be the Fire Lord after the war is over, what are you going to do?" Zuko asked Iroh.

"After I re-conquer Ba Sing Se, I'm going to re-conquer my tea shop, and I'm going to play Pai Sho every day!" He declared as he flipped a Pai Sho piece in the air and caught it.

"If that the case, I want to play the first match." Jiraiya told him from atop of Appa.

Everyone shared a look and nodded in agreement. They were ready. "Goodbye, General Iroh." Katara said,

"Goodbye, everyone." He replied. "Today, destiny is our friend. I know it."

The eel hound took off and the dragon followed it. The sky bison however, went in a different direction. But all three left the White Lotus camp behind.

(Location: Aang)

As the island moved closer to the shore, Aang swam forward to the front. Once he was certain he was close enough, he took a deep breath and dived underneath the water. He swam downward and then stopped. As he held himself in the water, he noticed that an eye open up right in front of him, making swim back in surprise. One of the giant paws caught him and forced up to the surface.

As both he and the paw emerged from the water, so did the face of the creature. He knew that he had been on the back of a creature, but he didn't know what kind of creature it was. Now he did. "A lion turtle," He said with awe in his voice as he looked upon the oldest creature in the world before bowing to it. "Maybe you can help me. Everyone, even my own past lives, are expecting me to end someone's life. But I don't know if I can do it."

"The true mind can weather all the lies and illusions without being lost. The true heart can tough the poison of hatred without being harmed," The lion turtle told him as it raised its other paw out of the water. "Since beginning-less time, darkness thrives in the void but always yields to purifying light." He placed a claw on Aang's head and on his heart. Bright light shone from the contact as Aang reveled in the information given to him.

Once they were done, the lion turtle took him to the shore and held out a claw at a cliff. Aang walked onto the cliff without turning his back, looking directly at it as Momo landed on his shoulder. "Wait for him." The ancient creature told him. "He will come." He bowed once more as the lion turtle sank into the water and swam away.

He shared a single look with Momo, and then made his way from the shore.

(Location: Airship fleet)

On a small island, Ozai stood over his fleet and looked out at the sea. "It's time for these countries to end in fire and for a new empire to be born from the ashes." He declared.

As both he and the Avatar watched and waited, the sun slowly began to rise and Sozin's Comet entered the planet's atmosphere.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Okay, why any of you would think I'd bring Team Kakashi right now is beyond me. I told you, that is a required solo act.

I put in the so-called "first Avatar" because that is the beginning of my interpretation of the history of the Avatar. I don't know if _The Legend of Korra_ will explain that (I think I read somewhere that that was going to be the main thing of season 2), and if they do, I will be sure to pay attention to it. Until then, I'm going with mine.

I know I'm using the deus ex machina that the writers created. But let's face it, if I don't use it, then how will I be able to write a sequel? Plus, it gives me an opportunity to have a conversation between Aang and Naruto later.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	44. Battlegrounds and Reclaiming

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 44: Battlegrounds and Reclaiming

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Fǎn Yìng)

As the Comet went through the atmosphere, everyone aboard Fǎn Yìng was quiet. "Zuko, don't worry." Katara said, seeing how tense he was. "We can take Yāo Jing."

"I'm not worried about her." He replied. "I'm worried about Aang. What if he doesn't have the guts to take out my father? What if he loses?"

"Aang won't lose. He's gonna come back. He has to."

"We just need to have confidence in him." Azula agreed.

(Location: Appa)

Jiraiya and Akela sat in the saddle while Naruto flew Appa over the land. "Are you nervous?" Jiraiya asked him.

"Should I be?" He asked back. "You're making it sound like this is my first time going into battle."

"This is your first time fighting against people you know. It's always different, fighting against faces you had been friends with before."

"…Speaking from experience?"

"Allies have become enemies and vice versa."

"So how did you deal with it?"

"Simple. I kept my mind focused on what I was supposed to do."

"Yeah well, now what we're supposed to attack people I might possibly know."

"Ironic, isn't it?"

"Don't even start."

(Location: Fire Nation)

Yāo Jing sat in a chair as servants groomed her for the upcoming coronation. She took a cherry from a bowl one of the servants held up and popped it into her mouth. She immediately spat it back out when she crunched down a pit. "What am I holding?" She asked the servant holding the bowl.

"A cherry pit, Princess," She answered.

"Correct. And what day is this?"

"It is the day of your coronation."

"Yes it is. So, please, tell me why on the most important of my life, you've decided to put a pit in my cherry?" She asked, throwing the pit at the servant.

"It wasn't a decision; it was just a small mistake."

"Small? Do you realize what could've happened if I hadn't sensed the pit in time?"

"I suppose you could've…choked?"

"Yes, then you understand the severity of your crime."

"I understand, Princess, Please…forgive me." She bowed her head.

"Oh very well, since it's a special day, I will show mercy." The servant smiled for a brief moment. "You are banished! Leave this palace immediately." The servant couldn't protest, she knew that would be the death of her. She simply put the bowl down and backed out of the room with her head bowed. "What are you all looking at?" Yāo Jing asked the other servants. "I have two feet that need scrubbing. And make sure you get in between the toes. I won't have my first day as Fire Lord marred by poor foot hygiene."

The servants were scared, but they did as they were ordered.

(Location: Eel hound)

As the eel hound swam through the water, Suki looked backed behind them. "It's weird to say, but the Comet actually looks beautiful." She said.

"Too bad the Fire Lord's about to use it to destroy the world," Toph replied.

They stayed silent as they got closer to the island. When they got to the shore, they climbed off the eel hound and made their way up the slope. They reached the top and saw the fleet was beginning to move. "We're too late!" Sokka cried. "The fleet's already taking off!"

"Then we're taking off too." Toph declared. "Where's the closest airship?"

"It's right—" He didn't finish what he was saying because the Earthbender in the group bent the rock beneath them to shoot upwards and send them flying towards the nearest airship. They hit their peak of flight right next to the airship and managed to angle their descent to land on the bottom of the ship, catching Toph as she landed.

They ran inside in order to start what they were supposed to do. As they did that, Ozai stood at the front of the flagship, an evil smirk on his face.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

Yāo Jing sat on the throne of the Fire Lord. She had sent for the Dai Li that she had brought back with her, but they hadn't shown themselves. "Where are they?" She demanded.

"I-I have just received word that the Yuyan archers have taken them into custody, Princess." A nearby servant told her nervously.

"What? Why?"

"They were arrested on charges of treason."

"Bring the leader of the Yuyan archers here now!" She ordered, the fire surrounding growing in height.

"Yes, Princess," The servant said before scurrying out of the room.

(Location: Sokka's team)

They made their way quietly up to the bridge, making sure that no one saw them. "Ssshh," Sokka said as he and Suki walked up besides the door. Toph, on the other hand, walked up to the door, knocked on it to get the attention of the people inside, and then kicked it down.

She then rolled forward and bent the metal door to form around her, creating armor. After withstanding a couple of fire blasts, she bent the metal in the room to pin most of the soldiers there to the wall or the ceiling. She then jumped up and crawled along an overhanging pipe and dropping down behind the last soldier. After he tried to punch her (and failed), she sent him flying out of the room with a punch of her own. "That's how it's done!" She told Sokka and Suki as they walked into room, shedding the armor.

"Good work, Toph." Sokka told her. "Time to take control of the ship, take the wheel," He told Suki.

"That's a great idea! Let the blind girl steer the giant airship!" The Earthbender said sarcastically.

"I was talking to Suki."

"That would make a lot more sense." She admitted.

"What are we going to do about the rest of the crew?" Suki asked Sokka.

"Take us down closer to the water. I've got an idea." He grabbed a red tube that he knew was the announcement horn. "Attention, crew, this is your captain speaking." He said a deep voice. "Everyone please report to the bomb bay immediately for hot cakes and sweet cream. We have a very special birthday to celebrate."

Once he was done, Suki had the airship drop down closer to the water.

(Location: Bomb bay)

Down in the bomb bay, every single crew member was milling around down there. "Hey," One crew member said to another. "I'm Qin Lee, I work up in communications."

"Oh, hi." said the second crew member. "I work down in the engine room. That's probably why we never met before. Big airship, you know?"

"Oh yeah," He agreed.

"So, do you know whose birthday it is?"

"I can't believe the captain remembered my birthday." A third crew member said, walking up to them. "He really does care."

That was when the floor underneath them gave way and they fell into the water. "Happy birthday," The engineer offered as they came back up to the surface.

(Location: Bridge)

Sokka stared out the broken window at the flagship. "Fire Lord, here we come." He declared.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

"You sent for me, Princess?" Bao-yu asked as he stood in front Yāo Jing.

"Why have you arrested my Dai Li?" She demanded.

"We have reason to believe that they were plotting treason against the Fire Nation."

"How is that possible? They were loyal to me and only to me."

"That's probably what they wanted you to think. It is quite possible that they were ordered to keep an eye on you."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You mean to tell me that Naruto ordered them to do everything I said so they could spy on me?"

"I did not say that, Princess. If that is all, I must get back to interrogating the prisoners." He bowed and walked away.

"Is your loyalty to me, Bao-yu, or is it to a traitor?"

"I believe that is an obvious answer, Princess." He answered without turning around.

She snarled as she realized the truth. Naruto had ordered the Dai Li agents to spy on her and report back to him about what she was doing. Since she knew that the Yuyan archers were loyal to the Paragon first, they had the excuse of "arresting" the Dai Li agents so that they could get them away from her.

(Location: Appa)

They stayed silent as they got closer and closer to their target. Finally, they saw the army. "Well, there they are." Jiraiya said.

"Way to state the obvious, F. S.-sensei," Naruto replied.

"Would you stop calling me that?"

"Would you prefer to be called Pervy Sage?"

"No, I just want to be called by my name."

"I am calling you by your name." He turned his attention back to the army. "Land in front of them, Appa," He told the sky bison. They landed with a loud crash, getting the attention of the army.

"Lord Naruto?" asked one of the soldiers.

He leapt down from Appa's head. "Hello men, we need to talk."

(Location: White Lotus)

As the forces inside the Inner City prepared, the Order of the White Lotus waited to attack. "Ba Sing Se, the Order of the White Lotus is here." Bumi said with complete seriousness.

"Here to set you free." Pakku finished.

"Only once every hundred years can a Firebender experience this kind of power." Iroh said to himself. As he felt the Comet's power, he began to inhale and exhale. A ring of fire began to grow and shrink around the group. It got bigger and bigger every time he exhaled until, with a shout, he bent the fire into a single orb and threw at the Inner Wall.

The part of the Wall it hit was destroyed, creating a giant hole in it. Bumi bent the giant stone table they were on forward, moving towards the hole. The two other tables followed suit. As they got closer, sentries on the wall tried to bend fire-bursts at them, but Iroh brushed them aside with his own Firebending. When they were close enough, Bumi bent the other three into the air before following himself.

Pakku landed on a rooftop. Bending a large amount of water up from nearby, he brought it down in a wave. He froze it just as Piandao joined them, giving them a slide. The sword-master slid through the enemies, cutting their weapons in half and inflecting minor injuries. As he ran off into an alley, Pakku melted the ice back into water and brought it in front of him to block a blast of fire.

The water was completely evaporated and the Waterbending master would've been killed by another fire blast had it not be for Jeong Jeong blocking it with his own fire. He floated in air, held up by his Firebending. As he floated over a square, more tanks opened fire on him. He bent a wall of flames to block and push back each attack, sending each tank into a pile.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

Yāo Jing stood in front of a large mirror. As she had banished all of her servants, she was forced to do her own hair. She tried to tie her hair into a top knot, but her fingers kept getting stuck in the ribbon. "If you will not listen to what you are told to." She said, grabbing a pair of scissors. "You will be removed!" She cut her haphazardly, giving her a somewhat crazed look.

"**Why would you do that? Your hair was lovely."** Chun's voice told her. When she looked in the mirror, she saw her standing behind her.

"Why are you here? You're dead."

"**Just because I am no longer living, doesn't mean I can't be there for my daughter's coronation."**

"Why do you keep up this charade? I know you hate me."

"**I told before, Měi Lì, I will always love you."**

She grabbed a nearby brush. "My name is Yāo Jing!" She screamed as she threw the brush at the mirror, shattering it. As she watched the pieces of glass fall to the ground, she unconsciously began to cry. She wiped the tears away. When she looked at the broken glass again, she stepped back away from them, inside the broken pieces, were the same eyes from her dream. **"Remember,"** She heard the voice in her head. **"A deal's a deal."**

(Location: Airship fleet)

They were approaching the shore of the Earth Kingdom. The first thing they would destroy was Wulong Forest. Ozai took a deep breath and smirked in triumph at an apparently easy victory.

Meanwhile, the commandeered airship was trying to reach the flagship, but it was faster. "We're not going to catch to him in time." Sokka told the others.

"No…" Suki protested quietly.

On the flagship, Ozai closes his eyes and let the power of the Comet flow through his body. When he opened his eyes, he took his stance and bent forth a _large_ column of fire. He directed this fire at the earth and began to destroy the land.

But while all life was fleeing from this fire, two stayed where they were. Aang was standing on a stone pillar with Momo on his shoulder, watching Ozai destroy the Earth Kingdom. "Momo, time for you to go," Aang told the lemur. It flew away, leaving him to take a deep breath.

Swinging his legs into various kicks, he bent the pillar beneath him to break chunks and fly at the airship. They zipped past Ozai and smashed into the propellers, causing him to lose his balance and causing the ship to start drifting. He bent a large fireball at the rest of the engine, destroying it completely.

As the ship began to fall, Ozai stared down at the Avatar. When he saw him lower his hands, he took it as a challenge. He removed his armor, cloak and shirt, burning them if he couldn't get it off fast enough, leaving him bare-chested. He leapt off the ship and used his Firebending to fly. As the ship crashed into the pillars, he flew at Aang and landed on pillar opposite of him.

* * *

"What just happened?" Suki asked.

"It's Aang!" Sokka said as he lowered the telescope. "He's back!"

(Location: Naruto's team)

"What are you doing here, Lord Naruto?" A soldier asked.

"I'm here to stop you from your orders. I can't you let destroy the Earth Kingdom."

"But we must follow our orders."

"Even if it meant you have to fight your former commander?"

"'Orders are orders; we have to follow them, even if we don't like them.' Those were your words, sir." Another soldier told him.

"Yeah, that's true. I probably shouldn't have said that."

"If it's true, you snot-nosed little brat, you should just step aside." A third soldiers spat.

"I guess not all of them like you, huh?" Jiraiya asked.

"I served with some, some served under me, and the rest didn't." He sighed. "Look, don't kill unless you have to. Like they said, they have to follow orders." He rolled his shoulders back and loosened up the muscles. "If we're going to do this, looks like I'm going to have to break my one rule."

"And that was…?"

"No jutsus in front of people." He put his hands into an old handseal. **"Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu** (Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu)**!"** A vast cloud of smoke appeared behind him. When the smoke cleared, he had his own army, made completely up of clones. The sight of such a thing scared many of the soldiers there (most doubly so. To them, one Naruto was bad enough). "Alright then, let's get to it." He said. "CHARGE!"

And so, a virtual tidal wave of Naruto (plus a sky bison, a wolf, and a super pervert/sadist) slammed into the army.

(Location: Wulong Forest)

The two faced other as the ship behind Ozai burned. "After generations of Fire Lords failed to find you, now the universe delivers you to me as an act of providence." He said.

"Please listen to me." Aang begged. "We don't have to fight. You have the power to end it here and stop what you're doing."

"You are right. I do have the power. I have _all_ the power in the WORLD!" He said the last word as he breathed fire and bent two streams of flame from his hands in a show of force. When Aang heard this, he stepped back into a stance.

Once he was done showing off, Ozai attack. He did a little jump and slammed his fist into the pillar, bending a ring of fire around him. Aang jumped over the ring and then landed back on the pillar. Using his Earthbending, he pulled the top chunk of the pillar off and threw it at him.

He jumped off the pillar and stayed in the air using the same method as before. He flew at Aang, who leapt at him in turn. Both of their Firebending smashed into each other, briefly creating a cloud of flame.

(Location: Sokka's team)

"Go Aang!" Sokka cheered. "Kick his ass!"

"Shouldn't we be helping him?" Suki asked.

"The Fire Lord is Aang's fight. We need to stay focused on stopping that fleet from burning down the Earth Kingdom."

"And how do we do that, Captain Boomerang?" Toph asked with a little sarcasm. "I can't see outside of the floating hunk of metal."

He looked out the window. "I've got something in mind. Let me take the wheel, Suki." She relinquished control of the wheel and he grabbed it. He flew the ship up into the air, higher than the other ships. Then, with a great heave, he spun the wheel to the left. The ship banked to the left and flew backwards.

Meanwhile, the rest of the fleet was approaching the shoreline. The Firebenders who stood on the platform in front of the ship took their stances and did the same thing Ozai did: they bent a large burst of flame. The land began to burn as their fire consumed everything.

"Whoa. That's a _lot_ of fire, isn't it?" Toph asked as she stared out of a broken window, feeling the heat on her face.

As the ship had finally faced the other ships, Sokka let the wheel spin back into place. He pulled the levers around him, putting everything the ship had into max. The exhaust pipes as well as the engine began to sprout fire. "It's gonna be a rough ride!" He told the others as he grabbed Toph by the hand. "We need to get to the top of this thing, _fast_." He hurried her out of the bridge.

"Then what?" asked Suki.

"Watch each other's back, and if we make it that far, I'll let you know." He answered before quickly kissing her.

The ship reached the others and smashed into their tops, sending them falling to the water. But it was taking its own damage. As the three climbed onto the top, the ship began to break apart. They ran to the front of the ship in order to escape the damage, but the dragon's head suddenly broke in half, with Suki on one side and Sokka and Toph on the other. "Suki!" cried Sokka.

She landed on the ship they had crashed into. "I'm okay!" She shouted. "Just finished the mission!"

"No…" He whispered.

"Sokka, I think we gotta…." Toph began. "Jump!" They both shouted as the piece they were on smashed into the next airship. They landed on the ship and he covered her as debris fell around them.

(Location: Naruto)

"**Oh, and there's goes another clone."** Kyuubi stated as he watched the fight.

"_I don't need color commentary right now."_ Naruto told him as he ducked under a sword swing and rammed his elbow into his enemy's stomach.

The fight between the two armies could go either way at this point. The clones, Jiraiya, and Akela did their best not to kill their opponents, but were sometimes forced to. Appa just sent his opponent flying with a swing of his tail.

But the soldiers of the Fire Nation were giving it as good as they were taking it. A good number of the clones had disappeared and both the original and Jiraiya were sporting minor wounds. Akela was a little better off, but not by much. Appa tried to stay in the air, but was sometimes forced to land. When that happened, the soldiers would always try to rush in and circle him. That, in turn would make one of the other three alongsome of the clones beat them back.

"You hanging in there, gaki?" asked Jiraiya as they fought back-to-back.

"I'm doing fine, how about you?"He asked back as he swept his enemy's legs out from under him.

"I'm doing okay. It's been awhile since I was in a fight this big."

"Should we stop it so you can rest your bones?" He asked sarcastically.

"Funny, kid, real funny," He replied drily as he buried his fist in someone's midsection.

"Just asking, that's all."

"Save your questions for later, we have a fight going on here."

"I know that, I started it."

"Then try to finish it." They leapt away from each other and back into the fray.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

The coronation ceremony had begun, but no one was there to see it. Only Yāo Jing and the Fire Sages were there. "By decree of Phoenix King Ozai," The head Fire Sage said as he held the headpiece of the Fire Lord. "I now crown you Fire Lord…" He trailed off as he and the other sages saw what was in the sky.

"What are you waiting for?" Yāo Jing demanded. "Do it already!"

The roar of a dragon was heard as Fǎn Yìng landed in the plaza. "Sorry, but you're going to become Fire Lord today." Zuko declared as he climbed off the dragon. "I am."

"How funny of you, little brother," She replied, laughing. "I wasn't aware you had a sense of humor."

"What makes you think I'm kidding?"

"The fact that I know little Azula wouldn't allowed you to be Fire Lord, even if she had casted herself out of the Royal Family."

"If it was between you or him, Yāo Jing, I'd picked Zuko every time." Azula told her as she and Katara joined him.

She growled as she stood up. "Fine, if you want to be Fire Lord so badly Zuko, then come and take it from me. I challenge you to an Agni Kai!"

"You're on." He replied.

Katara was surprised by that. "What are you doing?" She asked in a whisper. "She's playing you. She knows she can't take all three of us, so she trying to separate us."

"But this is a legal way of obtaining the title of Fire Lord." Azula told her. "If Zuko defeats her, then by rights, he gets the title."

"Plus, I can take her this time." Zuko said.

"But even _you_ admitted to your uncle that you would need help facing her." Katara protested.

"There's something off about her. I can't explain it, but she's slipping even more than before. And this way, nobody else has to get hurt."

"Always the noble one, aren't you?" Azula asked him with sarcasm, making the three of them smile a little bit.

The two combatants moved to opposite sides of the plaza with their backs turned to each other. The Fire Sages had disappeared, leaving only Katara and Azula as witnesses. When they heard the sound of a distant bell, they stood up and turned to face each other. "I'm sorry I have to do this, _little brother_." Yāo Jing said, spitting out the last two words as she removed the robe she had worn over her armor.

"Don't even try lying now, Yāo Jing." He replied. "You've been looking an excuse to do this since we were children."

"You know what? You're right." She took a Firebending stance and threw a fireball that was tinged with black at him. He blocked it by bending his own fire into a wall. The two fires hit each other and then dispersed. She leapt into the fray, throwing multiple fireballs and arcs at him. _"I will win this!"_ She thought to herself. _"I will win that bet!"_

(Location: Wulong Forest)

Aang gave ground as Ozai chased him through the forest of stone pillars. He landed on one of the pillars just as the Phoenix King kicked a large arc of fire at him. He cut it in half and then used his Earthbending to tear a small rock out and threw at him, which he dodged with ease.

He sent another fire blast at him, making the Airbender jumped over to a nearby waterfall. He fired off another shot, but that was extinguished by the water Aang bent out of the waterfall. He threw the water at him, but he jumped off the rock before getting hit. He kept pushing his advantage, forcing his enemy back further and further.

Aang tried to stop him with a big rock he bent up from the cliff side, but he flew around with ease and bent another blast of fire at him. He bent the air into a tornado, giving him protection as he flew towards a pillar. Ozai landed on another one and bent a big burst of fire at him. He swiftly moved to the back of the pillar to protect himself from the fire.

He then leapt to another pillar and then, using it as a launching point, leapt back at the first pillar using his Airbending to enhance his speed and using his Earthbending to kick a large part of the top at the Phoenix King.

But he already saw it coming and flew off to the side. As Aang was still kicking it, he bent a powerful stream of fire at him. He reacted quickly and blocked the stream with his own. But the force of the two sent him crashing into a nearby pillar. He fell down to a narrow ledge the pillar and collapsed, groaning in pain.

Seeing an opportunity, Ozai landed on the same ledge. But this made him get his second wind back and use the pillar to cover himself in rock armor. His opponent pushed him down the ledge with a blast of fire. When he was at the edge, he was forced to jump out of the armor to avoid a short fire arc.

He readjusted himself in the air and bent a large blast of wind at Ozai. He jumped to the side, generating lightning as he did, and when he landed on the next pillar, he fired the lightning. When he saw this, Aang quickly bent another tornado to protect him and to carry him up to the top of the pillar.

Ozai fired another round of lightning at him, making him keep going in the air. The Phoenix King followed and fired another round lightning at him, destroying a large rock shield he bent off a pillar. He dodged the next one, but when he landed on a pillar, another round of lightning came at him.

He took his stance and let the lightning travel down his arm. The pain made him cry out a few times, but he forced himself to aim his other arm at Ozai. But when he saw the expression of shock and terror on his face, he had only one thought in his mind. _"I can't do it."_ He pointed the lightning off to the side and let it discharge into the air. He fell to the ground, exhausted.

Sensing a victory at hand, Ozai sent a jet of flame at him. He stood up and tried to protect himself by bending a shield up from the rock, but the jet smashed through the rock and sent him flying into the air. He closed his eyes to protect them from the dust but when he opened them, he saw he was heading for water. He tilted himself back upright and tried to bend the air to break his fall. When that didn't work, he bent the water to rise up and catch him.

As he stood up, letting the water hold him, he saw that Ozai was coming at him and coming fast.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

If one was to look at the Royal City, they would see huge blasts of fire briefly illuminating the sky before disappearing. Both were the normal orange color of fire, but one was tinged with black. The Agni Kai between Zuko and Yāo Jing had been enhanced by the Comet, and they were setting buildings afire in their duel.

Both bent a stream of fire at each other, the force was so great between them that they curved to the side. Zuko's feet began to slip as he felt her fire brush past him, but he held his stance. When that ended, Yāo Jing leapt into the air and swung a large arc of fire from her foot at him.

He used his own bending to split the arc apart. As Yāo Jing knelt on one knee, panting, he bent two intertwining fireballs at her. She rolled do the side and began to hover over the ground using her Firebending. She then raced towards him, bending fireball after fireball at him. He blocked the first one by bending a wall of fire underneath him and sending him up into the air. He then swung a kick and bent an arc of fire at the second one. As he began to fall back down, he clapped his hands together and swung them down in a chopping motion, bending his fire to block the stream of fire she sent at him.

She began to circle around him, bending blasts of fire at him, which he blocked effortlessly. He tried to hit her with a stream of fire, but she was too fast and kept moving. Finally, he crouched down and began to spin around on his back, swinging legs and bending fire from them. They came together into a large arc of fire that he threw at her. It successfully hit her, causing her to lose control of her bending and crash into the ground, rolling down the plaza.

As she stood back up, her panting became more rapid and she began to have a look of madness on her face. "No lightning today?" Zuko asked her. "What's the matter? Are you afraid I'll redirect it? Or can you not generate it at all?"

"YOU WANT LIGHTIING?!" She screamed. "THEN HAVE SOME!" She began to generate lightning in her fingers. Her stance was off and unbalanced, so it took her longer to generate it. As she did this, Zuko took a deep breath and readied himself to redirect it.

When she fired the lightning, it was only when it was in motion he realized that she didn't aimed it at him, she aimed at Katara and Azula, who weren't expecting it. "No!" He cried out, leaping in front of the bolt. It hit him square in the chest as he tried to redirect it. He was able to shoot it off into the air, but fell to the ground, twitching as the electricity coursed through his body and groaning in pain from his wound.

"Zuko!" shouted Katara. She tried to run over to him, but was blocked by a ball of fire.

"No outside interference." Yāo Jing told her. "You'll make him forfeit if you break the rules."

"You broke the rules the moment you fired on us, you BITCH!" Azula shouted as she leapt into battle, sending a stream a fire at her half-sister.

She brushed the stream aside with ease. "So now you want to play, Azula. Then let's make this a single hit match!" She began to generate lightning again. Azula saw what she was doing and began to do the same. They both fired at the same time and the two streams of lightning hit each other. They canceled each other out, but caused a shockwave instead. While Yāo Jing only skidded back a few feet, Azula was caught off guard and was sent flying backwards, slamming into a nearby pillar and falling unconscious.

That left only Katara awake against a person who was losing her sanity.

(Location: Wulong Forest)

"_Run. Run away!"_ Aang thought to himself as he saw Ozai flying towards him. He turned around and tried to get away, using his Waterbending to help. When he reached the shore, he stumbled and fell down. When he saw that Ozai was still coming after him, he bent the surrounding rock to form around him, creating a sphere.

Ozai laughed as he stood over the sphere. "You're weak, just like the rest of your people!" He told the hiding Avatar. "They did not deserve to exist in this world…in my world! Prepare to join them. PREPARE TO DIE!" He struck his hands against the sphere, causing it to heat up. He then leapt back and threw another blast at it.

(Location: Naruto's)

He kept on attacking the soldiers, but it wasn't looking good. The clones were disappearing more rapidly now and the soldiers who were still fighting were the ones who had never served with him. They were attacking with more lethal force and didn't care whether they hit their own fallen or not.

He saw Appa land again and tried to make his way over to the sky bison. But as he tried to get there, someone knocked his feet out from under him, making him fall to the ground. As he rolled over to his back, he saw a large soldier standing over him with a pike ready.

As the soldier brought the pike down, aiming for his stomach, the only thing he could think of was _"Well, fuck…"_

**End**

**Author's note: **Thanks for all the reviews you've sent me.

Okay, so I know this might be a bit of a short chapter. The way I see it, there was a lot of fighting and not a whole lot of conversations. You need to use the two equally to make a decent-length chapter. Too much or too little of either one will make the chapter be too long or too short.

I know that I kept Naruto's fight short. Can you blame me? I've got five different fights to write and make sure I don't mix them up. That can be a little hectic.

If you're going to tell me that Naruto did use jutsus in front of people, allow me to clarify. What he means by that the big flashy ones that would attract attention when he didn't need it. He only uses the small and/or subtle jutsus when he has to be in front of people.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	45. Ass-kicking and Restoring

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 45: Ass-kicking and Restoring

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Wulong Forest)

Ozai bent stream after stream of fire at the sphere at that held Aang. "Come on out, Avatar!" He shouted. "You can't hide in there forever!"

"_Someone, please help me!"_ Aang silently begged as he held the sphere together. _"I can't do this. I need someone to stop him! HELP ME, ANYONE!"_

(Location: Sokka & Toph)

Among the ensuring chaos that was the remains of the fleet, Sokka and Toph ran to the back of the ship they were on. "Toph, Metalbend the rudder so it's jammed in a turning position." Sokka told her. "The ship will spiral and slam into the others."

"Got it!" She replied, moving him away from the rudder. She spat into her hands, rubbed them together and then slammed them into the metal rudder. She bent the rudder into the turning position he wanted, making it slam into another ship.

"Have I ever mentioned how sweet it is that you invented Metalbending?" He asked.

"You could stand to mentioned it more." They smashed into a second ship. By that time, one of the soldiers had climbed to the top and saw them. He bent a large stream of fire at force them run down the side. As gravity took hold and made them start to slide, Sokka pulled out his Zanpakutō and stabbed it into the balloon, trying to stop their fall.

It didn't work. They fell off the side and he slammed into a platform. "My leg!" He cried in pain. "Hang on Toph!" He told her. She was hanging in the air, holding to his hand.

"Aye, aye, Captain," She replied. Two soldiers ran onto the platforms on both sides. Sokka knew that if he only used his boomerang, he'd only hit one. As they took their stance, he reached for the boomerang and aligned his foot next to his sword. Just as they were about to shoot a fireball at them, he pulled out the boomerang and threw it at the one to his right, knocking him out.

He then kicked his jian up into the air and caught it. He then threw it at the other soldier, cutting the platform he was standing off and leaving him hanging in the air. Just as he thought the Zanpakutō would fall down to the ground below, a freak gust of wind came out of nowhere and sent it right back at him. He caught with ease. **"Don't ever do anything like that again, do you understand!?" **Kuroga yell at him.

"_Sorry."_ He apologized. "I'm sorry Toph, but it doesn't look like boomerang is coming back." He told her as he saw soldiers gather up in front of the platform. "This might be the end." And as if to prove him wrong, the soldiers fled when they saw another ship come flying at them. The head crashed into the underside, allowing the two to fall down onto to it.

"How did that happen?" Toph asked Sokka as he clutched his leg in pain. "Did boomerang come back?"

"No." He answered as he looked at who was riding next to the rudder. "Suki did."

(Location: Wulong Forest)

Ozai kept bending his fire at the sphere, trying to destroy it. He bent two fire streams at it, lifting it up into the air, and then threw a fireball at it, sending it rolling into a pillar. He leapt up into the air and kept the fire on as he landed closer to it. His stream of fire was large to reach the top of the pillar.

Aang tried to hold the sphere together but the raw heat and intensity of the fire was making it more and more difficult. _"Someone stop him!"_ He thought to himself. _"He's going to kill me! I need to someone to help me! PLEASE SOMEBODY!"_

When he knew the sphere was hot enough, Ozai leapt away from it. He raised his hand and bent the beginning of an intense fireball. He took a running start and leapt forward into the air. When he landed, he threw the fireball point-blank range at the sphere. It hit the thing and destroyed it.

As the rocks protecting him broke away, Aang tried to defend himself with a shield of air. He was protected from the actual attack, but the force of it pushed him back. _"Someone, please help me…"_ He thought to himself as he slammed into the pillar.

But something also happened. As he was slammed into the rock, a small jutting point was the first thing he felt as it hit his scar. His mind briefly flashed back to when he was hit by Yāo Jing's lightning. He then saw in his mind the entire Avatar line, every single Avatar, male and female, from each of the four countries. Again and again, he saw the circle turn.

Air, Water, Earth, and Fire.

Water, Earth, Fire, and Air.

Earth, Fire, Air, and Water.

Fire, Air, Water, and Earth.

The cycle kept repeating itself over and over again, each time taking a new form and doing new things with their Bending and the Avatar State.

Finally, he saw an image of the Avatar State, floating in space. All the pervious Avatars surrounded it, their eyes glowed (and for the Air Nomads, so did their tattoos). **"We are here."** They told him in one voice. **"We are yours."**

* * *

"Come on out, little boy." Ozai said as he swaggered over to the rubble. "You're about to be—" He was cut off when a hand shot out of the rubble and grabbed his goatee. Aang leapt out of the rubble, his glowing eyes and tattoos showing that he was in the Avatar State. Ozai tried to bend fire at him with his hand in a chopping motion, but he swatted it aside like it was nothing. He sent the Phoenix King flying back with a blast of air, hitting the ground a couple of times before slamming into his own pillar.

He fell down to the ground and then looked up at the Avatar, who was floating in the air and was surrounded by a sphere of air. He opened his mouth and roared, breathing a jet of fire as well as bending jets from his hands and feet. The jets destroyed nearby pillars as they condescend themselves into a ring. Big chunks of rock tore themselves up from the ground and flew up into the air, surrounding him. The nearby body of water raised a tendril and slowly extended it to him. He took it and bent it into a ring as well.

Ozai look at him with both surprise and fear. He wasn't just facing a little boy who didn't have the guts to kill. Now he was facing the Avatar, who was using his complete powers while in the Avatar State.

(Location: Ba Sing Se)

The battle had been turned to the favor of the White Lotus. While Piandao, Pakku, and Jeong Jeong took care of the main forces, Bumi dealt with the forces on the outskirts. As he dug himself up from out of the ground, he was attacked by tanks.

He immediately bent a wall from the ground, strong enough to withstand the fire blasts. He bent back down into the ground and bent up several rocks up out of the pavement. He threw the rocks into the holes where the fire was bent from, blocking them completely.

He then bent the ground underneath the tanks to shoot up and send them flying. They landed in a stack. The soldiers opened the hatches that would open so they could try to get free, groaning as they did.

* * *

While all of this went on, Iroh stood in front of the Royal Palace. He looked at the flag of the Fire Nation hung from the roof. Raising two fingers, he bent a small stream of fire at the flag, setting it ablaze. He watched in silence as the flag burned away, revealing the insignia of the Earth Kingdom.

(Location: Wulong Forest)

Aang swooped down at Ozai, slamming into him with his air sphere. He then sent him flying with another blast of air. As he was airborne, the Phoenix King began to fly with help from his Firebending and flew away from his enemy.

Realizing what he was doing, Aang flew higher into the air. He bent one of the rocks that surrounded him into little bullet-like shapes and fired them at his opponent. They covered a wide area and destroyed some of the pillars, but Ozai flew out of range. Without any hesitation, he followed.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

Katara was stunned at what she had seen. Both Zuko and Azula had been incapacitated, Zuko by electrocution and Azula by being knocked unconscious. When she saw Zuko try to move, she rushed over to help him. But she was blocked by a blast of fire from Yāo Jing.

The now mad Princess was cackling with glee as she fired a round of lightning at her. She rolled off to the side and kept moving, dodging a fire blast. "Please, don't try to heal them." Yāo Jing told her as she landed on the roof and started generating lightning. "Just let them die." She threw the lighting at Katara, who bent water from a nearby pool to block it.

She bent one fireball after another at the Waterbender, making her run behind a nearby column for protection. "The two of you don't look so good." She told Zuko and Azula.

Katara peeked out from behind the column, but had to run to another one to avoid a round of lightning. She bent water from a nearby pool and threw it at the roof. But Yāo Jing wasn't there. She jumped over the roof Katara was under and flew at her. She ran out and bent the water to freeze, becoming an ice ramp. She slid along it, barely avoiding the fireballs that melted the ice. She got off the ice to avoid a large stream of fire, taking a few running steps before tripping over a grate. After seeing the water in the grate and a nearby chain, she came up with a plan.

"There you are, little girl." Yāo Jing said as she found Katara. She leapt forward and tried to bend fire at her. But she was prepared. She bent the water underneath them to rise up and freeze, covering the two of them. She then melted the water around her, allowing her to move. She took the chain she grabbed and bound Yāo Jing's hands. She then chained her to the grate so she couldn't move and then bent the ice to melt and fall back into the grate.

After she got her breath back, she ran over to Azula. "Azula, are you okay?" She asked, gently shaking her.

"What?" Azula asked as she slowly regained consciousness.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine, but what about Zuko?"

She turned to see that Zuko hadn't moved from where he laid. She hurried over to him and rolled him over, looking at the wound. Bending the water from her pouch onto her hands, she healed his wounds. The pain lessened and he opened his eyes. "Thank you, Katara." He told her quietly.

"I think I'm the one who should be thanking you." She replied as she helped stand up.

"Honestly, you are such a dum-dum." Azula told him as she walked over to them. "You had jump in front of the lightning."

"Sorry, I just moved."

"I figured."

"What will you do with her?" Katara asked, looking at Yāo Jing.

"We kill her."

"What? You can't do that!"

"Why not? After all she's done, she deserves to die."

"But if you kill her now, then you're no better than Ozai."

"Then what do you suggest? We leave her alone?"

"Azula, she's still our sister." Zuko told her. "She deserves a chance, just like us."

"No, she doesn't!" She growled. "You should remember what she did to torment us when we were kids."

"But she stills deserves a chance. If we hadn't gotten our chance, where do you think we would be right now?"

"…Fine, you have a point."

"_They're going to show me mercy after what they've done to me?" _Yāo Jing thought to herself. _"They've taken what's rightfully mine and they think I need a second chance!?"_ With a scream of insanity, she surprised them by bending her fire to melt the chains. "Do you think I'll take this lying down?" She demanded. "The title of Fire Lord is MINE! Why did father change his mind? He gave it to me!" She ran off, screaming "Why did you do it, father?!"

"Yāo Jing, wait!" Zuko shouted. They tried to go after her, but they were too tried and she remained ahead of them. But they were close enough to see her try to climb over the edge of the mountain, only to stumble and fall down the other side, disappearing from sight.

"By the Spirits," Katara whispered in horror. Both Zuko and Azula agreed with her. Not even Yāo Jing deserved that kind of slow painful death.

(Location: Yāo Jing)

She lay at the bottom of the mountain, her body all but broken from the fall. She could feel her life fading away. _"I can't die here! I have to take back what's mine."_ She tried to stand up, only to fall back down. Chun's photo flew out of her pocket when she fell and flapped around in the air. _"I can't die here like a filthy commoner! I…" _Her eyes centered on the picture as it landed down in front of her. _"I…I don't want to die."_ She grabbed the picture and looked at it. "Save me, please." She begged, her voice taking on a childish tone. "Please Mommy; I don't want to die alone. Save me."

She heard a chuckle in the air. **"How amusing,"** The voice from her dreams said. **"You told me that you would defeat your siblings with ease. And now, you wallow in the dirt, asking the picture of a dead woman to save you."**

"I don't want to die."

"**Oh, hush. You're not going to die. I told you before…"** The ground beneath her turned into a circle of energy, becoming a portal. **"A deal's a deal."**

She fell through the portal, clutching Chun's picture to her chest.

(Location: Naruto)

As the pike sailed towards his stomach, he suddenly reached out and grabbed the shaft. He yanked forward and then rammed into the soldier's face, breaking his nose. _"…That was a little close."_ He thought to himself as he quickly got back up, taking holding of the pike. He had lost his jian during the fighting and used the scabbard to attack, only to have it cut in half.

"Are you sure I'm the one who needs to rest his bones?" Jiraiya asked him.

"Oh shut up and keep fighting." He replied as he brained a soldier.

"What do you I think was doing? Picking up women?" He asked as he kneed his opponent in the stomach.

"You do have a tendency to do that."

"Not in the middle of a fight I don't."

"Could've fooled me," He replied as he swept the legs out from under a soldier using the pike.

(Location: Wulong Forest)

Ozai tried to keep his distance between him and the Avatar. As he flew through the forest of pillars, two of them suddenly broke apart and slammed together in front of him. He was forced to stop and turn, but that was all Aang needed.

He bent water from nearby to hit Ozai with a deluge, forcing him to land. As he looked up, he saw Aang smash through the pillar behind him and fly down towards him. He backed away from the pillar and leapt backwards, taking flight again while also bending a stream of fire at his opponent, who simply flew through it and smashed into the ground.

He flew through the air and landed on the top of a pillar. He swung his foot, bending an arc of fire and directed it at him. He blocked the fire by bending to pillar to break away and form a shield in front of him. He moved them away and then bent five fireballs at the Phoenix King, seeking him out.

He dodged them and flew off to gain more distance between them. He landed against the side of a pillar and bent three streams of fire at him. He, in turn, bent three small water missiles and a blast of air. The three missiles hit the fire streams and made them implode while the air blast was directed at Ozai. He got struck by hit and was sent flying, but recovered. The air blast whittled away the pillar until it had no choice but to fall.

Aang continued to chase him, not caring if he smashed through a pillar or not. When Ozai looked back and saw that he was gaining on him, he panicked and tried to speed up. But Aang wasn't going to let that happened. He bent the water he had forward and extinguished the fire the Phoenix King was using before grabbing him and slamming him into a pillar.

As he lay on the pillar, Aang hovered over him and bent the stone to rise up and enclose his hands and feet. **"Fire Lord Ozai."** He said, the voices of previous Avatars overlapping his, making him sound like a legion contained inside one person. **"You and your forefathers have devastated the balance of these countries, and now you shall pay the ultimate price!" **As a terrified Ozai watched, he bent the four elements up into the air, forming a lance, and swinging it back down to him, fully intent on ending his life. The Phoenix King closed his eyes and looked away.

But at the last moment, the intent and will behind the lance disappeared. The air and fire disappeared and the water splashed him while the rocks just fell around him. He opened his eyes and saw Aang forcing himself out of the Avatar State. As he slowly descended, he released Ozai from the stone and landed with his back turned.

"No, I'm not gonna end it like this." He said.

"Even with all the power in the world," Ozai said angrily. "You are still weak!" He lunged forward to attack him, but he made one simple mistake. He had placed his hand down on the ground and the Avatar sensed him through the earth.

Without even turning around, he bent the stone beneath them to rise up and grabbed hold of Ozai's fist, making his fireball go wide. He moved to the other side and bent the stone to hold the other hand as well. He then stood in front of him and bent the bindings down to the stone, taking his hands with him. The Phoenix King tried to breathe fire at him for one last attempt, but he shielded himself with. He walked forward and placed his hands on Ozai's head and his chest.

As he took a deep breath and closed his eyes, the lion turtle's words came back to him.

"_In the era before the Avatar, we bent not the elements, but the energy within ourselves."_

He raised his head up and opened his eyes. Beams of blue light shot forth from his eyes and his mouth. A moment after those appeared; red beams emerged from Ozai's eyes and mouth. Both of their bodies became encased in the energy (blue for Aang, red for Ozai). The lights from each shone brightly in the air, reaching so high into the sky many people from far away could see them.

As Aang struggled against Ozai, he remembered the rest of what the lion turtle said.

"_To bend another's energy, your own spirit must be unbendable or you will be corrupted and destroyed."_

Slowly, the red energy from Ozai began to crawl over Aang, encasing his body. The right light began to chase away the blue, leaving a single ray that was getting smaller and smaller. Just as the red energy fully encased him, many voices inside of him roared as one. **"NO! WE. WILL. NOT. BEND!" **They declared.

Finding to strength to push back, Aang strengthened his own spirit and then rammed it against Ozai's. The red quickly fled as the blue fully engulfed the two of them, shining a bright blue light into the air for all to see and sending a powerful beam up into the heavens.

The lights and energy disappeared and both stumbled back from exhaustion. Aang remained on his feet while Ozai collapsed onto his back, his bindings broken. He tried to bend fire at him, but nothing came forth from his hands. "What…what did you do to me?" He asked.

"I took away your Firebending." Aang told him. "You can't use it to hurt or threaten anyone else ever again." He walked to the edge of the pillar and looked down at the destruction before him. He took a deep breath as his tattoos and eyes briefly glowed. He gently raised his hands and bent the ocean to rise up and flood the forest. It extinguished all the fires and grabbed hold of the airship fleet wreckage. Once all was done, he bent the ocean back down to what it was before, taking the ships with it.

As he stood over what he had done, Momo flew back to him and landed on his shoulder.

(Location: Naruto)

They had all stopped when they saw the lights appear in the sky. When he saw the blue beam of light go straight into the sky, he knew what that meant. "Jiraiya, do me a favor." He said.

"What's that, gaki?"

"Bring down the house."

He grinned. As he leapt into the air, he bit his thumb and flashed through handseals. **"Kuchiyose: Yatai Kuzushi no Jutsu **(Summoning: Food Cart Destroyer Jutsu)**!"** He cried out. A big cloud of smoke appeared and out of that cloud, a big toad whose skin color was aquamarine and carried two katanas on his back, crashed into the ground next to the army.

To say the army was shocked and stunned at what they saw would've been an understatement. "Alright, listen up!" Naruto shouted, getting their attention. "You all saw the lights. They were coming from Wulong Forest. That was where Ozai had planned to strike first. I'm guessing the Avatar fought him and won. So now you have a choice: you can either try to follow your orders and end being shish-kabobs for a toad. Or you can surrender and live. What will it be?"

The soldiers all looked at each other, then at the toad, and then at him. "We surrender to you, Lord Naruto." One of the soldiers said as they knelt to the ground and raised their hands over their heads.

He smiled. "I was hoping you'd say that."

(Location: Wulong Forest)

As the Comet flew overhead, the airship Sokka and his team had commandeered landed next to the pillar Aang and Ozai were on. "Way to go, Aang!" Sokka told him as he walked onto the pillar with the help of Suki and Toph. "That was one heck of a fight."

Suki walked over to the prone form of Ozai. "So did you, you know…finish the job?" She asked Aang.

"I'm still alive." Ozai growled weakly at her, making her back away.

"I learned there was another way to defeat him and restore balance." Aang explained. "I took away his Bending."

"Wow!" Toph said in surprise. "Who taught you that?"

"A giant lion turtle," He answered.

"You have the craziest adventures when you disappear."

Sokka hopped over to Ozai. "So you didn't kill him." He repeated.

"I couldn't do it." Aang told him.

"You do realize that Naruto will probably chew you out for this, right?"

"I worry about that when I get there."

He turned his attention back to Ozai. "Not so high and mighty now." He said. "You're not much without your Firebending, are you?"

"I am the Phoenix King!" Ozai snapped at him before falling forward in unconsciousness.

"Oh, sorry, didn't mean to offend you, Phoenix King of Getting His Butt Whooped." Toph said mockingly.

"Yeah, or how about the King of the…Guys Who…Don't Win?" said Suki rather pathetically.

"…You're going to have to work on that." Sokka told her.

"But for now, leave the nicknames to us." Toph said.

As they stood there, Sozin's Comet disappeared into the horizon. There was a brief light as it disappeared. Then it was gone and all that remained was the night before the dawn.

(Location: Fire Nation Capital)

It had been a week since the battle at Wulong Forest. The Royal City still had buildings that had been destroyed by the Agni Kai, but was still packed nonetheless. The reason for this was because peace was to be declared and a new Fire Lord was to be crowned.

Inside the palace, Zuko struggled to put on his clothes. It was hard, due to the pain his wounds gave him. "You need some help with that?" A familiar voice asked him.

He turned around to see who it was. "Mai! You're okay!" He said happily as she walked over. "They let you out of prison?"

"My uncle pulled some strings." She answered as she helped him into his clothes. "And it doesn't hurt when the new Fire Lord is your boyfriend."

"So does this mean you don't hate me anymore?" He asked hopefully.

"I think it means…I actually kind of like you." She said while blushing. The two of them shared a kiss. "But don't ever break up with me again!" She told him, poking his shoulder to emphasize her point. He grinned nervously and nodded in agreement. They pulled each other into a hug after that.

* * *

In the plaza, people were talking to other people and meeting new ones. The members of the invasion force who had been taken prisoner had been freed and were now among the crowd. Katara and Sokka were making their way through the crowd; looking for someone (Sokka was using a crutch due to his sprained leg).

"Dad!" cried the two of them when they saw Hakoda. They ran over to him and engulfed him in a group hug.

"I heard what you two did." He told them. "I am the proudest father in the world. And your mother would've been proud too." He told Katara, who cried a few tears of joy at the thought of that.

Hearing footsteps, Sokka looked at where they were coming from and saw Suki in full gear along with the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors. "There are my favorite warriors!" He said in greeting. "I have to admit, I kind of missed the face paint. So how does it feel to be back in uniform again?" He asked.

"It feels great!" Ty Lee said, appearing from behind Suki, wearing the full gear of the Kyoshi Warriors.

"…I'm not the only one seeing this, right?" He asked. Akela padded over to her and sniffed her. He padded and nodded. That was Sokka needed to know that was indeed Ty Lee.

"It's okay, Sokka, she's one of us now." Suki told him.

"Yeah, the girls and I really bonded in prison." Ty Lee explained. "And after a few chi-blocking lessons, they said I could join their group. We're going to be best friends forever." She hugged two of the warriors and all three of them wore big grins.

"Hey, where are Naruto and Azula?" Katara asked, looking around.

"I'm right here." Azula said as she and Jiraiya joined them.

"So these are the Kyoshi Warriors that you lead, Suki." Jiraiya said as he eyed them. "I must say, those uniforms make you all look quite fetching." Before anyone could say anything or do anything, a kunai flew through the crowd and struck the ground between his legs. He bent over and picked it up. Pulling the piece of paper that was attached off, he read it.

Please remember you're in public, pervert.

Naruto

"He is good." Sokka said after he read the note aloud.

"I am not a pervert." Jiraiya protested. "I'm a…" Another kunai struck the ground between his legs. The piece of paper attached to it read:

Super pervert, I know. You're still in public. Also, they're younger then sixteen.

Naruto

"How does he keep doing that!?" demanded Ty Lee.

"I told you already." Azula said. "You are never going to find out."

* * *

Zuko walked down the room to the curtained exit. On one side of the exit sat Aang, dressed in formal robes and wearing a wooden medallion with the Air Nomad symbol engraved on it. On the other side of the exit was Naruto. He wore the same clothes, but didn't have the jian anymore. He never bothered to look for it after the battle.

"I can't believe a year ago my purpose in life was hunting you down." Zuko told Aang. "And now…"

"And now we're friends." He replied.

"Yeah, we are friends."

"I can't believe a year ago I was still frozen in a block of ice." He said as he stood up.

"Well, I can still believe that you're an idiot." Naruto told him.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You should've killed Ozai."

"I couldn't. And with Energybending, I didn't have to. With his Firebending gone, Ozai isn't a threat to anyone."

"Ozai had more than just Firebending. It would've been simpler to kill him."

"Why are you so mad at me for not taking his life?" He asked.

"Because you need to learn the lesson that comes with it," He told him.

"What are you talking about? What lesson is there that you learn from killing?"

"You learn how _not_ to kill."

"But I learned that from the monks." He protested.

He shook his head. "No, they taught you how to dodge, evade, and defend. They did not teach you how not to kill."

"But you can explain to me, right? You've already told me what the lesson is."

"It's not something you can explain. It's only something you will learn once you stand over a person who you killed. There will come a time that you will have to kill, Aang, and I can only hope that you will learn the lesson well."

"I will never kill." He vowed. "I will not take someone's life from them."

He scoffed. "You are still naïve."

"That's enough." Zuko said, stopping the argument. "Naruto, you didn't come here to get into an argument with Aang. Have the soldiers I sent out come back?"

"Yes."

"What did they say?"

"That there's no single piece of evidence of Yāo Jing being there. No pools of blood, no trails where she might've tried to drag herself to. And there was no evidence of another party taking her away."

"Are you sure?"

"I had the Yuyan archers look over the scene to double-check. They told me the same thing. For all intents and purposes, it looked like Yāo Jing simply disappeared."

He sighed. "I hope this doesn't come back to haunt us."

"If it does, we'll take care of it then. But right now, the two of you have a ceremony and a speech to do. You'd better get going." Both Aang and Zuko nodded in agreement. They walked through the curtain and after a few moments, he followed.

* * *

The crowd stood in organized groups as they waited. One of the Fire Sages rang a gong as Zuko stepped out into the open. As soon as they saw him, the crowd began to cheer. "Please." He said, raising his hand to silence them. "The real hero is the Avatar." He stepped to the side and allowed Aang to walk forward. The crowd began to cheer loudly when they saw him, but he only had eyes for a certain female Waterbender, who had the same for him.

"Today, this war is finally over!" Zuko declared as he stood side-by-side to Aang, making the crowd cheer even louder. "I promised my uncle that I would restore the honor of the Fire Nation. And I will. The road ahead of us is challenging. A hundred years of fighting has left these countries scarred and divided. But with the Avatar's help, we can get it back on the right path and begin a new era of love and peace."

He knelt down to his knees. The head Sage began to walk forward, only to be stopped by Naruto, who whispered something in his ear. He nodded in agreement and gave the headpiece of the Fire Lord to him. He walked up behind the kneeling Zuko and raised the headpiece, his Medallion out for everyone to see and to know who he was. "All hail Fire Lord Zuko!" He declared in an authoritative voice, placing the headpiece of the Fire Lord in Zuko's top knot.

He stood up as the crowd began to cheer again. He walked forward, only to stop, look back at Aang, and gestured for him to join him. They stood at the edge of the stairs, listening to the cheering people.

* * *

Later, when the ceremony was over, Zuko made his way to the Royal Prison. He walked into the prison and made his way to a cell. He opened the door and walked in, staring at the prisoner in the cage.

"I should count myself lucky." Ozai said sarcastically as he took notice of Zuko. "The new Fire Lord has graced me with his presence in my lowly prison cell."

"You should count yourself lucky that the Avatar spared your life. We both know if it had been Naruto or anyone else, you wouldn't be here." Zuko told him, making him scoff. "Banishing me was the best thing you could have done for my life. It put me on the right path. Perhaps your time in here will do the same for you."

"…Why are you really here? Are you going to demand I tell you where your mother is?"

"No. Naruto took both me and Azula to see her. We know she's alive and that's enough for now."

"Then why are you here?"

"Yāo Jing is dead." He said.

"What?" Ozai asked, shock and grief evident in his voice.

"You heard me. She's dead." He turned around and walked back to the door. "Goodbye, Father." He said before closing the door behind him and walking away.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

And so now, the canon storyline of the Last Airbender is done…but I'm not! Stick around because now, we are all original!

For the record, Yāo Jing will not be appearing in this story again. If you want to keep reading about her, I direct you to the author Fan of Fanfics21 and his story, Avatar: Cataclysm. I'll give you fair warning, all of his stories are intertwined and you will have to read them all to get a clear picture of what he's doing. You will get a headache in the process.

If you still don't like the fact I kept Naruto's fight short, I repeat: five different fights that all had to be written at the same time. Some of them had to be short.

What Naruto told Aang does make sense if you think about it. If you kill someone, you realize that you've just taken someone out of other peoples' lives. Once you've experienced that feeling, there's a good chance you never want to feel it again. Aang thinks because he was taught by the Air Nomads, he either thinks he doesn't need to know this lesson or thinks it doesn't apply to him.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	46. Truth and History

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 46: Truth and History

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Ba Sing Se)

A week after Zuko's coronation, the team was in Ba Sing Se. The entire week had celebration after celebration and now, it was back to business. But first, they were enjoying a cup of tea at the Jasmine Dragon.

"I win." Iroh declared as he and Jiraiya sat in front of a Pai Sho table.

"Damn, and here I thought I was doing well." Jiraiya groused.

"Don't worry about it, F. S.-sensei." Zuko told him from a nearby table. "I don't think there is anyone in the world that can beat Uncle at Pai Sho."

"First of all, don't call me that." He said. "Second of all, somebody will beat him one of these days."

"Then I have something to look forward to." Iroh said with a laugh.

"Hey Aang, have you heard?" Sokka asked. "Apparently, you have a fan club."

"We know. We met them while you and Suki were out sparring." Katara said shortly.

"I thought they were nice." Aang said. "They were going to show us the club house, but we were supposed to come here right away."

"They kept gushing over you, Twinkle Toes." Toph said. "I honestly thought I was going to puke after talking to them for five minutes.

"Looks like somebodies got Fangirls." Sokka said in singsong.

"Don't even joke about that." Jiraiya told him with complete seriousness.

"There's no need to worry just yet." Naruto said as he sat next to the open door with his book in front of him and a cigarette in his mouth. "Those weren't Fangirls. Not yet anyways."

"Are you sure?" Toph asked. "They seemed like Fangirls to me."

"Trust me, they were not Fangirls. A Fangirl will scream at a pitch that will make a dog go deaf whenever they see you, stalk you relentless if they ever find you, knows everything about you, has a network of spies watching your every move, is able track you by pheromone, has a giant painting and/or picture of you in their room, and most important of all, will try and rape you at every chance they get."

Those who were not used to Fangirls in the room looked at him. "…You're not kidding, are you?" Sokka asked.

"No he's not." Azula said.

"How would you know? You don't have any Fangirls."

"No, but I have Fanboys." Everyone (except for Naruto) fell silent at that.

"And the number of Fanboys you have will probably go up soon." Naruto remarked.

"So will the number of Fangirls you have." She retorted.

"Can we please talk about something else now?" Jiraiya asked.

As if to answer his prayer, a messenger arrived at the entrance. "Avatar Aang, the Earth King is ready to meet with you." He announced.

(Location: Royal Palace)

They stood in the throne room of the Earth King. "Hello again, Avatar," The Earth King greeted him.

"Hello, Earth King Kuei." Aang greeted in return.

"And welcome everyone." He said to the rest of the group.

"Have you been doing well, your Majesty?" Azula asked him.

"Um…y-yes, I have." He answered.

Naruto laughed. "Don't worry, Kuei, she's not going to hold you at flame-point again." He told him.

"I hope you will forgive me if I find that a little hard to believe."

"No offense taken."

"People, let's focus on the meeting here." Sokka said.

"Sokka's right." Katara agreed.

"Then let's discuss how we're going to remove the colonies." Aang declared.

"What in Agni's name are you talking about?" Azula asked. "Those colonies are staying."

"They can't stay, Azula. The four countries must remain separate. The colonies are a part of why the war happened."

"That may be, but they don't need to suffer for it! Did you know about this?" She asked Zuko.

"Yes, I did."

"Those are your people now, Zuko. Why would you let this happen to them?"

"You're making sound like we're going to be killing the people there." Kuei protested.

"Azula, we're planning on having the colonists come back to the Fire Nation, that's all." Katara explained.

"And by doing that, you're destroying their lives!"

"We're not destroying anything!" Suki protested.

"Not going to say anything, Toph?" Sokka asked her.

"Why should I? They laid out the points already. I'm just going to listen." She replied.

"The balance has to be restored, Azula." Aang told her. "The only way we can do that is remove the colonies from the Earth Kingdom."

"That was the balance before the war. Things are different now." She replied.

"Fire Lord Zuko, will you not say anything?" Kuei asked.

"…I am not certain of what to say." He answered. "I want to see the balance restore as much as Aang does. But Azula does have a point when she says that lives will be destroyed if we go through with this."

"You have to choose, Zuko." Katara told him. "Either you help us or you will turn against us."

"A rash decision here could lead to war again, Katara. This is not an easy choice."

"Yes, it is." Aang said. "Either you help us remove the colonies or not. Either way, they will be removed."

"Aang, what about a compromise?" offered Sokka. "We only remove the more recent colonies and keep the older ones under supervision."

"The four countries must remain separate, Sokka. That's the only way harmony will be created."

"You don't know that."

"Neither do you! Those colonies have to go!"

They all heard a large clapping noise. "Okay, everyone pay attention!" Jiraiya ordered. "If this keeps going, you will all soon start fighting." He turned his attention to the Earth King. "Is there anything this meeting was about, your Majesty?"

"No, this was the most pressing issue." He answered.

"Then I suggest we meet again tomorrow afternoon. That will give everyone here sometime to cool their heads."

"But it has to be settled now!" Katara protested.

"If you try to settle it now, you'll end up fighting with each other, and that can lead to another war. Take a breather." He ordered.

Everyone could feel the intense mood hanging over their heads. If anyone said the wrong thing, the entire meeting would erupt into a battleground. "Lord Jiraiya is correct." Zuko finally said. "We will reconvene here tomorrow afternoon. That will give us time to think things over."

"I agree with Fire Lord Zuko." Kuei agreed. "We will meet tomorrow." He stood up from his chair. "Good day, everyone," He told them before walking away, Bosco right behind him.

(Location: Team Avatar house)

"I can't believe Zuko would consider leaving the colonies alone." Aang groused as they sat around the house. Zuko, Azula, Jiraiya, and Naruto had all gone back to the Jasmine Dragon for the night.

"He is trying to be a good leader, Aang." Sokka pointed out. "And that means looking out for the people you lead."

"We were trying to help those people, Sokka." Katara told him. "Azula just egged him on."

"She thought she was doing the right thing." Suki said.

"It's a Fire Nation colony, Suki. That means the majority of the people there are from the Fire Nation." Aang said.

"And what about the people who are from the Earth Kingdom?" asked Toph.

"What about them?"

"Aren't we going to be hurting them by taking away the colonies?"

"How could we possibly be hurting them? We'll be making their lives better by removing the colonists."

"And what if trade had been better because of the colonists? What if in removing the Fire Nation from the colonies, we do more harm than good do them?"

"Why are you like this, Sokka?" Katara asked. "I thought you would've been for the removing of the colonies."

"It's not that simple. We have to consider what the people there think."

"What's there to consider? We'd be doing the Earth Kingdom people there a favor by bringing the colonists back to the Fire Nation."

"Aang, the last time we dealt with a Fire Nation colony, you went in full steam without thinking that something might've been wrong with the colonel or what the colonists had thought about the whole thing. And because of that, the massacre on the bridge happened."

Everyone fell silent at that point. Sokka had a point there. The last time something had happened to them, it would've been thoroughly and utterly botched had it not been for Naruto and the two members of Akatsuki. They knew they had to be careful about this. But they also wanted the colonies to be gone. To Aang and Katara, they seemed like an old scar left over from the war.

As they tried to think it over, they heard knocking on the front door. "Who's that?" Katara asked.

"Don't worry, it's not an enemy." Toph told her.

Suki stood up and walked over to the door. She opened it and saw that it was a Dai Li agent. "Lady Suki, I am Yǎn, head of the Dai Li." He greeted her, bowing his head.

"You…you know who I am?" She asked, surprised.

"Yes, Lord Naruto made sure to inform us of the Paragon of the Earth Kingdom currently was."

"What are you doing here?" Sokka asked.

"I was ordered to escort you and your group, Lord Sokka. There is someone who wishes to meet you." He took a step back away from the door. "If you will all follow me."

They shared a look with each other, and then silently agreed to go with him. They walked out of the house and down the streets. "I have a question, Yǎn." Suki said.

"What is that, ma'am?" He asked.

"Why is it that you know who I am? Are the Paragons important to the Dai Li?"

"Since our creation, the Dai Li have been loyal to the four Paragons. But the Earth Paragon is the only one to have full command of us. We will obey your every command."

"Um…thank you."

"You're welcome, ma'am." They continued the walk in silence as they made their way into the business district of the Upper Ring.

"Where are we going?" Aang asked as they kept walking.

"You'll see soon enough, sir." He stopped walking and looked at the building in front of them. "As a matter of fact, we're already there."

They all stopped and looked at the building as well. "Isn't this the Old Badgermole?" Sokka asked.

"Yes it is, Sokka." Naruto's voice answered. They turned around and saw him along with Zuko, Azula, and Jiraiya, along with someone else.

"What in the name of the Spirits are you doing here?!" Toph demanded of the fifth person.

"The Boulder would be pleased to see the Blind Bandit again, if it was under different circumstances." The Boulder said.

"Must you sound like, Huān?" Yǎn asked with annoyance. "You are not in the ring, at least try to sound intelligent."

"Oh I'm sorry, Mister Head of the Dai Li. So I should sound like a bootlicker, is that it?"

"I am not a bootlicker and we both know it."

"There are times where you could've fooled me."

"I take it the two of you know each other." Azula asked.

"We're brothers." Yǎn answered.

"What? But the two of you look nothing alike!" Aang protested.

"I take after our father, he takes after our mother." The Boulder explained.

"I'm sure that is all fascinating. But what are we doing here?" Jiraiya asked. "The Boulder…I mean Huān, said that someone wanted to see us."

"Yǎn said the same thing, actually." Katara said.

"What's going on here, you two?" Naruto asked them.

"All will be explained soon enough. For now, please just follow us." Huān said. The brothers walked into the restaurant and the others followed. They walked quietly through the empty building.

"Funny, I'd thought this place would've opened right now." Zuko noted.

"It's been closed for the night by the owner. Officially, it's due to small repairs."

"And the unofficial reason is…?"

"No one else needs to see what's going on right now." Yǎn answered. "It's the best way to maintain silence."

They walked into the kitchen, where they were met by another person. "So, these are them, huh?" He asked gruffly.

"Yes, Uncle Tiě." Huān answered.

"Who is this?" Azula asked.

"That would be the head cook of the Old Badgermole." Naruto answered.

"Is he awake?" Yǎn asked his uncle.

"Of course he is. Now get moving." He clenched his fist and waved it. The cabinet behind him (which was completely made of metal) moved to the side, revealing a descending stairwell.

"Did he…did he just Metalbend?" Katara asked in stunned wonder.

"Holy shit, the rumors were true." Naruto said as he stared at the stairwell.

"And we prefer to keep it at just rumors." The head cook said before he turned his attention to Toph. "So that means you can keep your title of being the first Metalbender, missy," He told her.

"But why would you want to keep it a secret? It probably would've helped in the war." She replied.

"Just because there was a war going on, didn't mean I could try and help. Long Feng would've found out if I did and would've tried to force me to work for him. Now get going, he's expecting you." He waved his hand, motioning them to keep walking.

"Who is expecting us?" Aang asked.

"You'll find out soon enough."

Both Yǎn and Huān walked down the stairs and they followed, leaving the cook in the kitchen. The corridor was mostly dark, save for only the barest of illuminating crystals embedded in the walls. As they went deeper, they began to feel chiller.

"Hey, Zuko, Azula, how about a little fire here please?" asked Sokka.

"Don't do that, you won't need it soon." Huān told them.

"How soon is soon?" Suki asked.

"Now," Yǎn answered. They hit the bottom step and walked through an opening into a craven.

"Hey, I know where we are." Katara said, looking around. "We're in Old Ba Sing Se."

"Why would we be down here?" Aang asked.

Naruto looked over at Yǎn. "This is not the same way you took me through before." He replied.

"We have many entrances into Old Ba Sing Se." He answered shortly.

"So I see."

"You know what's going on, Naruto?" Zuko asked.

"Yeah, I do. Yǎn took me down here back when I 'working' in Ba Sing Se."

"So, what's going on?" Katara asked.

"Can't tell you, you'll find out soon enough anyways," He answered before turning to look at the Head of the Dai Li. "Lead the way."

He nodded and walked on, Huān beside him and the rest following them. They walked deeper into the caverns of Old Ba Sing Se until they finally reached a wall. The two brothers stepped forward and punched the wall. A crack appeared and shot upwards. Once it had reached a certain height, it split in half and went sideways before traveling downwards. After the cracks had touched the ground, the one in middle opened. The cracked area began to move backwards, like a door opening itself, until there was an opening in the wall.

"This is a place known only to our family." Yǎn told them. "Not even Long Feng knew of this place. If he did, his life would've been forfeit."

"Is that you there, Yǎn?" A voice from beyond the opening asked. It sounded old and gravelly, like it belonged to someone ancient.

"Yes. Huān is here as well."

"Are the Avatar and his friends here as well?"

"They are right here."

"Then send them in."

Huān looked at them. "You all go inside. My brother and I will stay out here."

They walked hesitantly through the opening. Once they were through, crystals embedded in the wall began to glow, showing what was in front of them. They saw what looked to be a big living room. Couches surrounded a hearth that was ablaze with green fire, covered in soft-looking blankets and pillows. Sitting close to the fire, was an old man. He wore a loose-fitting robe and his beard was long and white, as was his hair. "Don't just stand over there." He told them. "Come in and sit down."

They did so. "Uh…sir, who are you exactly?" Aang asked.

Naruto chuckled. "I thought you of all people would know who he is, Aang." He said.

"That's not fair to him, Naruto. He has never met me." The old man reprimanded him.

"Technically speaking, he has."

"You know very well that is not what I meant."

"Could you please just tell me who you are, sir?" Aang asked.

"My name, young Avatar, is Sud."

He went rim-rod stiff. "You mean you're…?"

"Yes, I was."

"Just who is this old guy anyway?" Toph asked.

"Meet your predecessor, Toph." Naruto said. "Sud was the Earthbending teacher to Roku."

"But how is he still alive?" Suki asked. "He must be well over a hundred!"

"I ate my vegetables when I was younger and I got plenty of sleep." Sud answered in a half-joking manner.

"Why did you summon us?" Azula asked.

He looked at her. "Straight to the point, I see."

"You've been hiding down here for more than a century. You could've talked to Aang before today and yet, you didn't."

"I asked for all of you to come here because Yǎn told me about the meeting you had with the Earth King."

"Are Yǎn and Huān your servants?" Katara asked.

"No."

"Then what are they?" Zuko asked.

"They are to me what you and Azula are to Sozin." He answered cryptically.

"They're your great-grandchildren?"

"I did just say that."

"So your great-grandchild told you about the meeting, huh?" Jiraiya asked.

"Yes, and about the whole argument concerning the colonies."

"Surely you believe that the colonists need to leave, Sud." Aang said.

"Oh? You think so?"

"Of course I do. They were the main reason the war happened in the first place."

"And let me guess, you think the fault with starting the war lies Sozin, don't you?"

"Yes. It's common knowledge that Fire Lord Sozin caused the Hundred Year War."

"That's where you're wrong, boy."

"What?"

"The fault for starting the war wasn't Sozin's, it was Roku's."

Mostly everyone there was caught off-guard by that simple statement. "What do you mean Roku caused the war?" Sokka asked.

"Exactly that, he was to blame."

"That can't be true. You're lying!" Aang accused.

"Be careful who you insult, _boy_." He said, spitting out the last word. "I was there when it all happened. I know very well who caused it."

"But Roku said that you were a lifelong friend of his. How could you say that it was his fault?"

"By the time Roku had died, he had lost the trust of many of his friends."

"Hold on." Zuko said. "I remember reading Sozin's final testament along with Azula. He admitted to wiping out the Air Nomads and starting the war."

"That testament was doctored."

"But how can that happen?" Azula asked. "Only the Fire Sages knew where the testaments were."

"Before the war, there was a group of people created by Avatar Kyoshi who were extremely loyal to her and to the Avatar. Officially, their objective was to record what the Avatar had done in his or her life. Unofficially, their mission was to track down and replace any documents that had put the Avatar in a bad light. They had even destroyed the originals documents, regardless of whether or not it was true."

"What happened to this group?" Suki asked.

"Following Roku's death, Sozin and I, along with Gyatso, had tracked down and killed the members of the group. But by the time I had found and killed the last one, who was a Fire Sage initiate, the damage had already been down. Mostly everyone in the countries believed that Sozin had left Roku to die so he could expand the Fire Nation into an empire. Those who knew the truth swore to take it to their graves unless given an opportunity to tell the next Avatar."

"And so, here we are." Naruto remarked.

"Precisely," He replied, nodding his head in agreement.

"But that can't be right." Aang protested. "Roku showed me his past. He showed me what Sozin did."

"Aang, do you remember what I told you on the day of the invasion?" Naruto asked him. He did.

(Flashback)

"It is because of you that places like the river town you visited became like that. It is because of you that people like Hama have so much hatred. It is because of you that the schools here teach their students to think what they're doing is right and just. It is because of you that men like Zhao are able to get more and more power. This entire war is your fault, yours and that bastard Roku!" Naruto told Aang.

"You're wrong!" He shouted, leaping up. "This isn't Roku's fault! It's Sozin's!"

"And who told that? I guess Roku himself? Did he show you his past?"

He nodded. "Yes he did. He showed me what happened and how Sozin started the war." He then noticed Naruto was trembling. Before he could ask what was wrong, the Fire Nation Paragon began to laugh, loudly. His laughter echoed through the throne room and the entire palace. "What's so funny?!"

He stopped laughing and began to walk away. "A little tip for you, Avatar Aang," He said the last part mockingly. "Even your past lives can lie to you."

(End Flashback)

"You can't mean…" Aang protested.

"Roku lied to you." He replied. "He showed you memories that made him seem the savior and eventual victim."

"But why would he do that?"

"An excellent question, Aang," Jiraiya said. "Currently, all we have is pieces of information. What we need is the entire story." He turned his attention to Sud. "Could you please start at the beginning?"

"Very observant of you, young one," He replied.

"Hey, I'm not that young."

"Compare to me, you are."

"That's fair enough." He said with a laugh. "But please, tell us the entire story." He asked, becoming completely serious again.

He made himself more comfortable in his chair. "The entire story begins long before Roku came around. It actually begins with Kuruk."

"The pervious Avatar from the Water Tribes?" asked Aang.

"Yes. After Koh the Face Stealer had stolen his fiancée from him, he spent the rest of his years trying to find a way to take her back. He had asked for the Paragons' help many times, especially the Water Paragon, his twin brother. Each time they refused, telling him that their duty was to watch him, not help him take vengeance on a spirit. Eventually things came to a head."

The fire in the hearth sprang upwards and began to cover the wall above it, making everyone (except for Sud and Naruto) surprised. "What the…who is doing that?" Jiraiya asked.

"**I am."** A voice from a darkened corner spoke.

Naruto, Suki, and Sokka, having heard the voice before and knew who it belong to, relaxed. "What are you doing here, Sifu?" Naruto asked.

The spirit came out of the corner, allowing them to see his cloak. **"I am here at Sud's request. He thought that I would be able to help tell the story."**

Sokka looked over at Sud. "You know Sifu? How is that possible?" He asked.

"I'll get to that." The old Earthbender told him. "But for now, please turn your attention to the fire. It will show you the past."

They all turned their attention to the fire. It began to change colors, until they saw a moving picture in front of them.

* * *

"Noka please, I'm asking you as your brother." Kuruk begged the Water Paragon as they stood in the hall of the Northern Water Tribe chief.

"No, you're not. You're asking as the Avatar. The other Paragons and I have told you countless times, Kuruk. We are not going to help you attack the Face Stealer." He replied shortly.

"But it's for Ummi!"

"That doesn't matter. She's gone, brother. Just accept it already."

"When did you become so heartless? Ummi cared about you, Noka!"

"And I cared for her too!" He yelled back. "Remember Kuruk, I was there that day. I saw her get pulled into the water."

"And you were also the one who pulled me out of the water!"

"She was already taken! There was nothing either of us could've done!"

"But we can do something now!"

"No we cannot!" He turned away and began to walk out of the room. "This discussion is over, Kuruk. You would be wise to never bring it up again."

* * *

"After that, Avatar Kuruk began to distrust the Paragons, even his own brother." Sud said as the flames died down. "That distrust lasted the rest of his life and carried over to the next Avatar."

"Why would Kyoshi distrust the Paragons?" Katara asked. "She wouldn't be like that just because of a past life."

"That is true. But something had happened that allowed the distrust to settle and grow within her."

"What happened?"

"The creation of the Dai Li happened." Naruto answered.

"**Indeed it did."** Sifu said. The flames once again covered the wall.

* * *

"What is the meaning of this, Kyoshi!?" A big hulking man with the Medallion of the Earth Paragon hanging from his chest demanded as he and three others barged into the office.

Kyoshi looked up from what she was writing at the desk. "What are you talking about?" She asked.

"We are talking about this group you've created." A woman with black hair done up in a top knot and wearing the Medallion of the Fire Paragon said.

"What in the name of the spirits were you thinking?" A man wearing robes of orange and yellow and the medallion of the Air Paragon. Even though he hailed from the Air Nomads, there were no tattoos on his body.

"I was thinking that I agreed to protect the cultural history of Ba Sing Se." Kyoshi replied, putting the brush down.

"And you call creating a group of Earthbenders trained to be silent and deadly protecting cultural history?" A woman with hair cut short and wearing the Medallion of the Water Paragon asked.

"Yes, I do."

"That's funny, because we call it you trying to take control of Ba Sing Se!" The Fire Paragon accused.

"I have done no such thing!"

"Maybe not now, but how about when the power of the Dai Li grows to be too much?" The Air Paragon asked.

"That will never happen."

"You're right. It will not happen because we will not allow it." The Water Paragon said.

"What do you mean?"

"You have overstepped your boundaries, Kyoshi." The Earth Paragon declared. "As such, we are stripping you of your rank as the leader of the Dai Li. We will take command of them." The four Paragons turned around and started to exit the room. "That is all."

"You cannot do that!" She protested. "I alone command the Dai Li. You do not have the right!"

The Water Paragon looked back at her. "You would do well to watch your tongue, Avatar Kyoshi." She told her. "You seem to have forgotten who you are talking to."

"How dare you!?" She roared, standing up. Her eyes glowed, showing that she was in the Avatar State. **"The Avatar answers to no one!"** She leapt over the desk and at them.

The four of them turned to look at her as one and their eyes glowed black. They cut the connection between Kyoshi and the Avatar, making the glow from her eyes disappear and catching her off guard. She was sent flying through the wall, courtesy of the Earth Paragon's sledgehammer, and crashed out onto the training ground.

She tried to get back up, but the shaft of the sledgehammer was pushed into her back and forcing her back to the ground. "How dare we? How dare you!?" The Air Paragon said as they stood over her.

"You forget your place, Kyoshi!" The Fire Paragon shouted. "You do answer to someone. You answer to us!"

"We were going to let you off with a warning and strip you of your command. But I guess harsher punishment is in order." The Water Paragon said.

"Agreed," The Earth Paragon replied. He turned to the Avatar on the ground. "Avatar Kyoshi, you will be sent to your birthplace in exile. You shall remain there until we decide to let you leave. If you try to leave before we say, you will be killed. Is that understood?"

"Ye…yes, it is." Kyoshi said weakly.

* * *

"Kyoshi then spent the next forty years at her birthplace." Sud said, the flames once again dying down. "During this time, she communicated with Kuruk and inherited his distrust of the Paragons. The distrust grew and she began to see the Paragons as obstacles to true peace. When she was allowed to leave the island, she began to silently feud with them. She would slip away from their sight and the sight of people loyal to them. She created the Scholars of the Avatar, the loyal fanatics who ensured that any writing that had the Avatar be despicable was destroyed and replaced, even if it wasn't true. She also began to discreetly arrange the deaths of the Paragons during her life. She had them look like accidents, but only a few had actually worked.

"But how does this relate to the colonies?" Aang asked.

"Be patient, I'm getting there. After Kyoshi had died and Roku learned he was the Avatar after her, he went on his training journey. But meanwhile, something had happened to Sozin." The fire once again flared up.

* * *

Sozin was walking along the beach on Ember Island beneath his father's beach house. It had been two years since Roku had left. Since he had turned eighteen, his father had been set on seeing him married. He had met with several different women his age, but they were all interested being the wife of the soon-to-be Fire Lord, not in him. He had finally gotten away by asking his father to allow him to go to Ember Island so that he could think over the women in quiet.

But he couldn't think of one he would want to marry. He knew that the marriage would be political and so he could only hope that he would grow to love the woman who would be his wife. He took to taking long walks on the beach to think things over.

"_I can't choose any of them."_ He thought to himself. _"I know that Father and Mother loved each other when Mother was alive, but I don't know if I'll be so lucky."_ That was when he noticed a body lying on the shore. He raced over to it and saw that it was a woman about his age with pale skin and hair black as night. He then noticed that she wasn't breathing. As he began to try and resuscitate her, his guards, who were standing at the path leading to the house, took notice of what he was doing and quickly ran over.

"Prince Sozin, what is the matter?" One of the guards asked. As he asked this, the girl began to hack and cough, spitting out seawater.

"Take her back to the house and have the physician look at her." He ordered.

"Yes, your Highness." The other guard picked her up and the two raced up to the house.

(Location: Beach house)

Sozin sat outside the room where the woman was. It had been over four hours since she was brought in and he was getting nervous. Finally, the door opened and the physician walked. "Is she alright?" He asked, standing up.

"Yes, Prince Sozin. She has been instructed to get plenty of rest and to take it slowly." The physician answered.

"You mean she's awake? May I go in and see her?"

"Yes, you may."

He walked in and saw her sitting up in the bed. "Are you the one who saved me?" She asked, her black eyes staring straight at him.

"Ye-yeah, I am." He answered nervously. He had never been nervous before with a woman, so it was strange that she could make him like that.

She bowed her head. "Thank you. My name is Satsuki Uchiha."

"My name is Sozin, prince of the Fire Nation."

"So I've heard." She remarked sarcastically, but with a smile. He couldn't help but smile in return.

* * *

"As Satsuki recovered, the two of them talked about a great many things." Sud said. "He told her about the countries and their history. She told him about the war that the clans had been fighting, which her clan, led by her brother, Tajima Uchiha, was a part of. But she had also told him many stories and legends. Soon, they began to fall in love with each other and four years after he had saved her, Sozin and Satsuki were married."

"That's great and all, but what does this have to do with the colonies?" Azula asked.

"**When Sozin heard of the war in her country that seemed to stretch back into faded history, he grew scared."** Sifu told her.

"Hmm…that would make some sense."Jiraiya mused. "A future ruler would be scared of a war. But the war was on the other side of the planet."

"Sozin wasn't scared of the war coming to the Bending Countries." Sud explained. "He was scared that a similar war would break out within the countries. The mere thought of a war spreading through the four countries that turned everyone against each other terrified him to the bone."

"But that's what I'm here for, to prevent such wars from happening." Aang protested.

"He knew that. He also knew that if the Avatar was killed, the war would continue and by the time the next Avatar was ready, it would've been too late. The countries would've been too steeped in hatred and revenge. So, Sozin came up with a plan to unify the countries."

"By attacking them first, we know that already." Katara said.

"And that's where you would be wrong, young lady. Sozin planned to unify the countries peacefully. During the two years before he became Fire Lord, he traveled the countries and talked to many people in power as well as the Order of the White Lotus."

"He knew that the Order existed?" Zuko asked.

"He was a member and a high-ranking one. He brought his cause for worry to the table and they agreed with him. When they debated on how to possibly unify the countries, he suggested an experiment. They would establish a series of colonies along the coast of the Earth Kingdom. People from each of the four countries would be welcome. Each of the colonies would host a different form of government, a monarchy, a theocracy, a bureaucracy, etc. etc. to see which one would be best suited for ruling a colony of different people."

"How well did it work?" Suki asked.

"Quite well, actually," He answered. "The colonies flourished and trade began to rise between them and the other countries. Sozin and the other members of the project were happy with the results and wanted to try to establish more colonies. But some of the members wanted the Avatar's blessing on the project. And since Sozin was friends with him, he was designated to ask."

"I remember that. Roku showed me his wedding day." Aang said.

"What you saw and what actually occurred were completely different." The fire rose up again.

* * *

"What's on your mind?" Roku asked Sozin as they walked away from the wedding banquet.

"Roku, there is something that's been going on for a couple of years now." He said with complete seriousness.

"Sozin, it's my wedding. Please, let's put all affairs of state off until tomorrow."

"I know it's your wedding, but please hear me out."

"Okay. What's on your mind?"

"In the past couple of years, I have been a part of a group that created an experiment regarding the countries. We've created a series of colonies that welcome all four nationalities."

"What?" He asked, shocked.

"They've been doing more successful than we originally thought. We want to build more colonies to get more data and some of the members think it would be best to have your blessing before we continue."

"No! You do not have my blessing! As a matter of fact, I want those other colonies gone."

"What? But why?"

"The four countries are supposed to be just that, four."

"Roku, please consider the possibilities!"

"There are no possibilities! I want those colonies gone!" He walked away.

* * *

"So did he?" Sokka asked.

"After informing the other members of what Roku told them, it was put to a vote. The majority voted to keep the colonies. However, a compromise was also made. All but three of the colonies were to be shut down. The process was slow; they knew that if they rushed it, it would've probably damaged the economy." Sud told him.

"I take it the three colonies that were to be left alone were Yu Dao, Kouzan, and Akawan?" Zuko asked.

"Yes, they were."

"And the day Roku found out about the colonies?" Aang asked.

"Again, that day went differently than what Roku showed you." He turned his attention to the fire and the others did as well.

* * *

"I have seen the colonies, Sozin!" Roku said as he stormed into the throne room. "How dare you occupy Earth Kingdom territory?"

"Roku, those colonies are for everyone from the four countries. The Fire Nation is not occupying the Earth Kingdom." Sozin told him from where he sat.

"Then why did I see a Fire Nation flag hanging from the walls over an insignia of the Earth Kingdom?"

"It was a day of celebration! Don't you remember? They were celebrating the day of my coronation."

"I don't want to hear excuses! I ordered those colonies to be gone!"

"That is not your decision, Roku! This experiment was created with the consensus from all four countries. To have it completely destroyed would be damaging to the entire economy and trade system!"

"You forget your place, Fire Lord Sozin!" He told his former friend before going into the Avatar State. He bent the air around him into a giant sphere and destroyed the throne room, along with a good portion of the Royal Palace. Sozin was thrown to the ground by the wind and when he looked up, he saw Roku standing over him. "I will spare you, Sozin, in the name of our past friendship. But I warn you; even a single step out of line will result in your permanent end." He threatened.

"Then allow me to give you a warning." Satsuki said from behind the Avatar, holding a kunai to his throat and her Sharingan in full effect. "If you threatened our family again, I will not care if you are the Avatar or if you were Sozin's friend, I will kill you and leave your dead carcass to rot in the street. Is that understood?"

"Satsuki, please, let him go." Sozin said to her.

She looked at him for a long second, and then nodded. She withdrew the kunai and walked over to Sozin, helping him back up. After he was back up on his feet, she turned to look at the Avatar. "Get out of our home." She ordered.

Roku didn't say anything, he just turned and left.

* * *

"I take it didn't end there?" Jiraiya asked as the flames died down.

"**No, it didn't."** Sifu answered. **"When the Paragons of that time heard what he had done, they all went to him. They told him that just because an Avatar could support or revoke something a single leader had created, did not mean he could do the same to something the four countries had agreed to, nor threaten them in their own house. As punishment, they exiled Roku to his home island."**

"He stayed there for five years." Sud continued. "During which he communicated with Kyoshi and Kuruk. Their distrust of the Paragons took hold in him and he believed that they were restricting the Avatar and by doing so, putting the entire Bending Countries at risk. He believed they had to be eliminated."

"Eliminated? What do you mean?" Aang asked.

"What do you think he means, Aang?" Naruto asked back.

Sud nodded at Naruto. "By the time Roku was allowed to leave the island, the changing of the guard was occurring with the Paragons. Apprentices were taking on the mantle of Paragons and their teachers retired. Roku used that to his advantage. He turned the public opinion against them by saying they were young and prone to being led away from the right path. Aided by the Scholars, people began to believe him. But no matter what he did, the new Paragons, along with the government of the four countries, staunchly refused to budge on the matter of the three colonies. After fifteen years of arguing over it, he decided to take steps."

"…He killed them, didn't he?" Zuko asked quietly.

"Not all of them. Roku pretended to consider the benefits of the colonies. The Earth, Fire, and Water Paragons offered to take him to Yu Dao and he accepted. While they toured the city, he discreetly started a fire that wouldn't go ablaze until that night. As they evacuated the city, he led them deeper into the city, saying he thought there were more people trapped. When he led them deep enough, where no one else could see them, he murdered both the Paragon of the Fire Nation and the Paragon of the Earth Kingdom. Later on, he would claim that the Paragons had started the fire in order to kill him and the leaders of Yu Dao had agreed with them. It was then that people began to see the colonies in a negative light."

"What happened to the Water Paragon?" Katara asked, concerned.

"She ran. And as the sole witness to what Roku had done, she knew that he would try to hunt her down. So after she sent word the Air Paragon to keep away from him, she went into hiding, inside the Fire Nation."

"Why would she do that?" Azula asked. "Wouldn't it have been easier to hide in the Northern or Southern Water Tribe?"

He shook his head. "No, she knew that was where he would look first. She also figured that he'd never suspect that she hide in his own country."

"It worked. We came by the place where she was hiding." Sokka said.

"We did? Where was that?" Toph asked.

"It was the river town. She was the Painted Lady."

"Yes, that was what she was masquerading as when Sozin and I, along with Gyatso and Satsuki, found her, five years later." Sud told them. "We had our suspicions about what Roku had told us about that fire. But when she told us the truth, any remnants of friendship any of us had with him were gone."

"So you decided to stop being friends with just because he murdered two Paragons?" Suki asked.

"No, there was more to it than that."

"How was there more?"

"**Your predecessor, Suki, was Sud's youngest sister."** Sifu told her. **"And the previous Paragon of the Fire Nation was Sozin's eldest son."**

"Wait, I thought Azulon was Sozin's eldest son." Azula said.

"No, he was their second son; he had the written history changed so that his brother never existed after he took the throne. The eldest was not a Firebender and by an ancient law, could not be in line for the throne. Both Sozin and Satsuki were in the midst of fighting the law when the previous Fire Paragon offered to take him as an apprentice. When Azulon was born, Satsuki died in childbirth, leaving a strained relationship between father and son." Sud explained.

"As fascinating as that is," Jiraiya said. "We're far more concern with what Sozin did when he learned what Roku did to his firstborn."

"What do you think we did? We were absolutely furious. Roku had crossed a line when he murdered them, even more so due to the fact he knew exactly who they were. We began planning on killing him. We asked for the Water Paragon's help, but she refused. She was scared for her life, but we couldn't blame her. She did, however, summon Sifu so we could ask him for help."

"**And I accepted."** Sifu continued. **"I too was furious at Roku. Together, the three of us hashed out a plan to kill him. Eventually, we came up with one that made his death look like an unfortunate accident."**

"An unfortunate accident?" repeated Aang.

"**Did you really think that the volcanos on Roku's island just erupted for no reason? I caused it."** He said as the flames grew once more.

* * *

"Don't breathe the toxic gas!" Roku told Sozin as they ran down the second volcano. He used his Airbending to blow away the gas every time they erupted close to them. But he wasn't expecting to get a full blast of the gas straight in his face. As he began to cough, his vision began to blur and the strength in his legs disappeared, making him collapse. "Sozin, please, help me." He begged weakly.

Sozin just looked at him. "…Perhaps it is better that you die this way." He finally spoke.

"Wha-what?"

"The original plan was for me to kill you once the volcanos were dealt with. But this…it seems more authentic."

"You were planning to kill me?"

"Not just me, there were others."

"Why? I thought we were friends." He protested weakly.

"You should've thought of that before you murdered my boy." He told him, cold fury evident in his voice.

"It had to be done! The Paragons are restricting the Avatar."

"And I suppose the colonies were an excuse?"

"They shouldn't exist. They fly in everything the Bending Countries have stood for in countless years!"

"Then perhaps it's time for such things to change." His dragon landed behind him and climbed aboard. "Goodbye, _old friend_." He said, spitting out the last two words like they were disgusting. "I hope your next life will be more willingly to listen." He flew off, leaving Roku to die.

* * *

"For what he did, Sozin voluntarily left the White Lotus afterwards." Sud said as the fire died down.

"I take it things didn't go that smoothly after he did that?" Naruto asked.

"Of course they didn't. The Scholars had the word spread that Roku thought the colonies had to go, that they were a bad idea. Some of them got into offices of power and began to use that influence on the countries, using the fire in Yu Dao as an example. Soon, people stopped coming to the colonies and then, people started to leave. But the majority of the people, both Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom, stayed. Soon, it had escalated to the point where armed forces of the Earth Kingdom and the Water Tribes had descended onto the colonies, intent on removing them by force. Sozin had forces to the colonies to defend them and ensured that the conflict remained in deadlock."

"And while all that happened, you, Sozin, and Gyatso were hunting down the Scholars." Zuko said.

He nodded. "They were the ones who kept the situation about the colonies heated. We felt that if they were eliminated, people would calm down and allow peace talks to begin. All the while, we waited for the new Avatar to grow up."

"You were waiting on me?" Aang asked.

"Yes. The idea was that once you were old enough, the remaining Paragons, Sozin, Gyatso, and I would sit down and talk to you. We were going to explain what was happening with the colonies and see if we could convince you to the benefits of them. But complications arose."

"You mean when the monks told me who I was when I was twelve?"

"Indeed. We all agreed to meet with you early because of that. Sozin and Satsuki decided to meet with you first. However, they arrived the day after you ran away."

"And so Sozin wiped out the Air Nomads to find me?" He asked in a snarky tone of voice.

His gaze hardened. "Were you there when it happened?"

"No."

"Then I suggest you do not speak about things you do not know. When the two had arrived at the Southern Air Temple, they were immediately confronted by Tashi."

"You mean the monk who was always grumpy?"

"Yes. We had later discovered that he was secretly a Scholar and believed that Sozin and Satsuki had come to kill you. He had whipped the entire temple up into a frenzy using this fact. It was aided by the fact you were missing. The only person who spoke out against this was Gyatso, but no one listened. Tashi and a group of the monks attacked Sozin and his wife, knocking them unconscious. They would've been killed had their armed escort fought back and got them to the ship. It had happened at the other three temples."

"What?"

"Sozin was always a practical man. He had sent envoys to the Eastern, Western, and Northern Air Temples in case you weren't at the Southern Air Temple; he went there because Gyatso was a friend. What any of us didn't know was that each temple had a Scholar in a position of power and they used that power to incite fear of the Fire Nation within the temples. When the envoys arrived, the monks tried to kill them. But an event turned the favor to the Fire Nation."

"The Comet," Zuko said.

"Yes. With the Comet empowering them, the armed forces that went the envoys and Sozin began to slaughter the Air Nomads in droves. By the time the Comet had passed, the Air Nomads were all but extinct. But when Sozin came to and learned what had happened, he was furious. He didn't want the genocide to happen. He severely punished the soldiers who were in the escorts for committing such horrible crimes, but the damage had already been done." The fire once again rose up.

* * *

"Sozin, what happened?" A younger Sud ask the Fire Lord as he walked into the newly built throne room.

"One of the monks attacked me and my wife. We were knocked unconscious." He replied. "By the time we came too, it had been too late."

"By the Spirits, do you realize what's going to happen?"

"Whatever Scholars remain will turn it against me. They'll say I wiped out the Air Nomads just to get rid of the Avatar."

"It's already beginning to spread. It's been the only talk I've heard coming here from the Earth Kingdom." He looked him in the eye. "Did you kill the Avatar?"

He shook his head. "No, I found Gyatso as he was dying. He told me that the Avatar had run away."

"What are you going to do then?"

"I will do everything in my power to find him."

"Do you even know the kid's name?"

"Gyatso managed to tell me his name was Aang."

"…You know it will be difficult to find him. Because of what happened, the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes think you're going to attack them next."

"I will continue to protect my people." He gave an exhausted sigh. "You know, Sud, this was all so simple once. We were on our way to unifying the countries, then Roku told us no and we ignored him. So he killed our family and we murdered him in response. Now, the rest of the countries think the Fire Nation wants to create an empire."

"What will you do?"

"Whatever it takes to protect my people," He answered shortly. "And if that means attacking the Water Tribes or the Earth Kingdom, then so be it."

They fell silent as what Sozin said filled the room. "…This will probably be the last time we see each other, won't it?" Sud asked.

"It is most likely. I'm sorry it had to come to this."

"So am I." He turned around and walked out of the room. "Goodbye, Sozin."

"Goodbye, Sud. I hope we meet in better times."

* * *

"I never saw Sozin after that day." Sud told them as the fire died down. "He had spent the rest of his life either looking for the Avatar or protecting the colonies. Eventually his second son, Azulon, became Fire Lord. He was the one who actually believed it was the Fire Nation's destiny to rule over the rest of the Bending Countries and began to actively attack the Earth Kingdom and Water Tribes."

"**And so you know how the war really started."** Sifu said. **"The question now, Avatar, is what will you do?"**

"What do you mean, what will I do?" He asked.

"**Sud has held his silence about the truth for a century so he could tell you it. Will you let the history known by people today continue to flourish? Or will you let the truth be heard and denounce your past life in the process?"**

"I…I don't know." He admitted. "I need to think it over."

"When you say that, Aang, do you mean meditate and asked Roku if it's true?" Sokka asked.

"No. I need to think over by myself. The Hundred Years Wars was caused by mistrust of the colonies. Now the same scenario is happening again. I need to think about it."

"Very well, I'll let all of you go now." Sud said.

They stood up and bowed to him. "Goodbye Sud. I hope we meet again."

"You probably won't." He said as he watched them leave the room.

"**Are you satisfied now?"** Sifu asked him.

"Yes, I am. The Avatar finally knows what the truth is. Maybe now, things will turn out different."

"**You held on for this long just to tell him the truth. Now that it's done, you won't live long now."**

"I know. But I welcome death. It'll give me a chance to see my friends again."

He shook his head in amusement. **"After living for a century, I guess you'd** **want that."** He stepped back into the corner and began to disappear. **"Goodbye Sud."**

"Goodbye Sifu. I'll see you around sometime."

(Location: Royal Palace)

They joined up again in the afternoon. "Has something happened?" Kuei asked as they gather around. To him, it looked like they had gotten little to no sleep.

"Our apologies, Earth King Kuei," Zuko said. "But last night, we had learned how the war actually started and it concerns the colonies. Right now, we're in the same situation and we have spent the nightthinking about over this." He remembered the previous night and morning. Some of them tried to go to sleep, but most just stayed up and thought things over. In the morning, they all joined at the Jasmine Dragon and sat in silence over tea.

"What have you decided?"

"We haven't." Aang said. "I don't know what to think. I know that most of the colonies have been there for a long time, but there's another piece of me that still believes that they should be gone."

"You still believe that? After what we were told last night?" asked Azula.

"If I may say something," Naruto spoke up, cutting off the fight that was about to begin. "I think I have a solution."

"What would that be, Lord Naruto?" Kuei asked him.

He walked over to the map that hung beside the throne. "It seemed to me that it was either one of two choices. Either the colonies had to go or they stayed. Personally, I've lived in some of those colonies, I think they should stay. But what I suggest is on how they stay."

"What are you talking about, Naruto?" Suki asked him.

"History has said that in one way or another, Sozin was trying to unify the countries. What I'm suggesting is that we do something a little different but exactly the same."

"And what would that be?" The Earth King asked.

"The Bending Countries have always been four countries. So what we do is simple: we create a fifth country."

The others just stared at him in surprise. "Simplistic, idealistic, and potentially problematic," Jiraiya said before sporting a big grin. "I like it."

"But where would the borders be?" Katara asked.

"The borders of the colonies are along here." Naruto said, tracing the borders across the map. "Those would be the borders of the new country."

"But that's a good portion of the Earth Kingdom." Kuei protested.

"No offense, your Majesty, but the Earth Kingdom is the largest out of all four countries. I think it is okay to lose some of it for a new country."

"…Yes, you do have a point."

"Then let's get down to discussing what we'll do."

(Location: Jasmine Dragon)

The meeting had gone through the afternoon, making them walk back to the Jasmine Dragon as the sun went down. "That was a great idea, Naruto." Sokka told him as they walked through the door. "I don't think any of us would've thought of creating a fifth country."

"You know me, I tend to think outside the box." He replied.

"You and the box were never acquainted with each other in the first place." Azula remarked.

He turned to her. "I'm going to take that as a compliment."

"Good, because I meant it as one," She said with a smirk. He just pulled her into a kiss.

"Ugh, could you two do that when you're alone, please?" Toph asked.

"What's the matter, Toph? You've never thought of finding a boyfriend?" Naruto asked after he broke the kiss and looked at her.

"No way, I'm gonna stay single if I have to go through all of that."

"Oh, you'll learn."

"Whatever."

"By the way, Aang," Sokka asked, changing the subject. "What are you going to do about your fan club?"

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"Come on, they were all but swarming us as we tried to get back here. You might need to change that into something better."

"They're not all that bad." He protested.

"Aang, do you remember what a Fangirl will do you every chance she's gets?" Naruto asked. "That fan club of yours is very close to doing that if you don't fix."

"Look, I know that rape is bad, but how bad can it be?"

"How bad can it be? Do you not realize what you're…?" He trailed off as he looked at the Airbender. "Do you even know what rape is?"

"Um…no, not really," He answered. "I figured it was something bad going by the looks on everyone's faces."

"Did the monks give the…talk before you ran away?"

"What talk?"

"Oh, this is just too perfect to pass up." He said with a grin and a cruel gleam in his eyes. "I finally have a way to punish you for all the stupid things you've done after you got out of the iceberg."

"What are you talking about?" He asked, becoming more and more nervous.

"Oh, Jiraiya," He called in a singsong voice.

"What is it, gaki?" Jiraiya asked, looking from the Pai Sho table as he and Iroh were about to start a game.

"This poor kid here has not been instructed in the way of the adults." He said, placing his hand on Aang's shoulder. "Could you find it in your heart to educate him? It is his duty as the Avatar to know such things."

"Sure, not a problem," He answered as he caught on to what he meant, standing up.

"Please be descriptive in your explanations. And by all means, use your books for help."

"Alright then, I will. Come on Aang." He motioned the Avatar to follow him.

"Oh, okay, I'm coming." He said, going after him.

"Aang, I don't think you should go with him." Katara told him.

"Relax Katara, it's only a lesson. What could be so bad about that?"

* * *

The sounds of Aang screaming and begging Jiraiya to stop from behind a locked door echoed throughout the teashop.

"Music to my ears," Naruto said cheerfully as he sat on a windowsill, smoking a cigarette.

"You're a cruel person." Zuko accused.

"After reading and seeing every stupid thing he's done, this is what he deserves. Can you blame me for doing that?"

Surprisingly, no one could.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

So now you've read what I have done to the past. Personally, I did enjoy The Avatar and the Fire Lord and I know it was a kid show, but it always seemed a little too straight forward for me. It was too simple and easy, Sozin was to blame for everything and that was it. History has never been that simple and clean, it is always murky. If you want a good example, look up WWI. All I did was make the past a little more complicated.

Yes, Zuko and Azula are distantly related to the Uchihas. Now I'm going to make this _very_ clear: they are not, I repeat NOT, getting the Sharingan. It's not going to happen whatsoever so don't even think about asking me if they are going to get it. I will simply call you an idiot and leave it at that. They are not getting the Sharingan, period, end of statement.

I know that there were those of you who were wondering if I was going to write the comics as well. I told you in the last chapter that I was going to be original after that, so I just wrote about the issue the comics dealt with, not the actual comics themselves.

If you're going to protest that the Air Nomads would not do something like attacking the envoys of the Fire Nation, I will just say this one thing: Wizard's First Rule. If you want a clue to what that is, look up Terry Goodkind.

If you're going to complain that Sud couldn't be that old, I would like to point out the fact that Kyoshi lived to be two hundred and thirty. If she can do that, I think it's safe to have someone pushing past a century.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	47. Going Away and Returning

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 47: Going Away and Returning

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Ba Sing Se)

Naruto walked into the Jasmine Dragon. "Kami, that was exhausting." He said as he all but collapsed into a chair.

"What's the matter? You went on a walk." Jiraiya said.

"Somehow, the Fangirls have found out where I am. As far as I can tell, they are now migrating towards Ba Sing Se."

"Ooh, my sympathies," He replied, wincing.

"Looks like I'll either need to hide or get out of the city before the rest of them get here."

"Well, there is always the agreement we have."

"Hey, we agreed that only came into effect when the work here was done."

"It's been a month, gaki. You've helped tremendously with laying the foundations for this new country, but now the others have taken the lead. If there was ever a time to go, it would be now."

"And how do you expect me to tell them that? Just leave a note on the table that they'll find the next morning?"

"You're not listening, Naruto. I didn't say you couldn't tell them."

"Look, can we talk about something else, please?"

"Alright then, let's talk about your book."

"What about it?"

"The way you write, it's, for lack of a better word, stiff."

"What do you mean?"

"You write like everyone has to be directed in what they're doing. You don't need to do that. Try writing more loosely."

"And how exactly do I do that?"

"Don't write about everything single thing they do. Only write the actions that seem important or necessary."

"I see. Is there anything else?"

"Well, you need to do a better job on fleshing out your characters. They are a little one-sided. Try to do some research to help with that."

"What do you mean, research?"

"Study people, use a characteristic from one person and then another characteristic from a second person and put them in the character you think needs. Like the shape of the hair from one woman and the color of hair from another."

"You know, it figures you'd use women as an example."

He glared at him. "We can always have a spar. Are you feeling up to it?"

"Not without backup I'm not."

"We can always get you backup."

"Okay, we both know that the only two who can help me fight you are in a summit right now."

"I think we can make an exception."

"If the two of you are going to spar, please do it outside of my shop." Iroh called from the kitchen. "I don't want to renovate this early in its life."

The door to the teashop opened. "We're back!" Aang called out as they walked in.

"So we heard." Naruto replied. "How did the summit go?"

"Pretty well, actually," Sokka said. "That was smart of you to bring in people from the colonies, Naruto."

"Well, we are discussing their colonies; it's only fair they get a voice."

"But why didn't you join the summit?" Katara asked.

"You guys have it under control. You really don't need me anymore."

"Don't sound like that, Naruto." Zuko told him. "You're making it sound like we getting rid of you once you've outlived your usefulness."

"Look, all I had was the idea and where the borders should've been. The rest of you guys, as well as the Earth King and the colony leaders, can take care of it."

"So what will you do?"

"Probably finish my book."

"That'll take some time." Jiraiya remarked.

"How would you know that?" Toph asked.

"I am an author and his writing still needs a little work. Actually, it needs a _lot_ of work."

"Alright, alright, I get it." Naruto told him. "I'll work on the thing."

"Good to know."

"What's going on, Naruto?" Azula asked.

He looked at her. "What do you mean?"

"You're hiding something from us."

"…You know, there are days when I really hate the fact you're quick on the draw."

"Is this another one of your secrets?"

"No, it was more like a deal."

"What happened?" Sokka asked.

"You guys remember I told you that when we had just gotten into Konoha, Jiraiya and I made a deal?" They nodded. "Well, there was a little more to it…"

(Flashback)

"How would you like the chance to kill Orochimaru?" Jiraiya asked Naruto.

He lifted his head up and looked him straight in the eye. "Keep talking."

"It's very straight forward. The Chūnin Exams are going to start in a few days and we have leaked information that you'll be joining. Orochimaru has probably sent in a team under false allegiances. If you join, your first task will be to identify this team. Once that happens, events will occur to make sure only your team and they reach the final Exam. Once that is secured, on the day of the Final Exam, you will defeat them in a humiliating and possibly embarrassing way, forcing Orochimaru to show himself so he can fix his damaged ego. And then, you'll kill him."

"And what do I get out of this?"

"Once Orochimaru is dead, you and your group will be provided with a means of escape back to the Bending Countries. I will join your group so I can assist with the coming of Sozin's Comet and the aftermath."

"…What's the catch?"

"Why do you think there's a catch?"

"There's always a catch."

He gave a brief laugh. "You catch on quick, don't ya, gaki?"

"What's the catch?"

He became serious again. "Once you're sure that the aftermath of the war is safely dealt with, you will be required to come back to Konoha and help us deal with the Akatsuki."

"…That's fair enough. Very well, we have a deal."

(End Flashback)

"So that's what has to happen." He told them, finishing the explanation.

"…When do you have to leave?" Azula asked.

"He has the limit of one year." Jiraiya told her. "After that, he will have to go back whether the aftermath has been settled or not."

"But since it's been more or less settled, right now would be probably be the best time for me to go back." Naruto finished.

"Then I'll go with you." Sokka declared out of nowhere. Akela simply nodded in agreement.

"What? Sokka, what are you saying?" Katara asked her brother as they all looked at him in shock.

"Look, he's right. The entire thing with the colonies is well on its way. Most of the people working on this listen to the Earth King, Zuko, or Aang now."

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Sokka." Aang said. "People will still listen to you."

"Not really, I'm still not good at this kind of thing. Plus, people have a hard time taking me seriously."

"No, they don't."

"Yes, they do. I'm just a kid who helped you defeat the Phoenix King. If I was an adult, it might be different, but it's not. Besides, we Paragons have to stick together, right?" He said with a goofy grin.

"If that's true, then I'm coming too." Suki declared. "There's no way I'm letting the two of you go alone."

"We'll all go." Aang said.

"No." Naruto said, cutting off anyone who was about to agree with him. "You're staying here, along with Zuko and Katara."

"What?"

"Just because everything is going well, does not mean you can leave. You and Zuko are two of the figureheads on this. If you leave, people will think you've abandoned the entire plan."

"But that's what they may think if you guys leave too."

He shook his head. "No, they won't. When people hear or think of this plan, they think of you, Zuko, the Earth King, or the colony leaders."

"Then why would Katara stay?"

"Firstly: she'll help you prevent the fan club from turning into Fangirls." Everyone shuddered at the thought. "Secondly: She and Toph will make sure you don't do anything stupid."

"Don't you have any trust in me?" He asked with a small look of hurt.

"Very little," He answered bluntly. "It'd be better if you didn't keep trying to do something stupid every five minutes."

"I am not that bad!"

"So you admit to doing stupid things?"

As he tried to protest, Toph interrupted him. "Don't worry about him, Naruto. Katara and I will keep an eye on him."

"Good to know."

"So when we do leave?" Azula asked.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Do you really think that I will let you go alone? I'm going, no arguments."

He looked at her, and then smile. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Are you sure about this, Azula?" Zuko asked. "What about Mai and Ty Lee?"

"Ty Lee is still figuring out what a Kyoshi warrior is all about. And Mai would rather be at your side then mine nowadays."

"You don't need to worry, Zuko." Naruto told him. "I'll keep her safe."

"You'd better; otherwise you will not enjoy the outcome."

"Great, now I've been threatened by your mother _and_ your brother." He told Azula with an exasperated sigh.

"What can I say? They care."

"I've noticed." Everyone laughed at that. It gave them a sense of normalcy that they felt wasn't around. Ever since the war was over, they didn't go back to the old things, but instead broke new ground. They didn't know what normal felt like, except in these few moments.

"Alright people, that's enough." Jiraiya said. "I'm sure everyone has eaten already, so let's all go to bed. Tomorrow, we will leave for Konoha."

"So soon?" asked Katara.

"Sooner is better than later when it comes to this kind of thing."

"He's right." Naruto agreed. They could all see his point as well. Aang's group said goodbye and left to go back to their house. Zuko, Iroh, and Jiraiya stayed up a little longer, playing Pai Sho. Azula would join in every few games, but was mostly content to watch. Naruto sat against the window, looking over what he had written so far and making changes to it.

Eventually, they went to bed as well. While Zuko, Jiraiya, and Iroh went to their own rooms, Naruto and Azula shared a bed. They had been doing that since after the Comet. They hadn't gone any further than that, partly because Naruto refused to take it further. "We have plenty of time." He told her. "We don't need to rush it." It was also because they didn't want to wake up the next morning and have Jiraiya grill them for details.

As they lay in the bed, Azula tried to go to sleep, but she just couldn't. "What's on your mind, Azula?" Naruto asked, noticing that she hadn't fallen asleep.

"…It's possible we'll die once when we go there, isn't it?" She asked.

"It's been possible that we'll die ever since we got involved in the war."

"I know that, but it seemed to be something that never bothered me. I always thought I was unbeatable, but after what happened in Kouzan and Ba Sing Se, I started to doubt that. If we're going there to fight against people those two men from Kouzan, we might die."

"Yeah, we might die."

"How can you be so casual about it?" She asked, rolling over on top of him. Their legs intertwined with each other as they looked into the other's eyes.

"I'm not casual about it, I'm scared. I've been scared every time I have gone into a fight or a battlefield. There was always the chance that I might've died on one of those fields and that terrified me. But I knew that if I let my terror take control, I would end up dead."

"What are you saying?"

"If you feel afraid, accept that fact, don't deny it. If you're scared that you might die fighting against the Akatsuki, don't let it consume you. Turn it into incentive to win."

"I'm not afraid of dying, Naruto." She lowered her head until she rested her forehead against his. "I'm scared of losing you."

"And I'm scared of you dying." He replied. "I guess that's further incentive for me to win." She didn't reply; she just kissed him. It wasn't a hot or hungry kiss; it was a soft and tender one. He returned it. The two of them just enjoyed the moment. The moment was over when her hands began to trail downwards and he grabbed them when they tried to go past his waist. "No." He told her.

"You keep saying that and yet, I don't think he's completely complaining." She told him, moving her leg slightly and making him hiss in controlled frustration.

"Of course he's not completely complaining." He growled slightly at her. "I have a completely naked girl in my bed. Even if I don't do anything, it's enough to get him half-awake."

"If you took off those shorts, I wouldn't be the only naked person in this bed." She said teasingly.

"I said no, Azula."

She gave an annoyed huff. "Why are you like this? I'd thought you would've jumped at the chance to have…_this_." She gestured at her body.

"We don't have to do it right away. Personally, I would like to take you on a couple of dates that _don't_ end in disaster before we go there." The night of Zuko's coronation, he had taken her out on another date. It had gone well, until a Fangirl had spotted them. Within five minutes, every single Fangirl of his had converged on the restaurant. They ended up fleeing from the rooftops, with her hanging onto his back (which she considered a perk).

She laughed. "I guess you have a point." She lowered her head onto his chest. "Goodnight Naruto." She said, listening to his heartbeat in contentment.

"Goodnight Azula." He said back, wrapping one hand around the small of her back and the back of her head. They closed their eyes and soon fell asleep.

* * *

The next morning, Aang and the others had come back to the Jasmine Dragon. There, they all had a feast of a breakfast. Jokes were tossed around and a lot of laughing was happening. To the outsider, it looked like a happy breakfast for a group of friends. But those at the table knew differently. They knew it was possibly their last time of seeing each other, so they wanted to make it a good memory.

Once they were all done, they walked outside of the teashop. Everyone who was leaving had packed beforehand. Now family members were hugging each other goodbye. "You take care, Sokka." Katara told him as she hugged him tightly.

"That I can do, Katara, providing I can be allowed to breathe." He replied.

"Oh, right. Sorry." She let go of him.

"Don't worry; I'll be back, both me and Suki."

"I'll see you around, Fire Lord Zuko." Azula told her brother with a slight teasing tone on the last three words.

"I'll hold you to that promise." He replied, before turning his attention to her boyfriend. "Naruto…"

"I know, I know. Torture, pain, and suffering will occur if I let anything happen to her." He said, stopping him before he said it. "No need worry, Zuko. It won't happen."

"Good. Because if it did…"

"I know; you'll make me regret it, etc. etc."

"Are we ready?" Jiraiya asked as he stood apart from them, the seal tag out and in his hand.

"As ready we'll be, I guess." Sokka said as he, Suki, Akela, Naruto, and Azula joined him.

"Well then, let's get—"

"Hold on." Toph interrupted him. "We've got something coming straight towards us, something strong and fast."

"Where's it coming from?" Aang asked as they stood ready to defend.

"It's coming down that street." She point off to the side. Within a few seconds, a familiar creature came out of the corner and barreled down the street.

"It's a Snuffly-Wuffly!" Naruto declared as the creature stopped in front of them.

"No, that's a shirshu." Azula replied.

"It's the same difference."

"Naruto, stop insulting my Nyla," The shirshu's passenger told him.

"Hey, you're the one who called him that, June." He replied.

"What are you doing here, June?" Zuko asked her.

"I got into Ba Sing Se two days ago." She answered, hopping down from Nyla. "Last night, I was told to come here."

"You were told to come here? You?" asked Sokka. "Who tells you what to do?"

"You should know who."

"No, I don't."

"June, are you saying you've never actually told them who you were?" Naruto asked.

"I was too busy trying to take him down." She said, looking straight at Aang.

"Um…why are you staring at me like that?" He asked nervously. She didn't answer.

"You're still holding that grudge?" Naruto asked her.

"Yes, I am." She answered.

"Why didn't you do anything about it the last time you met him?"

"I was being professional. Now I am not."

"Is there anything I can say that'll make you stop before you do something?"

"No."

He sighed. "Go ahead."

Before Aang, or anyone else, could ask what the two of them were talking about, she walked up to the Avatar and slapped him across the face and then slugged him with her other hand. As he fell to the ground, everyone else (except for Naruto and Jiraiya) took fighting stances. "What do you think you're doing?!" Katara demanded as she held water at the ready.

"I gave him what he deserved." She replied calmly.

"I didn't do anything to you!" Aang protested as he stood shakily back up.

"It's not what you did to me, but to my people."

"What? I didn't do anything to your people."

"You abandoned them when you ran away!"

"June, stop and start from the beginning. You're confusing most of the people here." Naruto told her as he stepped in between her and Aang. "Do you want me to do the introductions?"

"If you'd please," She said with a controlled effort.

He turned to the others. "Guys, this is June, one of the best bounty hunters on this side of the planet, and also the Paragon of the Air Nomads." To prove his statement, she wordlessly pulled out a Paragon Medallion; the ancient elemental symbols clear to see by all.

Everyone else there was stunned beyond belief. "You're…one of us?" Suki asked.

"I thought it'd be obvious, considering I'm holding one of these." She replied, jiggling the Medallion.

"But…but the Air Nomads were wiped out!" Aang protested. "Everyone died."

"Not everyone. My grandfather was the youngest of the Paragons at that time, barely an adult. When the attacks came, he and his newly wedded wife fled to the Earth Kingdom. They stayed there in hiding for the rest of their lives. They had a daughter, my mother, who married my father when she was older. She died giving birth to me and my father took me to live with my grandparents. When it came to choosing his student, my grandfather broke one of the original laws of the Paragons and trained me. For the first eight years of my life, I was trained as a Paragon, before my father came back and took me with him."

"Wait, what law?" Sokka asked.

"The first law: Take only the student who holds your country in their hearts." Naruto said. "The second law: Never take your own blood to learn what you offer."

"…Could you translate that please?"

"The second law means that you can't take a member of your own family as your student. June's grandfather broke that rule by training June. I guess Sifu made an exception that one time."

"He realized the situation that my grandfather was in." June admitted.

"What does the first rule mean?" Suki asked.

"According to Sifu, our recent predecessors had interpreted it as only take a student from your own country."

"But doesn't that mean you're breaking that rule?"

He shook his head. "I never really had a teacher until I met June and she explained it to me. Also, Sifu had told me that the law actually meant that a person who had the best spirit of a country was the best choice to be a Paragon. For example, a person who the most willful and had the most drive would've been the best choice to be the Paragon of the Fire Nation."

"Which describes you perfectly," Azula remarked.

"Indeed it does." Iroh agreed. "In fact, each of you best embodied what your country stands for. You have encountered many different things and have always adapted to them." He told Sokka. "You are just one of many cultures in the Earth Kingdom and yet, you have never given it up." He told Suki. "And you have traveled the four countries, finding peace and freedom in what you do." He finished with June.

"Yeah, that's about right." She replied before turning to face Naruto. "So why exactly am I going with you?"

"Didn't Sifu tell you to?" He asked.

"He did, but I want a better reason than a spirit telling me I have too."

A thought struck him. "Well, the people we're going up against are high-ranking criminals that have big bounties on their heads."

"Go on."

"So, if we bring them in, dead or alive depends on the criminal, you'll get the bounty. With the amount of money you'd get, you would be set for life."

"Alright then, I'm in."

"That's all it took to convince you? The chance to cash in on bounties?" asked Katara.

"I told you guys before, she's a businesswoman." Naruto replied.

"Okay, now that we have one more person and animal joining us, let's go." Jiraiya announced pointedly.

"Aren't you supposed to be the patient one?" Sokka asked him as the group leaving gather around him.

"I am being patient. Being impatient for me is knocking the people going unconscious and _then_ leaving."

June scoffed. "Like you could do that, old man," She told him.

"Actually, he could." Sokka replied.

"Uh-huh, sure he can."

"June, where we're going, this 'old man' as you've called him, is a legend." Naruto told her. "There's no doubt in my mind that he could beat both you and your shirshu with ease. A little more respect wouldn't hurt."

"If you say so, but until I see it, I won't believe it." She said with a shrug of her shoulders.

"I'll take that. Now let's get a move on." Jiraiya told her. "Naruto, make room for the shirshu."

"Why do I have to move for him?"

"I said so. Now do it."

"Fine, I'm doing it." He stepped over to the side and looked at Nyla. "Well, come on." He told the shirshu. It hissed at him and padded up next to him. "Yeah, well I'm not a fan of the arrangements either."

"If the two of you are done, we're leaving now." The Toad Sage slapped the seal tag onto the ground. The kanji on the tag glowed and as the others watched on, the group surrounding Jiraiya were engulfed in smoke. When the smoke cleared, they were gone.

(Location: Konoha)

Tsunade was working in her office, looking over some of the paperwork on her desk. _"Kami, I need a distraction right."_ She thought to herself. That was when the door to her office opened and Jiraiya walked in, along with Naruto, Azula, Suki, Sokka, and a girl she didn't recognize.

"We're back." Jiraiya announced.

"So you are. Good timing." She told them. "Where are the others?"

"There are certain events going on that prevent them from joining us." Naruto stated. "We're all you have."

"Who is she?" She asked, pointing at June.

"She's one of us." He pulled put his Medallion to emphasize his point. "She's also a bounty hunter, so she here for the cash."

"I see. Now then—"

"We have a few conditions." He interrupted her.

"Let's hear them." She said after a moment of silence.

"First: we are our own team. There'll be no breaking us up to work with other teams. Second: We answer only to you or the Fucking Sadist here." He pointed to Jiraiya. "Anybody else tries to order us to do something without either of your authorization, we will not do it. Third: we are here to deal with the Akatsuki and only the Akatsuki. You give us any missions that aren't related to them, we're gone."

"I have no problems with those conditions. Are there any else?"

"Just one: I am not living in that building."

"Excuse me?"

"You know damn well what I'm talking about. You're planning to put me back in that building with the rest of the Konoha Eleven. It's not happening, got it?"

"And where you live if not there? Right now, very few places will allow you to live there, even if you killed Orochimaru."

"Why am I not surprised?" He asked with a scoff.

"There is always his parents' house." Jiraiya suggested. "It just needs a good cleaning and he'll be fine."

"If it'll help, Suki and I can take his apartment." Sokka offered.

"Ino and Hinata showed me Naruto's place once." Suki told the Hokage. "It looks big enough for two people."

"Also, Akela can stay down in the common area." Akela nodded in agreement.

"Fine, you two and the wolf can live there." Tsunade said with a small amount of annoyance. "What about her?" She gestured at June.

"I'll just find a tavern or a bar." The bounty hunter replied with a shrug.

"Actually, try camping, June." Naruto told her. "Unless we're told otherwise, you need to stay sober."

"You know I rarely drink, Naruto."

"All the same, please camp. Nyla would probably enjoy the wild and the new scents."

"…Did you suggest I do something nice to my shirshu?"

"Would you rather I go to the window and shout insults down at him? I can do that."

"No, I'm just…surprised."

"Hey, I might think that your shirshu is one ugly creature and I know the two of us don't get along, but that's about it."

"If the two of you are done…?" Tsunade asked pointedly. "I'll give you the day to settle in. Tomorrow, your team begins. Now scram."

"You heard her, people." Jiraiya said as they started to leave the room.

"Naruto, wait." He turned back around when he heard the Hokage's voice and immediately grabbed the bag flying through the air at him.

"What is that?" Azula asked.

"It's a portion of the bounty on Orochimaru."

"Where's the rest?" Naruto asked as he opened the bag and quickly looked over the contents.

"I've got it, as well as the key to your parents' house." Jiraiya told him as he reached into his vest and pulled out a key. "Here, I figured you wouldn't want to live in the apartments." He tossed the key at him.

He caught it effortlessly. "Thanks." He examined the key and saw the small piece of paper attached to it. "What's this?" He asked as he looked at it.

"It's the address of your parents' house."

He gave the key one last look before putting it away. "So it just needs a good cleaning, is that it?"

"Yes."

He turned to look at Tsunade. "Lady Hokage, my team and I will see you tomorrow." He turned back around and walked out of the room, the others followed him.

The two Sannin remained quiet as the door closed. "Well, that went well." Jiraiya noted.

"If you think so," Tsunade replied.

"I know so. He didn't object when I told him we were coming to see you and he didn't hurry the meeting along. I'd like to think those are good signs."

"And we both know he's here only to do a job."

"But we can also hope that he'll warm up to the others. You were planning on sending them on missions with the other teams, right?"

"Of course I was."

"What's their first mission?" She silently handed him a scroll. He opened it and looked over the contents. "This will be interesting."

(Location: Naruto's group)

They walked down the street, June rode atop Nyla. "Do you have any idea of where you're going?" She asked Naruto.

"Yeah, I do. I've gone past this address every time I went to the Academy when I was younger." He told her.

"You, in the Academy they have?" Azula asked with a small laugh. "I'm sorry, but I can't see you in there. You must've been bored out of your mind."

"I was. But I had also failed three times before finally becoming a shinobi."

"How fascinating," June drily remarked. "Can we move on to more important things?"

"Like what? Where we'll be living?" Sokka asked sarcastically. "I'd thought we figure all that out."

"Of course we did. You and your girlfriend are staying at his old place while he and his girlfriend are going to be living at his parents' place and meanwhile, I'll be camping out in the woods."

"That sounds just about right." Azula commented.

"That reminds me." Naruto said before turning to face Sokka and Suki. "If the two of you are going to do the bedroom tango, do it loud enough so it keeps the others up. It'll annoy the heck of them and keep me entertained" The others just stared at him in shock. "What? Is something wrong?"

"How can you just say something like that out loud?" Sokka demanded quietly.

"It's easy, you just say it." He replied with a straight face. "What's the problem anyway? We all know that you're going to do it."

Both of them blushed hard. "Well…we weren't going to announce it to the whole street!"

"And I didn't either. I asked you two to do something in a normal tone of voice."

"Don't even try, you two." Azula said before either Suki or Sokka could speak. "You're not going to win this one."

"Ice cream, ice cream, I got ice cream!" A little girl chanted happily as she ran through the street, getting their attention.

"Sweetie, please slow down!" The girl's mother told her as she walked behind her. "You'll run into someone." And as if to prove her right, the little girl ran into someone and spilled her ice cream. But she didn't just into anyone. No, she ran right into Naruto, spilling her ice cream onto his half-skirt.

The entire street went silent as they looked on. If it had been back in the days when he was a little kid, the people around him would've pounced and beaten him to a bloody pulp. But now, they were afraid that if they tried that now, he would probably kill them.

Naruto stood in silence as he looked down at the melting ice cream, his face neutral. **"Well, this is a predicament."** Kyuubi commented. He silently agreed. One wrong move and they would have a mob coming after them.

"My ice cream," The little girl said, still holding the cone. "I saved up all my allowance for that. And now it's…gone." Tears began to well up in her eyes, threatening to drop.

"Hmm, that was very odd." Naruto said aloud. "It's seems that my clothes have spontaneously grown an appetite." The girl just looked up at him in confusion. "You mean to tell me you didn't see my clothes try to reach out and eat the ice cream?" He looked around, pretending to make sure they were alone, knelt down and whispered in her ear. "I think the clothes are trying to grow and munity against us. You might want to be careful the next time you have food, they might want it for themselves."

She giggled. "You're weird."

"Was that not in the category of funny? I could've sworn it was when I left this place." The girl laughed. "So tell me, what kind of ice cream did my clothes try to eat?"

The smile she had on vanished. "It was three scoops."

"That's all? Three scoops?" He turned to look at her mother. "Madam, I am disappointed in you. The young lady deserves at least five scoops of ice cream!"

"But I can't have any more. I used up all my allowance."

"Then I will do you one better." He took the bag of money off his shoulder and put it on the ground. He opened it and pulled out a single piece of paper money. "Here's twenty ryō." He told her as he handed her the bill. "Go buy yourself a sundae."

"You…you mean it?"

"Of course I do." He said with a smile as he stood up. "My clothes tried to eat your last one, so it's only fitting that I pay for the next one and make it bigger."

"Thanks mister!" She cheered with a big smile.

"Not a problem. You go and enjoy the sundae."

She nodded and ran back to her mother. "Mommy, mommy, did you see what the nice man gave me?" She asked, waving the bill in the air.

"Yes honey, I did." She looked up at him. "Thank you."

He shrugged his shoulders. "It was nothing. Let's go, guys." He started to walk away and the others followed. Soon, they left the girl and her mother behind.

"That was very decent of you, Naruto." Suki said with approval.

"It was the right thing to do." He replied.

"If anything, it should swing some people's opinion about you." Azula told him.

"That doesn't matter. We are here to do a job, not change what people think of me."

"Must you be so serious?" Sokka asked him.

"The sooner we're done with the job, the quicker we can go home."

He was about to argue the point, but decided against it. "I guess we should split up and get settled into where we're living."

"We'll be fine. I'm sure the others kept the place clean." Suki assured him.

"And I have to find a place to camp for the night. How fun," June remarked sarcastically.

"There's a good spot just outside the hot springs, if you're interested." Naruto offered.

She perked up and swung her head over to him. "Hot springs? Where?"

He pointed down a different street. "If memory serves, it's just down that way. Nyla should be able to smell it."

"Alright, I'm gone. Here's all your cleaning stuff." She pulled the bags holding the cleaning supplies and dropped them on the ground. She urged Nyla on and the shirshu took off.

"Try not to hit the pedestrians!" He called out after her.

The others just watched as their teammate speed away. "What was that all about?" Azula asked.

"June is a connoisseur of hot springs. There's not a hot spring in the Earth Kingdom that she doesn't know about." He explained as he reached over and picked up the bags.

"Do you two want us help you clean up the house?" Suki asked.

"Do either of you actually like cleaning up?"

"I know I don't. But I'll do it if it's necessary." Sokka told him.

"If you don't want do, then don't. It's more for him" Azula said, pointing at Naruto.

"Wait, you enjoy cleaning?" He asked him.

"I like to think of it as a form of meditation." He replied. "It's kinda soothing, if you begin to enjoy it."

"You are weird."

"We've already established that. The two of you had better get going. Odds are the others are waiting to surprise me with a party."

"You love disappointing them, don't you?" Suki asked. He answered with a grin. "Then we better get through the entire disappointing part. We'll see you guys tomorrow." Both she and Sokka walked off, Akela trailing behind them.

They stood briefly in silence as they watched the three disappear into the crowd. "You ready to go?" Azula asked Naruto, turning to face him.

"I might as well be." He answered. They walked in a different direction then the others. They walked on in silence. They made their way through the crowd and eventually found the address they were looking for.

"Why would they have the house up in a tree?" She asked as she looked up at the house sitting at the top of the tree.

He shrugged. "They wanted privacy?"

"They would've been better off living in the forest."

"Well, it's our place now." He started walking up the stairs and she followed. They reached the top within a minute and approached the door. He placed the bags down on the ground and pulled out the key, placing it into the lock. He unlocked the door and opened it, letting them see the first view of the inside part of the house.

The place looked…dusty, very dusty. They could see clumps of dust gathering in the corners. "It's probably a good thing we got a lot of cleaning supplies. He commented.

"I don't we have enough cleaning supplies." She replied.

"Sure we do. We just need to apply a good amount of elbow grease."

"And how exactly are we going to do that?"

He crossed his fingers into a handseal. **"Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"** A vast cloud of smoke consumed them. When it cleared, the surrounding tree branches were covered in Naruto clones.

She looked around at all the clones. "Ah, that's how."

"Alright guys, we've got a house that needs a _very_ good cleaning. Let's get to it!"

"YES SIR!" The clones chorused before charging into the house. It soon became very nosy as they tried to eliminate every single speck ofdust in the house.

As they watched what was going on, he turned to her. "Are you going to help, or are you going to stay out here?"

"Are you sure I'm not going to get crushed in there?" She asked back.

He gave her a look. "Azula, they're me. Why would we try and crush our girlfriend?"

"I didn't say anything about try."

"Come on, you'll be fine." He took her by the hand and led her inside. True to form, the clones didn't try to crush her. They actually tried to be careful around her. That was a little difficult, considering the fact they were essentially purging the house, but they did their best.

It took the rest of the day to clean the house. Surprisingly, the furniture was still well intact. "I didn't think this stuff would last this long." Azula remarked as she looked at one of the newly cleaned couches.

"Say what you will about the lifestyle, but shinobi build to last. Have you've seen the village?" The original Naruto asked as he directed the clones.

"No need to sound like a smartass."

"Just telling the truth, that's all." He turned to one of the clones. "How are those deadbolt lock coming?" He asked.

"We'll have them installed on the bathroom door within a half-hour." The clone answered before walking away.

"Why are you installing deadbolt locks on the bathroom door?" She asked the original.

"So I can feel safe as I take a bath or a shower. Or, at the very least, so I can have a few seconds to jump out of the window. Please remember, if a Fangirl can't break a lock open, they'll break the door open."

"Naruto, you don't have any Fangirls here. They're all over in the Bending Countries."

"It never hurts to be safe. Besides, you would not believe how fast a Fangirl club can be created around here and how long it lasts."

"Are you speaking from experience?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh Kami no, I just knew someone who _did_ have a club."

"Hey, boss." One of the clones called out. "We're moving the baby stuff out of that one room. You got any idea about what we should do with it?"

"Just put it all in a scroll, I'll see if I can find someone who'll buy it."

"Alright, by the way, we found a safe in that room as well."

"I'll take a look at it later." The clone nodded and walked away.

"Baby stuff?" repeated Azula.

"Yeah, odds are that would've been my room, if things had gone differently." He replied.

"Are you okay?"

"Of course I am. I'm not a baby, so I don't need that stuff."

"If you're sure, I won't press it." She didn't exactly have a stellar family life, so she couldn't argue with him about it.

The day continued on as they waged war on the dirty house. Clones would leave to throw things away or to buy new things with the money they had. By the time the sun began to set, they were done. The house looked like it was freshly built (minus all the smells that went with a new house). Once he was sure everything was done, Naruto began to dismiss the clone in groups.

"Well, we're finally done." He declared as the last group disappeared in a cloud of smoke. "That was exhausting."

"How would you know?" Azula asked from where she sat on the couch. "You didn't do any of the work; you just ordered your clones around."

"They might do the work, but I get the memories of what they did, and that includes the amount of energy they put into it." He collapsed onto another of the couches.

"Are you going to be alright?"

"Just give me a minute."

She looked around the house they had just cleaned. "We're going to be living here." She said simply.

"Yeah, pretty much."

"It's odd, but it kinda feels like this is _our_ house, like we could live here for a long time."

"We've only been in here a day." He commented.

"Don't you think this could be a house for us?"

He looked at her. "Azula, for me, home is where you are."

She scoffed lightly, but with a smile. "You are such a flirt."

"Only with you," He replied with a grin.

She stood up from the couch and walked over to the kitchen. "I'll see if I can make us some food, would you like to help?"

"I'm sure you can make us something simple. You were banned from the kitchen after you tried something complicated and decided to rush it."

She scowled at him. "How many times am I going to have to apologize for that?"

"I don't know. You'll have to ask the head chief when we get back." He slowly stood up from the couch. "Do you know where the clones put the pots and whatnot?"

"Yes, I was paying attention." She told him with mock exasperation. "The pots are to my left, the pans are to my right, and the other stuff is in the shelf above."

"Good to know."

"Why don't you take a walk around the village, Naruto?"

He looked straight at her with a flat face. "Why would you even suggest something like that?"

"Well, you are going to be here while we do this job. You might as well get used to the place."

"And leave you all alone by yourself? What kind of boyfriend would I be if I did that?" He asked with a half-playful smile.

"I am quite capable of handling myself, or have you forgotten?" She asked flatly.

"No, trust me, I remember."

"I'm glad that you do."

"You know, you're right. I should probably take a walk around Konoha. Actually, I think I have just the place in mind to go."

"And where would that be?"

"It's just a spot I used to go to, I know a couple of people there." He walked over to the door and opened it. "You're sure you'll be fine." He asked, taking a look back at her.

"Yes, now go already. Or do I have to make you go?" She said in a mock threatening voice.

He gave a brief laugh. "Alright, alright, I'm going. I'll see you in a bit, Azula." He walked through the door and closed it behind him.

"Hopefully, you won't do anything stupid." She muttered to herself as she worked around the kitchen.

(Location: Naruto)

He walked quietly through the crowds on the street. The setting sun had caused the sky to turn orange. It was a nice shade of the color, but it was just one of those things he absently noticed. Another he absently noticed that he was walking against the flow of the crowd. Most of the people were heading inward to the village, to their homes or their favorite places to spend time with their friends.

But he wasn't heading inward like the rest of them. He was heading outward, to the outskirts of the village. When he finally got clear of the crowd, he made his way to the gate. "Hey guys." He said absently to the shinobi on guard-duty, leaving before they could even say anything to him. He made his way to a tree and then walked up it before leaping through the trees. _"It's been a while. I'd thought this be a little more difficult."_ He thought to himself as he flew between the branches.

"**It's muscle memory, kit."** Kyuubi told him. **"You're taking it slow and it's coming back to you, that's all there is to it."**

He didn't reply; he just focused on running through the trees. Finally, he had reached his destination. He leapt out of the trees and back onto the ground. "It's been a long time since I've been here." He commented as he looked around Training Ground Three.

"**That it has gaki. That it has."** The fox agreed, albeit with a little sarcasm.

"Don't even start, Kyuubi." He warned. He then walked over to the Memorial Stone and looked at the names in silence. After a few minutes, he lifted his gaze away from the names carved onto the stone. "You know, if you're going to spy on me, the least you can do is not be blatantly obvious about it." He said loudly.

Silence followed for a brief minute. Then he heard the sound of people landing on the ground behind him. He turned to face who had been following him. "Well, I'd like to say this is a surprise." He said to them. "But all of us here know it's not. If anything, I'd say it was inevitable." He shrugged his shoulders and let his arms fall down, keeping one of them near his shuriken holster. "So what in the name of Kami do the four of you want?" He asked the people in front of him. He didn't know who the fourth person was, but he knew the other three all too well and that made whoever the fourth person was irrelevant.

He knew he was talking to his former team, to Team Kakashi.

**End**

**Author's note: **Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Yes, I've split up Team Avatar. If I tried to bring everyone over, I would've stretched the story so thin trying to cover everyone, it wouldn't have been funny. Besides, the canon storyline for _The Last Airbender_ was pretty heavy on the Benders. So let's give the Non-Benders a chance to shine here.

I also have another good reason for separating the group. It's only been a month or so since the end of the War. Despite what you may think, political changes and similar stuff cannot be taken care of within a month. Plus, they also have the creation of the fifth country to work on.

June is the Paragon of the Air Nomads. For those of you who guessed it, congrats. Why would I go through all of the trouble of creating an OC for the spot when I can just use a character that was barely seen in the canon and add some depth to her? It's more fun that way. Plus, writing the interaction between Naruto and Nyla is highly entertaining.

I'm well aware of the fact I ripped off the ice cream scene from One Piece. I always liked that part and I wanted to use it somehow.

For those of you who are going to complain that I didn't make the house where Minato and Kushina lived a mansion, I will point that house is the exact house they were living in in _Road to Ninja_. Personally, I'd like to think that the writers and artists came up with that just to annoy any writer that had them living in a mansion. Just because Minato was the Hokage, does not mean he automatically lived in a mansion. And don't try to use Kushina for your defense. Just because she was from the Uzumaki clan doesn't mean she lived in a mansion as well.

And now finally, the thing you all have been hounding me for: the meeting between Naruto and Team Kakashi. But as I said before, that is a required solo act. So if you think I'm being an evil bastard by doing this to you, you would be correct!

I'll see you all next chapter!


	48. Tense Talk and First Mission

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 48: Tense Talk and First Mission

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Training Ground Three)

The silence between the five of them was so thick and deafening, it wasn't even remotely funny. "Well? Are you going to answer my question or just stand there like a bunch of idiots?" Naruto asked them.

"Now, is that any way to talk to your teammates, Naruto?" The leader of the team asked with a chuckle.

"I don't see any of my teammates in this clearing, Hatake." He said shortly. His former sensei still looked the same. He still wore the blue shirt and pants uniform along with the green flak jacket and metal-plated gloves over his hands. He still wore the facemask that covered the lower half of his face and still had his headband covering his left eye. And his silver, spiky hair still defied gravity.

"There's no need to be rude."

"I'm not being rude, I'm telling the truth."

"We are your teammates, dobe." The dark haired, somewhat spiky haired member of the team said. He wore the same uniform as Kakashi as well as the flak jacket. He also wore a dark blue trench coat with pauldrons on the shoulders with the Uchiha crest emblazoned upon them. Emblazoned above the left breast-pocket was another Uchiha crest that was surrounded by a black, four-pointed star. Tied to the waist of the coat was a sword (a chokutō if he had to be precise).

"You haven't been my teammates for the past three years, Uchiha. Personally, I'd like to keep it like that."

"Naruto, don't be like that." The female member of the team told him. She still had the pink hair and green eyes he remembered. But she hadn't grown it out again. Instead, she had kept it short, letting it fall to her shoulders. She wore a red top that left the shoulders bare. She wore a pink apron skirt over a pair of black shorts. She also wore black gloves and pink elbow protectors, as well as black boots. The cloth of her headband was red and she wore it like a hair-band.

"Be like what, Haruno? If you thought that if I would come back willingly and we'd all be one happy team again, you thought wrong. Hell, we were barely a team to begin with."

"That's not true!"

"Yes it was! We had an avenger who wouldn't let anyone in, a Fangirl who would only pay attention to what said avenger did or said, and a knuckled-headed idiotic moron who would charge into any situation headfirst with no thought whatsoever, not to mention a sensei who was late to practically everything unless it concerned his life or the Icha-Icha series."

"That actually pretty much sums up your track record." The fourth member said to both Sasuke and Sakura. He had black hair, which he kept short. His skin, however, was the kind of pasty white he had only seen on Orochimaru (he briefly wondered if the two were related and mentally shuddered at the thought). He wore a shirt that exposed his midriff and wore a black jacket with red straps over it; the left sleeve was short while the right sleeve was long. He wore black gloves that left the thumb and index finger exposed. He wore pants that were black (which was the same color of his sandals) with a shuriken holster attached. He wore his headband around his forehead and carried a tantō across his back.

He looked over at him. "So, who's my replacement?"

"Hello, my name is Sai." He introduced himself with a smile.

"Wipe that smile off your face." He ordered curtly. "I don't need to see a fake one."

"You could tell it was a fake one?"

"A blind person could tell it was a fake one. Hell, I know a blind person who would've known it was a fake one."

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind, dickless."

"…I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that." He turned his attention back to the others. "So, let me guess: you're here to beg me to come back and stay in Konoha, is that it?"

"It's your home, Naruto." Sakura told him.

"That hasn't been true for the last three years. Quite frankly, I would've liked to have kept it like that."

"So you're just going to keep running away from us?" Sasuke asked. "If that's the case, you seem to be doing a bad job of it."

"For the record, I didn't come back to stay. I came back to do a job. Once that's done, my team and I are gone."

"We've already heard. You're going after the Akatsuki. What exactly makes you think you and your team can make a difference?"

"You've never seen Sokka when he gets an idea." He replied with a smirk. "I'd say he's the smartest of all of us, both in this team and in the one back in the Bending Countries."

"So you think that one person can make a difference?" Sai asked.

"He is the idea guy in our group." He replied with nonchalance. "That's more than I can say for any of the Konoha Eleven."

"What does that mean?" Sakura asked suspiciously.

"You people couldn't grasp the fact that I did not want to come back. I had to reveal the fact I had control over the capital of one of the countries to make them leave."

"You didn't belong over there. You belonged with us!"

"If that was true, I wouldn't have been banished, would I?"

"Don't try to use that one, dobe." Sasuke told him. "The others already told you knew what the Hokage did."

"The fact is still the same. It was made clear to me that I was not wanted here, so I left."

"And we spent three years looking for you, we all did." Kakashi told him.

"So I was told." He replied with a scoff. "You guys really thought I would've hung around here? I knew you would go after me, so I went somewhere new."

"We looked everywhere for you."

"Obviously not, it took you people three years to find out where I was and that was by luck."

"That doesn't matter anymore. What does matter is that you're here, dobe, and you're staying." Sasuke declared.

"Only for the Akatsuki, unless you've forgotten about them already?"

"Kami take it, Naruto! We're trying to keep you safe! The Akatsuki are looking for you!"

"Of course they are. I ran into Itachi and Kisame a couple of months ago." He looked straight at Sasuke. "Why exactly haven't you killed him? Are you just waiting for him to come to you or something?"

"You ran into Itachi?!" Both Sakura and Sasuke shouted.

"Haven't you been paying attention, I did just say that."

"How are you still around?" Sakura asked.

"Your lack of faith is no surprise." He remark sarcastically.

"Answer the question!"

He scowled at them. "I am not a dog, or a slave."

"Itachi and Kisame would have killed an entire city to capture you." Kakashi told him.

"Well, that would've happened. The problem was all three of us ended being caught by an insane Earth Kingdom colonel who wanted his army to raze a colony to the ground. So we ended up causing a massacre. Good times, good times." He said with a whimsical (but also sarcastic) smile.

"You call a massacre a good time?" Sai asked, confused (not even he would qualify a massacre as a good time).

"That was a joke. Besides, they left when we were done. I left them a note."

"You left them a note?" Sasuke repeated.

"I told them not to come after me; otherwise they'd be leaving the Bending Countries with only their heads."

"You threatened them?"

"And I can back it up."

"With what? Yourself?"

"No, with them," He said with a smirk as he pointed behind him. They looked past him and saw four other people, along with a wolf and some other kind of creature. "Nice job getting everyone, Azula."

"It wasn't that hard." She replied.

"You okay, Naruto?" June asked from aside Nyla.

"Yeah, I'm fine, June. I've just been having a conversation with some people."

"What in the name of Kami is that thing?" Sakura asked as she looked at Nyla.

June frowned. "This happens to be my shirshu, his name is Nyla. Call it a thing one more time and I will sic him on you."

"As entertaining as that sounds, try to keep the ugly creature under control, June," Naruto told her. Nyla hissed at him when he heard the words "ugly creature". "Yes, I was talking about you, you blind mole. What are you going to do about it?"

"Will the two of you knock it off?" The bounty hunter told them.

"Fine," He looked at the shirshu. "But this argument is far over." Nyla hissed in agreement. Meanwhile Akela just rolled his eyes.

"Are they who I think they are?" Sokka asked the former shinobi.

"Yep, pretty much." He looked over at him. "How do you know who they are?"

"I asked Asuma and his team back in Ba Sing Se."

"Huh, I guess I missed that one."

"What do they want?"

"The usual crap, they want me to stay here, they're trying to protect me, they've been trying to find me, etc. etc."

"Well, to be fair to them, they were probably the ones who looked for you the most."

"I'd figured. It's too bad they didn't come over when the others did. I would've had fun with them."

"What do you mean by that?" Suki asked.

"I would've actually spent time playing around with them. You know, taunting them, giving them false information so they could run off and leave you guys alone in a heartbeat, that kind of thing."

"I think you've been hanging around Jiraiya too long." Sokka commented.

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"Are you planning to peep on naked women?"

He glared at him. "You want to repeat that?"

"Nope, glad to know you're still you."

"Thank you ever so much."

"Who are these people, Naruto?" Kakashi asked, losing any playful tone left in his voice.

"What? The others didn't tell you who they were?"

"Answer the question, dobe." Sasuke told him.

"Isn't it obvious? These are my teammate."

"We're your teammates!" Sakura protested.

"You've been replaced." He replied shortly.

"And who exactly are these four?" June asked. "Sokka apparently knows them, but the rest of us do not."

"In that case, meet Team Kakashi, the last group of the Konoha Eleven." He cast a glance at the aforementioned team. "Although, I think it's the Konoha Twelve now, considering they have a replacement."

"I have never been a part of the group." Sai told him. "That position was for you and you alone."

"Well, congratulations. You're now an official member."

"Somehow, I don't think the others are going to appreciate that." Azula remarked.

"You know me, I live to disappoint them. Anyway, I'm done here. Let's head back." He turned around and started to walk away.

"We're not done here, Naruto!" Sakura shouted at his back.

"As a matter of fact, we are."

"If you take one more step, I'll…"

"You'll what? Beat me into a bloody pulp like when we were younger?"

Azula went rim-rod stiff when she heard that, her mind going back to the Boiling Rock.

(Flashback)

"Three years ago, there was this girl I liked." He gave a bitter chuckle. "Like is probably too easy a word. I had a huge crush on her. But she thought I was an idiot and kept hitting me every time I came near her."

"Who was it?" She demanded in a growl.

"Relax, you haven't met her. You know the funny thing? I kept coming back and she still kept punching my lights out. That and she had eyes for someone else. When I came here, I had brought the memories of her rejections with me.

(End Flashback)

"You were the one who hit Naruto?" She all but snarled at the pink-haired shinobi. "You're the one who would beat him bloody anytime he came near you?" She began to generate lightning and pointed it at her. But before she could discharge it, Naruto grabbed her hand and redirected the lightning upwards into the sky.

"Azula, calm down," He ordered her, seeing the enraged look on her face.

"Why should I?" She replied angrily.

"Think, use your brain. If you attack them right now, we'll have an incident on our hands. And that's enough to have either one of the councils put bounties on our heads. If they make it large enough and give our whereabouts, it'll be safe to say that the bounty hunters will come after us even if we're in the Bending Countries."

"Oh, that'll be fun." June remarked sarcastically. "Instead of being the chaser, I'll end up being the one chased."

Azula began to calm down as she thought the facts through. "Alright, I get it." She told Naruto.

"Are you calm?" He asked.

"Yeah, I am."

"Good to know." He let go of her and turned to face Team Kakashi. "Here's what's going to happen: we're going to leave and you're not going to do anything to stop us."

"What's stopping us?" Sasuke demanded.

"The fact that I can signal your Fangirls to this location and watch as they try to capture you," He said with a straight face.

He went still, with a small look of horror on his face. "You're bluffing. You have no way of signaling them."

"You do realize that your Fangirls know how to operate a wireless radio, right? It's just a matter of finding the correct signal." He pulled out a radio to emphasize his point. "Bye." He turned around and walked away, the other members of his team following him.

Team Kakashi just watched as they left. "…Well, that went well." Sai commented. Nobody felt like telling him to shut up.

(Location: Naruto's house)

The next morning, as the sun rose, Naruto rose as well. He got out of the bed and put on workout clothes, which consisted of sweatpants and a tank-top. He made his way to the front door and was about to open it when a voice spoke from behind him. "Are you thinking of leaving without me?" Azula asked. He turned to face her. She was wearing black sweatpants and a black workout bra (which, in his humble opinion, worked on her).

"I'd figured you'd want a few more minutes of sleep." He replied.

"I'm a Firebender. When the sun rises, so do we."

"True, but even Firebenders get a few extra minutes of sleep."

"…I'm going to pretend you didn't say that."

"Alright, alright, I get it." He reached for the handle and opened the door. "Ladies first," He told her with a half-mocking bow. She threw him a look, but walked through the door. He followed behind her and closed the door behind him. "You ready?"

"Of course I am."

"Good." The two made their way down the staircase and onto the street. There were very few people out there with them, so they were effectively alone. After a few stretches, they started jogging.

They ran in silence for the first couple of miles. "You're not going to ask why I got mad last night, are you?" asked Azula, breaking the silence.

"No, I think I know why." He replied. "You remembered what I told you at Boiling Rock, right?"

"Yeah, I did."

"Are you going to do that every time you see her?"

"You don't need to worry, Naruto. I won't do anything unless she does."

"So instead of throwing the first punch, you'll just throw the second one, that about it?"

All she did was smile. "You know me all too well. Besides, if she throws the first punch, we won't get into trouble."

"Don't be so sure about that. The Civilian council might have entirely new members, but I'm willing to bet that there are a few of them who would use that potential incident to get us into trouble."

"That's true. Agni save us from politicians." She intoned jokily.

"Kami too," He replied, making the both of them laugh. They fell silent as they kept jogging through the village streets. They finally stopped in front of the Hokage building, panting lightly. They turned around and looked back at where they came. "Kick it up a notch?" He asked her.

"You read my mind." She answered. They ran in different directions and began to climb up the building in front of them. Once they had gotten to the top, they took off across the rooftops. Naruto had always enjoyed doing this as a kid, running across the rooftops. He had found even more enjoyable when he didn't use his chakra. He had continued to it do even after he came to the Bending Countries and had even got Azula to join him (he told her it was a form of training).

They raced across the rooftops, ducking under obstacles and leaping across building. Adrenaline was pumping hard through their bodies. To them, the jog was just the warm-up. This was the real workout. Soon, things began to blur together, but they didn't care. All that mattered to them was the thrill of the run, the urge to win, and the rooftops in front of them.

They landed in front of the door to the house, ending the race in a draw. "How many draws are we at now?" Azula asked as Naruto opened the door.

"Do you want an honest answer?"

"Please."

"I lost count about a year ago." He opened the door. The two of them walked into the house. "You can go wash up first."

"How gracious of you," She remarked drily. She headed towards the bathroom, leaving him alone in the front of the house. He went over to kitchen sink to wash the sweat off his face when he heard her call out. "Uh…Naruto? How does this thing work?"

"_Right, forget that she's never seen a shower before."_ He thought to himself. He made his way over to the bathroom. He opened the door and saw her standing in front of the shower. "It's not that hard, Azula." He told her. "You just do this." He walked over to the edge and grasped the handle. He pulled it upwards so it was just hot enough. "You should wait until the water gets to the right temperature before getting in." The water came on, hitting him full on. "Ah, damn it." He muttered to himself as he stood back up. "You got it?" He asked her.

"Oh yes, I do." She answered in a half-strangled voice, like she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

He went completely still. He had heard that tone of voice before. It was the same tone of voice any woman got when they saw him wet. He had also just been hit by a full blast of water coming out of the showerhead, so his hair was now all but dripping.

"Azula, close your eyes." He ordered. She did as she was told (albeit with a little reluctance). "I'm going to walk out of this room. Once you hear the door close, count slowly to five and then open your eyes." He made his way out of the room and closed the door.

He walked back to the living room and took out his book, along with his notes. He worked on them as he heard the shower go. It lasted awhile, until he heard the shower turn off and the bathroom door open. He heard Azula walked out of the bathroom and back to the bedroom. Then all was silent in the house.

The silence ended when Azula, fully clothed, walked back into the living room. "Sorry about that, Naruto." She said, looking a bit embarrassed.

"You don't need to apologize. But you do realize now why I had those deadbolt locks installed, right?" He asked.

"Yes, I do. It's just that…you know. You were…"

"Dripping water? Honestly, I still don't see why women get like that whenever that happens, I am not that good-looking."

"_That's a lie."_ She thought silently to herself. _"It's amazing, after all the attention he's gotten from women and Fangirls, he still believes that."_

He closed the book and put the notes away. "I'll go clean up." He walked away towards the bathroom. He locked the door behind him after walking in and took off his workout clothes before stepping into the shower. He turned on the water and stood there as it pounded down on him.

"**You know, if that had been one of your Fangirls, I would've been laughing."** Kyuubi stated.

"_That would not be a funny thing."_ He replied silently.

"**For me, it would."**

"_Of course it is."_

"**So, why exactly haven't you taken her yet?"**

"_What are you talking about? Taken who?"_

"**Don't play dumb with me, gaki. Why haven't you taken Azula to bed yet?"**

"_In case you haven't noticed, we've been to bed, several times actually."_

"**What did I just say about playing dumb?"**

"_Look, fox. Just because I have a girlfriend, doesn't mean we have to have sex every five minutes."_

"**I did not say anything about every five minutes. I mean, what's the big deal? You're not a virgin."**

If he had been walking, that would've been the moment he would trip over nothing._ "How the hell do you know that?"_ He demanded.

"**Kit, remember where I live."**

"_So you were watching the entire time!?"_

"**No, I was asleep. I just looked through your memories the next day. Kami, was I surprised at what I saw."**

"_You're not going to tell anyone about that!"_

"**Who the hell would I tell? I'm stuck inside you!"**

He forced himself to calm down. _"Well, if that's the case…"_

"**Back to my original question, why haven't you slept with Azula?"**

"_I'm only sixteen, Kyuubi. I don't need to go that far right away with her."_

"**Which is ironic, considering how old you were when you****—****"**

"_We are not talking about that!"_

"**Ah! There is no need to shout!"**

"_Then don't bring that up!"_

"**Alright, alright, just answer my question already."**

"_I already did."_ The rest of the shower was spent in silence. Once he was done, he left and quickly changed into his clothes. He walked out into the living room and saw Azula was sitting on the couch. "Did you eat already?"

"Why would I when I have a very good chef at my disposal?" She asked with a small amount of humor.

He smiled at her and gave a formal half-bow. "Your wish is my command, Princess." He walked over to the kitchen and quickly made breakfast. The two of them sat down to eat, talking about random things. When they were done, Naruto washed and Azula put away.

Just as they were finishing up, someone knocked on the door. "It's opened." Naruto called out. The door opened and Jiraiya stepped through. "Is it time to start already?"

He nodded. "Tsunade wants you and your team in her office. I'm to escort you two there."

"Despite what you may think, F. S.-sensei, I do know my way to the Hokage office."

"I know you do, but I want to talk to you on the way there."

He looked at him. "Of course you do." Both he and Azula walked out the front door and Jiraiya followed them. "So, what do you want to talk about?" He asked the Toad Sage as they started walking down the street, lighting a cigarette and taking a drag.

"I heard you ran into Team Kakashi last night."

"How'd you hear about that?"

"I have my sources." He answered cryptically. "How did it go?"

"How do you think it went?" He asked back. "It was the same thing with the other teams. They want me to come back; they're trying to protect me, blah, blah, etc. etc."

"Be nice, Naruto."

"That was being nice."

"How did Azula know to get the other members of your team?"

"That would be telling." He said with a smirk.

"Tell." He ordered shortly.

"No, I don't think I will."

"Would you like another training session?"

He held his hands up in mock-surrender. "Alright, fine." He put the hands down. "Last night, Azula asked if she wanted me to have her make dinner."

"So? That doesn't tell me anything."

"There's a reason why we try to stop Azula from cooking, or at the least, find some good cover."

"Do you want me to send you flying?" Azula threatened him, fist covered in blue fire.

"Would you relax? It's the truth and we both know it. Besides, you like what I cook for you."

"Flatter." She replied, but with a small smile. She put the fist down and extinguished the fire.

"So you knew something was up once she offered to cook?" Jiraiya asked him.

"Yep, once that was in place, we started to say something one thing, but mean another. For example: last night I asked her if she remembered where the clones put the pots and other what not. She told me that the pots were to her left, the pans were to her right and the other stuff was in the shelf above her."

"In other words," Azula continued. "There was one person outside the house on my left, one on my right, and the rest were directly in front of me."

"Huh, that's fairly impressive." The Toad Sage admitted.

"Thank you." The two said together.

"Don't do that. But still, you'll have to at least get along with your former teammates."

"I know that. Why do you think I stopped Azula from shooting a bolt of lightning through Sakura?"

"Yeah, I heard about that."

"You hear about a lot of things." He said sarcastically.

"That's my job, have you forgotten?" He replied with equal sarcasm before turning to Azula. "Why would you try to fry Sakura? You've never even met the woman." He asked as they entered the Hokage building.

"No, but Naruto told me about what she did to him." She answered with a small growl.

"Well, you're going to have to get along with each other." He said as they walked through the building towards Tsunade's office.

"Why?" Naruto asked as they stood outside the door to her office. He opened the door and saw Tsunade sitting at her desk. Sokka, Akela, Suki, and June were there, as well as Team Kakashi. "…This idea had better been planned before last night's adventure, otherwise one of you two have lost a few IQ points." He accused both Jiraiya and Tsunade.

"Just get in here, gaki." Tsunade told him. "Now, what exactly is your name for your team?"

"We seriously have to come up with one?" He asked as he, Azula, and Jiraiya walked into the room. Seeing an ashtray on the desk, he walked forward and stubbed the cigarette out in it.

"It's for the mission record. Should I have you known as Team Avatar?"

"No, the idiot isn't here."

"Who are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about Aang." He said with exasperation. "If somebody didn't keep an eye on him, he would be doing something stupid all the time."

"That's a little mean, Naruto." Suki accused him.

"It's still the truth. Besides, you guys didn't exactly stop him on a few of those occasions."

"Just call us Team Paragon; all four of us are in it." June told her.

"Good name." Sokka complimented her.

"I try."

"Alright then, the five of you are now Team Paragon."

"What's the mission?" Naruto asked, becoming all business.

"Do you remember your mission to the Land of Snow while you were still with Team Kakashi?" The Hokage asked him.

"Yes, we escorted Koyuki Kazahana back to her homeland to film a movie and helped her overthrow her uncle in the process."

"Busy day?" asked Sokka.

"Just a little bit," He answered.

"There is reason to believe there is more to Dotō's revolt than originally believed." Jiraiya told them.

"According to what little information we know, the Akatsuki somehow funded the revolt and kept a low-level presence there." Tsunade said.

"And this Dotō didn't care about them?" Suki asked.

"My uncle couldn't have cared if they had run the country for him." A woman's voice said from behind them. "He only cared on finding my father's treasure."

Naruto turned to face the newcomer. "Lady Koyuki." He greeted formally.

"Hello again, Naruto," She greeted in return, along with a warm smile.

"How did the movie turn out?"

"Quite well, as did the next one."

"You mean you actually perform in that movie?"

"Yes, she did." Kakashi said in a semi-dreamy voice. "She did a magnificent job."

"Shut up, you perverted Cyclops. I wasn't talking to you."

"There's no need to be rude, Naruto." Koyuki told him. "It wasn't that bad."

"I hope you'll forgive me if I have a hard time believing that."

"Why do you have a hard time believing it, gaki?" Jiraiya asked.

He looked him straight in the eye. "She starred in a movie that was based on one of your books. It would've been a miracle if they managed to make it something other than a porno."

"Are you disrespecting my work?"

"Of course I am! You're a Super Pervert, why would I respect your work?"

"As entertaining as this conversation is, can we please get back to the mission briefing?" Tsunade asked pointedly.

"Fine, what are we going to be doing?"

"The two teams here are to escort Lady Koyuki to the capital of the Land of Fire and protect her."

"What's she doing in the capital?" Azula asked.

"I'm finalizing a new trade agreement with the Fire Daimyo." Koyuki answered her. "It will allow the trade system between our countries to grow, while also evening out the exchange rate."

"It'll also allow Konoha shinobi to infiltrate Yukigakure and take control." Jiraiya continued.

"Let me guess, that's where the Akatsuki had the low-level presence?" Sasuke asked.

"It's a possibility." Tsunade answered. "That is why a second team is going. While one team protects the daimyo, the other will be on the lookout."

"On the lookout for what?" asked Sai.

"According to what scant information my sources have managed to dig up, there might be a chance that the Akatsuki will try to assassinate Lady Koyuki." Jiraiya told them.

"They're going to send one of their members to kill her?" Suki asked.

"Probably not, ever since the Chūnin Exams, we have reason to believe that there is more to the Akatsuki then originally believed."

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked.

"They revealed themselves to be in control of Amegakure."

"…Clever," He admitted after a paused silence.

"What do you mean?" Sokka asked.

"If the Akatsuki are the ones leading Amegakure, then that means they probably control the daimyo of that country. That, in turn, means they have access to diplomatic immunity."

"Somehow, I don't think diplomatic immunity is going to protect nine S-class missing-nin, dobe." Sasuke told him.

"It's not them who will have it, they don't need it." He replied curtly. "If that country sends out ambassadors to other countries, there's no legal way to find out if they are with the Akatsuki or not. They'd be protected."

"You're right. That is clever." Sokka admitted.

"And given the fact that Ame, and by extension, the country, has adopted a heavy isolation policy, we don't know if the Akatsuki has complete control over the country." Tsunade added. "That is why you're going to try to use this potential assassination to your advantage."

"Snag the assassin and pump him for information?" June asked before smiling. "Just the way I like it."

"Good to hear. Team Paragon will act as the daimyo's guard; Team Kakashi will look for the assassin and get information."

"Bad idea," Both Sokka and Naruto said at the same time, earning looks from everyone else there.

"And why is that?"

"From what I know, Team Kakashi is fairly well known in these lands." Sokka explained. "You've got Sharingan no Kakashi (Kakashi of the Sharingan), the Konoha no Sakura Hō-ō (Konoha's Cherry Blossom Phoenix), and the Kurojishi no Sharingan (Black Lion of the Sharingan). If they go hunting for information, odds are that the assassin will find out."

"You do realize we know the **Henge** jutsu, right?" Sakura asked him.

"There's more to it than that. Besides, if the Akatsuki did have a presence in the Land of Snow, they would've noticed you, even if you were using the **Henge**. If the assassin finds out you're fishing for information in the same timespan that Koyuki and the Fire Daimyo are together, they'll probably be able to connect the dots."

"So what do you suggest, Sokka?" Koyuki asked him.

"We switched the teams. Team Kakashi will stay with the daimyo while Team Paragon hunts for information. If the assassin isn't one of the S-class shinobi, then I doubt they will recognize us."

"But they will know dickless the moment they see him." Sai said. "The Akatsuki will try to find him if he reveals himself."

"Sai, I just have one thing to tell you." Naruto told him.

"And what's that?"

"The next time you call me dickless, you'll be flying through a window." He said with a fake cheerful smile. But everyone (even Sai) could tell he meant every word of what he said. "Besides, I'll be able to be there and the Akatsuki would be none the wiser."

"How?" asked Suki.

"You'll see when we get there."

"Very well, Team Paragon will be the shadow team and Team Kakashi will be the public team." Tsunade said with a tone of finality. "Reconvene at the gates within two hours. You are dismissed." The two teams walked out of the room, along with Koyuki.

(Location: Konoha gates)

Sasuke and Sakura walked up to the gates of Konoha, packed and ready for the mission. "Well, look who's here, it's the married couple." June remarked from atop Nyla.

"We're not married." Sasuke told her shortly.

"Although I'm sure Sakura would love that to be true." Naruto remarked as he leaned against one of the giant gates, cigarette in his mouth. He wore a black traveling cloak over his clothes with the hood.

"That's not funny, Naruto." Sakura told him. "Besides, I've grown out of that."

He stared at her, pulled out a shuriken, held it up in the air, and let go of it, letting it fall to the ground. "Sakura's not a Fangirl anymore." He said to himself. "It's the end of the world."

"Now, that's not nice, Naruto." Kakashi told him as he and Sai joined them.

"It's still the truth."

"We have to work with these people, Naruto." Sokka said from where he stood, Akela at his side. The wolf was currently sniffing the air, observing new scents.

"I'm well aware of that."

"Then at least try to get along with them."

"This _is_ me getting along with them. If I didn't want to get along with them, either I'd be gone or they'd be dead."

"Gaki, behave." Jiraiya told him.

"I _am_ behaving." He took a drag and blew out the smoke. "When is Koyuki showing up?"

"She should be here soon enough."

"Actually, I think I see her coming up now." Azula said, getting everyone's attention.

"I apologize if I was late." Koyuki said as she walked up to them.

"You weren't." Suki reassured.

"Hey, where are the guards or the servants? I'd thought you would have had them, since you're a daimyo." Sokka asked.

She shook her head. "I came here with Lord Gaara during the Chūnin Exams and I've stayed in Konoha since. I've been talking to the Fire Daimyo via messengers, so this will be the first time we'll be talking about the trade agreement face-to-face."

"And nobody back home is panicking about where you went?" Naruto asked her.

"Everyone who needs to know where I am does know."

"Is everyone here?" Jiraiya asked, looking around and counting heads.

"Yes." They all answered.

"Good. Due to the fact that we're escorting Lady Koyuki, we cannot take to the trees. This'll make the journey to the capital about five days long. I want you all to be on alert. I don't care if we're on the road, at camp, or in the capital, never let your guard down, got it?"

"We got it, F.S.-sensei." Naruto told him.

"Then let's move out!" They all started walking away from the village and for Team Paragon, their first mission in the Elemental Countries.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Now, I know that there are some of you who wanted Naruto and Team Kakashi to come straight to blows right off the bat, but honestly, that's too easy and too boring. Besides, Naruto would only do that if he was still the same knuckleheaded idiot from before. And since he's not, why would I write it like that? I'm going to use a little thing call "tension" between him and the team. It'll keep the interactions between them entertaining. Who knows, it might just come to a head.

As for the Fangirls of Sasuke, I'm pretty sure they know how to communicate with each other discreetly. They live in a shinobi village, even if they aren't shinobi themselves, they're bound to pick up a _few_ things. And it honestly looks like handling a wireless radio isn't difficult. Hell, ten says they have their own channel.

If you want to know more about Naruto not being a virgin, you'll just have to wait. But I will say this: when we actually get to talking about it, there will be no flashbacks. So if you're hoping for an actual description of what happened, tough shit.

I'm well aware of the fact that Koyuki is from a movie and not the manga. I brought her in so I could build on what happened to her (i.e. her uncle taking over the Land of Snow). What happened to her in her past just seemed a little too straightforward. I mean, her uncle just pulls off a revolt just because he wanted to find a treasure his brother made (which turns out to be a heat generator) and rule over the country? That sounds like something of a B movie.

For the record, I am not bringing in any of the anime arcs (the Land of Birds, the Land of Vegetables, etc. etc.). I can understand why the writers put in those arcs, but the fact that they're now putting filler episodes in the anime annoys the hell out of me. The manga is a complete arc ahead of the anime; they don't need to put in anymore filler episodes! Can we please get back to the actual anime already?! For the love of God, the _video games_ are farther ahead than the anime!

Quite a few of you thought that the members of Akatsuki were going to get diplomatic immunity was a stupid move on my part. Did I ever say it was for the members the shinobi know about? No! They're in control of an entire village, they don't have send out the known members to that kind of thing, that's what the Ame shinobi and politicians are for! Personally, I'd like to think that there was more to the Akatsuki then those ten members (and yes, I'm counting Orochimaru).

I'll see you all next chapter!


	49. Splitting Up and Looking Around

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 49: Splitting Up and Looking Around

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Land of Fire capital)

The group walked through the gates of the capital. "Huh, not exactly what I was expecting." Azula commented.

"What were you expecting? More red?" asked Naruto.

"Yes."

"Just because we're in the capital of the Land of Fire, doesn't mean all of it has to be red."

"I am well aware." She replied drily.

"Are the two of you done?" Jiraiya asked.

"Yeah, just about," Naruto replied.

"Then the five of you…" Akela growled and Nyla hissed. "Sorry, the _seven_ of you should get going. I'll stay with Team Kakashi and Koyuki."

"Right, we'll see you when we see you." Team Paragon walked away, Naruto pulling the hood over his head as they did so. Soon, they disappeared within the crowd in the streets.

"Well, I guess we'd better head to the Fire Daimyo's palace." Kakashi said. They walked away from the gates in a different direction.

Even though Kakashi, Jiraiya, and Koyuki talked to one another, the other three members didn't. Sai didn't talk because he didn't feel the need to. Sasuke and Sakura, however, didn't speak because of something else. They had been like that ever since the day before.

(Flashback)

They walked down the road, slowly making their way to their destination. "Ugh." June groaned. "Can I just go ahead and meet you guys there? It's getting more and more tedious waiting on you all."

"Do you know the way to the capital, June?" Naruto asked her.

"No."

"Then stop complaining and keep on moving. Hell, even Nyla is complaining less than you are."

She gave him a half-hearted glare, but didn't say anything. She just urged the shirshu she was riding on forward. The rest of them just kept walking as well. As they did, Jiraiya walked up beside Naruto. "Hey, how long are you going to keep this up?" He asked.

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about you and Team Kakashi. You haven't spoken to them for the past four days and every time they've tried to do so with you, you either ignore them or walk away."

"I'm just trying to focus on the mission."

"The mission hasn't even started yet, gaki. You'll have to talk to them eventually."

"I'll talk to them when I have to and only when it concerns the mission."

"And you'll just talk to the others about anything thing else, that about it?"

"It's a perfect solution, right?" He got slapped upside the back of his head. "Ow!"

"It is not a perfect solution." The Toad Sage said with frustration. "They may not be your teammates anymore, but you are still working with Team Kakashi. You need to interact with them."

"No, I do not."

"Yes, you do!" All he got for a response was Naruto walking away from him. He gave an annoyed growl but didn't go after him.

"Is it really that bad?" Koyuki asked as she walked up beside him.

"It could be worse." He admitted quietly. "If he had the same temper from three years ago, they would've already come to blows. But he's just keeping it to silence and generally ignoring them, despite their efforts to talk to him."

"I've seen it too; he pretends to be busy so he has a reason to ignore them. They're just trying to talk to him, why would he try to avoid that?"

"If Naruto had his way, he would've let the Elemental Countries hang and stayed on the other side of the planet."

"Then why hasn't he?"

"Partly because I forced him into a deal, but also partly because he knows that if the Akatsuki achieve their goal, they won't stop with the Elemental Countries."

"So he isn't here to save us, he's here to protect the Bending Countries."

"That's about it." He sighed. "You know, there are some days when I wish the old Naruto was back. Kami, do I miss that annoying little brat."

"You do realize I can hear you, right?" Naruto asked from in front of them, making them flinch slightly. Before he could say anything else, a group of men appeared out of the trees and stood in front of them.

"Hands up where we can see'em!" One of the men shouted.

"And why should we do that?" Azula asked.

"Are you stupid or something? Put them up!" The man screamed. "This is a robbery. We'll be taking all of your valuables."

"And the women, of course," Another man said, leering at Koyuki.

"I think I'll bring this one along as well." A fat, ugly-looking man declared as he walked up to Sokka. "He's a pretty one." He said with a grin as he placed the tip of his knife on his cheek.

"It looks like Tatsu's found another toy!" The first man said aloud, earning catcalls from the other supposed robbers.

"I'm gonna enjoy breaking you." The aforementioned Tatsu told him, tapping the knife against his cheek. "Soon, you'll be begging for me."

"I doubt it." Sokka replied calmly.

"That's what they all say at first." He said with a greasy chuckle. "Now, I wonder how big you are." He brought his free hand downwards.

"I recommend you don't do that." He said as the hand was just about to grab his crotch.

"And why's that?"

"If you do, my sword's going to end up in your throat."

"Oh, I'm sure it will, but it'll be my 'sword' that's going to be in your thro—" He didn't finished the sentence, due to the fact that Sokka whipped his weapon out of its scabbard and plunged it into his throat. He pulled it out and the dead man fell to the ground.

"And for the record, I have a girlfriend." He told the corpse. The rest of the would-be robbers stared at him in shock.

"Nice going there, Sokka." Naruto complimented him. "Now there're only nine of them left."

"I noticed, Naruto."

"So, how's about we just kill the rest of them?"

"Sounds like a plan to me. Akela, stay out of this one." He told the wolf, who just yawned with boredom.

"Alright, you take the four on the left; I'll take the five on the right."

"Hang on, why do I get four and you get five?"

"You already killed one, that's why."

As they talked, the robbers had gotten over their shock. "Do you really think the two of you will be able to beat us?" The second robber asked.

"Actually, I think it's going to be quite easy." He turned to face the Water Paragon. "So, how do you wanna do this?"

"First one finished wins?" He suggested.

"Sounds good to me," He dropped into a stance. Before anyone could say anything, the two attacked the rest of the robbers.

As they watched, everyone realized that attack would've been too mild a word. They _tore_ into the robbers. Sokka was using his Zanpakutō to effortlessly cut off limbs or decapitate them. Naruto had taken an Earthbending stance and was using it to shatter bones. He'd kick or punch an opponent so hard; the snapping of their bones was loud enough for everyone to hear. But whoever he was fighting (and breaking their bones), didn't have the chance to scream, because that's when he killed them.

Eventually, they had killed almost every single one of the robbers. There was only one left, a boy around their age. He looked at the two of them with nothing but fear in his eyes. Realizing that his death was imminent, he tried to run away, tears running down his face as he screamed with fear. But he didn't run away from the group, he ran towards it. He ran through them and had just gotten clear of Sasuke and Sakura when a kunai flew through the air and buried itself in the back of his head, killing him.

The two Konoha shinobi just stared at the dead body falling to the ground. "If the two of you were just going to stand there, the least you could've done was stop him." Naruto told them curtly as he walked up to the corpse and reached down to pull the kunai. "But I guess even you two will freeze up, even if you're both a Chūnin and a Jōnin." He said the last part mockingly as he pulled out the kunai and walked away, lighting a cigarette as he went.

The two of them just stared at his back. They had indeed frozen up, but not because of the fight. They had frozen up because they saw Naruto effortlessly kill five men on his own. The knuckleheaded idiot they had known who would always somehow be able to save a person's life had been replaced with someone who could, and would, kill without hesitation.

(End Flashback)

"Sakura, Sasuke, what's the matter?" Kakashi asked them, bringing them back to the present.

"It's nothing, Kakashi-sensei." Sakura told him. "We were just remembering yesterday."

"Ah…I see."

"I take it that he didn't act like that before?" Sai asked them.

"What gave it away?" Sasuke replied with blatant sarcasm. "I know he wasn't above killing his enemy, but still…" He trailed off, remembering what happened.

"Well, that's what happens when you fight in a war." Jiraiya remarked. "Even someone like Naruto would be changed by that."

"We know that." Sakura told him. "It's just that…we still see the old Naruto in him, but every time he does something different, it gets smaller."

"Kid, you're deluding yourself. Whatever is left of the old Naruto is too small to see, even with the **Sharingan**."

"But Lord Jiraiya, you've said it yourself, you miss the old Naruto as well." Koyuki said to him.

"Just because I miss the old Naruto, doesn't mean I hope he'll come back."

"You're still lucky, Lord Jiraiya." Kakashi told him. "Naruto opens up more to you more than anyone else in Konoha."

"If that's what you think, I must be doing better than I thought, because it feels like he hasn't opened up to me at all."

(Location: Team Paragon)

They made their way silently through the streets, people avoiding them because of the big shirshu. "So, what's our plan?" June asked as she walked beside Nyla, making sure he didn't spontaneously attack anyone (or Naruto).

"Jiraiya gave us the names of his informants who came up with the information." Naruto told her, his head and face still covered by the hood. "We'll have to go and talk to them."

"How do we get their attention?" Sokka asked.

"We'll have to ask for a non-existent Icha-Icha novel."

"…We have to ask for a what?"

"You heard me."

"Does such a concept actually exist?" Azula asked, somewhat mystified (who wouldn't?).

"Apparently," He answered as he pulled out a piece of paper and looked at its contents. "The Fucking Sadist gave me this. It's a couple of addresses. Each one has a title with it, so odds are that's the title we ask for."

"Where do we go first?" Suki asked.

"Actually, it's not going to be all of us."

"What do you mean?" Sokka asked him.

"One of us will deal with one informant. If the same person keeps going to see them, we'll be bound to be found out." He looked over at the bounty hunter in the group. "June, see if you can go find a place for us, it'll be weird to see people coming out of the Fire Daimyo's palace only to head for the lower-class places constantly."

"And why do I have to do it?" She asked.

"You're the one who's got Mr. Big, Furry, and Ugly." He said, casually ducking to avoid Nyla's tongue.

"Easy there, Nyla." She told the shirshu, stroking his fur. "Naruto, would you please stop insulting him?"

"I'll stop insulting him when he stops trying to kill me."

"But he keeps trying to kill you because you keep insulting him."

He shrugged. "Then I guess we're at an impasse." Both Sokka and Akela rolled their eyes in unison.

She gave a small groan. "Fine, whatever, I'm going to find a place." She started to walk away, leading Nyla along as well. "Don't blame me if it's near a tavern! I need a drink!" She called back to them.

"That would be better, thank you!" He shouted in return.

"Isn't she going to get lost?" Suki asked.

"I hope not, she has a map."

"So do you know where to go?" Azula asked him.

"Yes. Thankfully, I bought two maps."

"Then who has it?"

"Who else would have it?" He pointed his thumb at Sokka, who pulled out said map. "Lead the way, map guy."

"That's Mr. Map Guy to you, pal." He said half-jokingly.

"Odd, I would've called you Doctor Map Guy."

"Oh, thank you. I didn't realize I had gotten the honor."

"Will the two of you knock it off?" Suki asked them. "We have a job to do."

"Alright, alright, Naruto, hand me the address paper, would ya?" The Fire Paragon hand him the paper. "…Okay, I think I know where to go." He made a turn at the street corner and the others followed. He walked quickly through the streets, checking the map once in a while to make sure he hadn't gotten lost. Even though he walked fast, the others were still able to stay with him. "This looks like the right spot." He declared, stopping in front of a store.

The others stopped as well and looked at the store. "Are you sure this is right place?" Azula asked him.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Trust me, I wasn't exactly expecting this either."

"I'd thought it would've been a brothel or a hot springs." Suki commented.

"Actually, if I'm reading the addresses and the map right, that would've been the next place to go to."

"You know, if you think about it for a minute, it's not that surprising, really." Naruto said. "Anyway, I'll be the one to make contact with the informant. Sokka, cover the entrance with Akela. Suki, keep an eye on anyone and everyone else in there. Azula, try to stay close to me, but don't make it obvious. Anyone got any questions?" The others shook their heads. "Then let's get to it." They spilt up and, one at a time, causally walked into the bookstore.

Naruto paid no attention to the others as he walked up to the counter. "Excuse me." He said to the person working the counter.

"Yes? Can I help you?" The teenager asked.

"I'm looking for a particular book and I was told that it was sold here."

"That's possible, do you know the title?"

"Icha-Icha: Feral Love."

The teenager frowned. "I haven't heard of that one." He admitted. "Are you sure that's the correct title?"

"Yes."

"Hang on a moment. Let me go talk to the owner." He walked away from the counter and towards what looked to be the door to the backroom, opening the door and sticking his head through it. "Hey boss, could you come out here?"

A middle-aged man who looked like he enjoyed food came through the door. "What is it?" He asked.

"I have a customer who's asking for a book I've never heard before." He gestured towards Naruto.

He made an exasperated noise. "Very well, I'll take care of this." He walked up to the counter. "I apologize for this, sir."

"It's not a problem." Naruto assured him.

"Could you please tell me the title of the book you're looking for?"

"Icha-Icha: Feral Love."

Although he kept a pleasant look on his face, the owner's eyes went flat. "Would that be in paperback or hardback, sir?"

"Paperback, if you have it."

"I believe there is a copy in the back. If you will follow me…" He turned around and walked back through the door. Naruto briefly signaled the others to stay put before following him. They walked into the backroom and into the main office. Once they were in, the owner locked the door behind him. "You may know the passphrases, but I don't know you."

"Of course you don't." He replied, pulling the hood down.

The owner looked at him. "…So, you're the kid he kept talking about. The one everyone was looking for."

"Did he tell you that we were coming?"

He nodded. "I assumed that he would be here with you."

"He's with the other team. He'd figured to stay within the public view."

"Makes sense," He acknowledged. "Are the other three and the wolf with you?"

"Yes."

"Are they trustworthy?"

"I trust them and so does Jiraiya."

"Good enough." He walked over to the desk and sat down behind it.

"Have you heard anything new?" Naruto asked, walking up to the front of the desk.

He shook his head. "Not really. What I've heard has been mostly repeated. There is a possibility that the Akatsuki might try to have the Spring Daimyo killed, but that's about it."

"Are you sure you haven't heard anything new?"

"Well…I did hear something about the hit might possibly happen during the upcoming dance, but I can't be sure."

"What dance?" He asked, looking up.

"The Fire Daimyo is supposedly going to throw a formal dance for the Spring Daimyo soon. I guess it's to celebrate the trade agreement or something like that." He gave a small snort. "Our ruler would celebrate the dropping of a hat."

"You don't like the Daimyo?" He asked, keeping his tone neutral.

"No one in the capital likes the Daimyo. The man is a complete idiot. He makes his decisions based on what his advisors tell him; whoever is the most convincing gets his approval. And when it comes to important things, he leaves it to his advisors."

"_That has got to be the most idiotic way of ruling a country I have ever heard of. And I'm also counting Ba Sing Se!"_ He thought to himself.

"**No kidding." **Kyuubi agreed. **"Ozai and Long Feng might have been greedy, controlling assholes who didn't give a damn about anything else except their power, but at least they knew how to rule a country."**

"If everyone dislikes the Daimyo, why haven't you overthrown him or something?" He asked the owner.

"Mostly because his advisors are able to deal with any potential damage his decisions create. But if you want an actual answer, we're just waiting for his daughter to take over."

"That's it? How old is the daughter?"

"Didn't Jiraiya ever tell you that it was rude to ask a lady her age?" He asked with a slightly amused look.

"That's only if you're asking the lady herself. Besides, we're talking about the man who peeps on naked women regularly and is _still_ not dead."

He chuckled. "You're right about that."

"But you still haven't answered my question."

"I know I didn't. You just need to know that the Daimyo's daughter is shaping up to be a much better ruler then her father. If she were to try and overthrow him, the people here in the capital would probably look the other way."

"…That would be the first time I've heard something like that ever happen."

"You know what they say, kid. There's a first time for everything."

"True enough. Are you sure there isn't any new information?"

"If there was, I would've told you."

"Then my team and I will be going then." He turned around and walked for the door.

"Are you sure you don't want to buy a book?" He asked as he stood up and walked over to the door as well, unlocking it.

"I don't know about my teammates, but I'm fine." He answered as he walked out of the office, pulling the hood back up.

"That's a pity."

(Location: Team Kakashi)

They had a brief meeting with the Fire Daimyo, in which he waved them away within ten minutes. For Sasuke and Sakura, that was the first time they had actually met the Daimyo and were a little surprised by him.

"Is he always like that?" Sakura asked as they walked down the hallway towards their rooms.

"Pretty much," Jiraiya answered. "You have to make your point quickly when you're talking to him, otherwise he'll get bored."

"That doesn't really seem like a good way to rule a country."

"He's still the Daimyo. We have to make do with what we got."

"How on earth did the Sandaime deal with him?" Sasuke asked.

"With a lot of patience and a lot of fast talking," He answered. "But mostly, he dealt with the advisors."

"And that's what Lady Tsunade has to deal with now?" Koyuki asked.

"Yes, it is. Truth be told, it was a lot easier when his wife was alive."

"Hold on, I thought Madam Shijimi was his wife." Sakura pointed out.

"We're here." Kakashi announced as he opened the door to the set of rooms they had been given. "Sasuke, Sai, Lord Jiraiya, and I will take the room on the right. Lady Koyuki will take the room in the back and Sakura will take the room next to her." He ordered as they walked into the first room, closing the door behind him.

They moved quickly to put their stuff in the room they had been given, working methodically and effortlessly, Koyuki a little less so than the others (Daimyo, not shinobi). As they did so, there was a knock on the door. Both Sasuke and Sakura moved to either side of the door, hands hanging over a readied weapon. Sai hung back, hiding himself in the room's shadows.

Koyuki slowly walked over to the door and opened the door, revealing a woman who looked to be in her early twenties. "Lady Koyuki?" She asked.

"Yes. You are?" Koyuki asked in return.

"My name is Miki. I'm the daughter of the Fire Daimyo and the person who you've been communicating with about the trade agreement."

She frowned. "I thought I was communicating with the Fire Daimyo about that."

"My idiot of a father doesn't care about it. He just passed it on to his advisors, who told me about it. Honestly, it's probably better that I was talking to you." She looked around the room and saw both Kakashi and Jiraiya. "Lord Jiraiya, it's good to see you again." She greeted him.

"It's good to see you again as well, Miki." He told her.

"Were you able to find the one you were looking for?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

"How is that unfortunate? I thought you would've been happy to have finally found him."

"It has to do with how I found him and where he was all this time."

"I don't understand."

"If you ever meet him, you will."

"I'll take your word for it." She looked at both sides of the door. "…Why exactly are the two of you standing like that?"

"We're hired to protect Lady Koyuki, your Highness." Kakashi told her. "Both Sakura and Sasuke are only doing their jobs."

"Well, I'm not about to kill the person who the Land of Fire is about to sign a trade agreement with, so they can relax."

"Sasuke, Sakura, stand down." He told them. They did so, but kept their hands ready.

"Thanks." She turned back to face Koyuki. "May I come in?" She asked her.

"Please, by all means." She replied, stepping back away from the door.

"Thanks." She walked into the room. "Sorry for deceiving you about the trade agreement."

"I'm just glad that it was being taken seriously. But why did the Daimyo pass it to his advisors?"

"I already told you, my father is an idiot, and that's being polite. If he does get into something, his advisors have to make sure that he doesn't do too much damage."

"That's not a nice thing to say about your father, Miki." Jiraiya told her.

"It's still the truth, Lord Jiraiya." She gave a little sigh. "Sheesh, it was better when my mother was alive."

Sasuke and Sakura shared a look. "Isn't Madam Shijimi your mother?" Sakura asked.

"…You honestly think that fat bitch of a woman is my mother?" She asked with a scoff. "What the hell made you think that?"

"Well…she is the Daimyo's wife."

"Yeah, she's his _second_ one. And all she cares about is that Kami-forsaken cat!"

"Which every Genin team in Konoha knows quite well," Sasuke remarked drily.

She looked over at him. "You're that Uchiha kid, right?"

He briefly bowed his head. "Yes, your Highness."

"You know, Shijimi once tried to arrange a marriage contract between the two of us."

He was surprised by that, but managed to keep it off his face. "I was not aware of that."

She shrugged. "That's mostly because I gave her a black eye when she suggested the idea and threatened to kill her cat the next time she'd bring it up again."

"Not to be disrespectful, ma'am, but couldn't you have killed the cat instead?"

She laughed. "Oh, I like you." She turned back to face Koyuki. "Sorry, but I have to go. We can talk later; I'd just thought I'd introduce myself to you so you know what to expect when it came to the trade agreement."

"It's not a problem at all. Thank you for informing me." They watched as the daughter of the Fire Daimyo walked out of the set of rooms.

"Well, that was unexpected." Kakashi said after she had left. "I had no idea she was in charge of the trade agreement."

"You and I both know the Daimyo is an idiot, Kakashi." Jiraiya told him.

"Yes, but I assumed that the advisors were taking care of it."

"Well, they're not." He rubbed the back of his head. "She's becoming more like her mother every time I see her."

"I take it her mother was someone you knew?" Sai asked as he came out of the shadows.

"Anybody who knew the world of politics knew who she was."

"What do you mean, Lord Jiraiya?" Sakura asked him.

"Back when she was alive, Miki's mother was Daimyo all in but name."

"She ruled the Land of Fire?"

"Yes and no. The Daimyo was the official ruler, but all the power was with her. She called all the shots and it seems she taught what she knew to her daughter."

"What happened to her?" Sasuke asked.

"We were never quite sure. We knew that she had been murdered, but there was never an investigation. The Daimyo just waved us off whenever we asked about it; he kept telling us that it didn't matter."

"But that was his wife!" He said in outrage.

"And according to him, she was now a dead woman. Hell, he remarried within two weeks."

"Didn't he have a funeral for Miki's mother?" Sakura asked.

"Not one I was aware of, which is odd, considering the fact that a funeral of Daimyo, or their family, is always an event where the Hokage has to show up."

"When did she die?" Koyuki asked.

"Just about a year after the Kyuubi attacked the village."

"So the Fire Daimyo has been running the country for the better part of fifteen years. Given what you've all just told us, how exactly is it that the Land of Fire is not bankrupt?" Sasuke asked.

"Mostly because the advisors are very good at damage control," He answered with a straight face.

"Shouldn't we focus on the mission?" Sai asked them.

"There's not much we can do right now." Kakashi told him. "All we can do now is to wait for…Naruto and the others to pass us anything they can find." He said, having trouble saying his former student's name.

"Why don't we go look for the information ourselves? For all we know, the Jinchūriki is using this opportunity to escape from us and take his friends with him. We'll be left blind if he does."

"Naruto would never do that!" Sakura objected.

"I think we can all agree that either you or Uchiha aren't the experts on him anymore."

"He still wouldn't do that! He would never abandon his friends."

"In case you've forgotten, he doesn't consider you two his friends anymore."

Before things could come to blows, Jiraiya spoke up. "Kakashi, why don't you, Sasuke, Sakura, and Koyuki take a look around the palace? We're going to be spending a couple of days here, so you might as well get used to the location. I'm going to have a talk with Sai."

Kakashi caught the implications behind the Toad Sage's suggestion. "Understood, Lord Jiraiya," He replied, walking over to the door and opened it. "Sasuke, Sakura, Lady Koyuki, let's go." Sasuke and Sakura had also caught the implications and followed him. Koyuki also followed, understanding that if she'd stayed, she'd probably be caught in the crossfire.

"What is the matter, Lord Jiraiya?" Sai asked once the door was closed and the footsteps had faded from earshot.

"What are your orders concerning Naruto?" He bluntly asked.

"What are you talking about?" He asked back with his fake smile. "I don't have any orders that concern Naruto Uzumaki."

His response was to grab him by the neck and slam him into the wall (hard enough to hurt, but not enough to make a dent). "Don't give me that crap, Sai. We both know you're from Root and we both know that Danzō gave you orders about Naruto. So I will ask you again: what are your orders concerning Naruto?"

"…To observe him." He finally answered.

"What else?"

"If Konoha's interests are no longer his priority, then he is to be…'removed'."

"Then that's going to be a problem for you and Danzō. Naruto isn't here to act in Konoha's interests. So if you ever try to 'remove' him as you called it, you'll be making a very big mistake."

"How would I be doing that?"

He held up his free hand and began forming a **Rasengan**. "Because the moment you make a move against him, it'll be your last." He threatened the Root operative, holding the completed jutsu close to his face. "Are we clear?"

"Yes, sir," He answered. "We are clear."

"Good." The **Rasengan** dissipated as he released his grip. "Glad to know we understand each other." He turned around and started walking away. "We might as well go catch up with the others."

Sai just stared at his back in silence. "He left three years ago and had made no attempt to come back willingly. He's refused every single offer given to him by us. He makes his dislike of us and the village evident every time he talks to one of us. So why do you keep taking his side?" He asked.

He stopped walking, but didn't turn around to face him. "I wasn't a good godfather to him when he was younger. I'm trying to make up for it now."

"That's why you always go to his side? Because you trying to make up for what you failed to do?"

"That's my reason. I'm sure the others have their own." He started walking again. "Let's get going." He walked out of the room and Sai soon followed him.

(Location: Team Paragon)

They walked through the streets. "I'm new to this whole information hunting thing, so I don't know if our little trips were worth it or not." Sokka commented.

"They all pretty much gave us the same information." Azula replied. "We went to at least four different places and we were told the same thing every time. The only thing that was different was a couple of the details."

"They also told us that nobody in the capital likes the Fire Daimyo very much." Suki said.

"Can you blame them?" Naruto asked her. "I've never met the guy and I don't like him just by listening to how he rules. The Asshole might've bent on conquering his side of the planet, but at least he knew how to rule."

"Who's the Asshole?" Azula asked.

"Ozai," He answered.

"I thought he was the Royal Flaming Asshole."

"He's been stripped of his titles and thrown into jail, so I can't call him Royal. And his Firebending has also been taken from him, so I can't call him Flaming, hence, why he is the Asshole instead of the Royal Flaming Asshole."

"Well, that's nice, but we still have the same basic information from four different sources."

"That just means one thing." Naruto said.

"What?"

"We're going to have to look for new information on our own. Still, at least we have something to start with."

"What do you mean?" Suki asked him.

"Each informant told us that the Spring Daimyo will possibly be taken out at the upcoming dance, so all we have to do is ask around about said dance."

"Well, we can't do that in the slums and whatnot." Sokka remarked. "We'll have to ask around the higher-class places."

"Don't be so sure about that. Remember, the owner of the hot springs told Suki that if the Daimyo was going to be throwing a party, there's a good chance the rest of the city isn't going to be working. All we have to do is ask in the right places."

"Such as…?" Azula asked.

"Well for one, we ask the shopkeepers if they're going to be closing because of the dance. If they say yes, we then ask why and then pump them for details."

"We could also ask the taverns and bars if they're going to be staying open late or if they're going to lower the prices on drinks on the same day of the dance." Suki pointed out.

"Good point. There is also…" He trailed off when he noticed Azula looking straight ahead. "Azula, what's the matter?"

"June and Nyla are coming straight at us." They looked in the same direction as she did. Sure enough, both the bounty hunter and the shirshu were coming at full speed. Thankfully, the street wasn't that crowded, so anybody who would've been in their way got out of the way pretty fast.

"There you are!" June declared as she stopped Nyla in front of them. "You couldn't have stay in one spot."

"We had multiple people to talk to, June. You knew that." Sokka told her.

"Never mind that, just follow me!" She turned Nyla around and went off. The others shared a brief look with each other before going after her. She (and by extension, they) didn't stop until they were outside the capital's walls and into the nearby forest.

The others were able to keep track of her as they ran. By the time they had gotten to the forest, they were panting, some a little more than others. "Why exactly did we have to run out to the forest?" Suki asked as she tried to get her breath back.

"I just wanted to make sure we weren't being watched." She answered, sounding nervous.

"Why would we be watched?" Azula asked.

"I just want to be sure, okay?"

"June, what did you do?" Naruto asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

"I didn't anything!" She protested.

"June…"

"What makes you think she did something anyway, Naruto?" Sokka asked him.

"Mainly because she acts like this anytime she does something that's probably going to come back and bite her in the ass, or in this, our ass. So what did you do, June?" He asked.

"I…I might have gotten us involved in Koyuki's assassination."

There was a good fifteen seconds of silence before both Sokka and Suki said the mandatory "What!?"

Naruto, on the other hand, just took a deep breath and looked at her. "And how exactly did that happen?"

"All I did was walk into a tavern, get a drink, and started talking to someone, I swear." She told him.

(Flashback)

"Alright, Nyla, behave yourself." She told the shirshu, who only growled slightly in response. "That's a good shirshu." She turned around and walked into the tavern. As she walked up to the bar, everyone's attention was on her and not in the checking-her-out way. They were sizing her up as a potential threat. She didn't pay any attention to them; she was no novice to that particular dance routine. But she didn't care about that; all she wanted at that point was a drink. "Hey." She called as she sat down at the bar, getting the bartender's attention. "Got anything to drink?"

"What do you want?" The bartender asked.

"Tea, if you got it."

"Does this place look like it's a teashop to you?" He asked her, a warning tone in his voice.

"It looks like the place that'll give the customer what they want. Besides, I can see the kettle heating up." She replied, pointing her thumb at said kettle, which start to whistle. Without saying anything in response, the bartender walked over to the kettle, grabbed it, and started making tea. He poured her a cup and handed it to her. She put a couple of ryōs on the counter as she took the cup.

"Just so you know." A man said as he sat down next to her. "The only reason he asked if this place looked like a teashop was because the tea here isn't that good."

She took a sip of the tea. "I've had worse." She replied.

"If you say so," He told her with a grin. "By the way, I'm—"

"I don't know and I don't care. If you're trying to pick me up, just forget it."

"Whoa, a little harsh there, aren't ya?"

"Still true, isn't it?"

He laughed. "Don't worry, I wasn't serious. Actually, I was wondering what you were doing in town. You're not from around here, so people are curious."

"What gave it away?" She asked sarcastically, already knowing the answer.

"That creature out front," He answered. "Are you bounty hunter or something?"

"I like to think of myself as a well-travelled businesswoman." She replied with a smirk.

"Where're you from?"

"I'm from across the sea. My friends and I figured we could use a change of scene."

"And where are your friends?"

"They're out getting the lay of the land."

"Are they bounty hunters too?"

She thought it over for a brief moment as she took a sip. "I guess, among other things."

"So, why are you a bounty hunter? You got any personal reasons or something?"

"If I did, would I tell you? Besides, I'm just in it for the money."

"That's it?"

"My jobs pay well and I get some fun out of it. The bigger the amount of cash, the happier I am."

"In that case, I have a proposition for you."

"You say this to every strange girl you meet, or am I the exception?" She asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Actually, I'm being serious. You and your friends need money, right?"

She shrugged. "We do have cash, but we were going to check to see if there was an exchange rate around here."

"There isn't. Here, your money is completely useless. But I have a job offer that pays very well."

"Oh really? What's the job?"

"You said you were a bounty hunter, but have you ever done any assassinations?"

"A couple of times, when the bounty was wanted dead or alive and there was no way of taking him alive."

"What about your friends? Did any of them take any contracts?"

"Some of them might have, I never really bothered to ask." She put the cup down and looked over at him. "What's this all about anyway?"

"My boss has a job that'll pay a lot of money for an assassination and from what I've just heard, you and your friends are perfect for the job."

"Are you kidding? I just told you that I was a bounty hunter, not an assassin."

"But you've done a couple, so you're not a complete novice. Besides, you and your friends do this job and you'll be set for life."

"…I'll have to talk to the others and see what they think."

"That's fine by me. I'll be expecting your response by tomorrow. If you and your friends don't show up, I'll be disappointed."

"Un-huh," She said, standing up from the bar. "If we take this job, who are we targeting?"

"Ah, so you're interested."

"I didn't say that. I said 'if'. Who would we be targeting?"

He smiled as he stood and leaned closer to her ear. "My boss would want you to kill the Spring Daimyo." He whispered so no one else could hear them.

While on the outside June appeared to be calm and indifferent, on the inside warning bells were going off. _"This is not good, not good at all. I might as well already sign us up to take her out!"_ She thought to herself. Without saying a word in reply, she turned around and walked away.

She walked out of the tavern and immediately climbed aboard Nyla. "Nyla, we need to find Naruto, now." She told the shirshu, who hissed at the mention of the blonde. "Now is not the time for that. I may have just landed us into something bad." Nyla heard the urgency in her voice, so he started sniffing the air, searching for Naruto's scent. Once he had it, he took off.

(End Flashback)

Everyone just stared at her as she finished telling what happened. "…I have to say, that was fairly impressive, June." Azula said, breaking the silence. "We go looking for information on the assassination when all we had to do is wait for you to land us a potential job concerning said assassination."

"Don't act you haven't done anything that stupid, Azula." Naruto told her. "You've done a few stupid things yourself."

"Actually, if you think about it, this can be beneficial to us." Sokka mused.

"What makes you say that? Because I can say about this is that we might be in trouble." June asked him.

"It's simple; all we have to do is take the job." That statement made everyone look at him.

"Sokka, please explain." Suki told him.

"Look, we've been looking for information on the assassination in order to stop it. I don't know about the rest of you, but I can't think of a better way of stopping it then from within."

"You know, he does have a point." Azula said. "If we were to take this job, any information regarding the assassination would be given to us, which we can pass to Jiraiya and the others. That'll give them time to make counter-measures."

"But how would we pass the information? If we take this job, odds are we'll be watched every single step of the way." June asked, calming down since she heard Sokka say it could beneficial.

"I'm still trying to figure that out." Sokka admitted. "Right now, the best I got is someone sneaks into the dance before we get there and warns them."

"That's cutting it really close." Suki pointed out.

"Sorry, but I still don't know how we can supply them with information if we're supposed to be watched as we plan this thing."

"Maybe we could use one of Jiraiya's contacts to pass the information." Azula suggested. "One of them was the owner of a bookstore and another was a manager of food store. If we send one of them in to pass information, I think we'll be fine."

"That could work." He admitted. "But we'd have to switch off every time we pass information. If we keep sending the same person to see the Fucking Sadist, whoever they'll have got watching us will get start getting suspicious."

"They'll also get suspicious if we keep sending those two in again and again." Suki pointed out. "We'd have to keep the time between sending one of them as random as possible so we can stay in the clear."

"It's shaky, but it's the best we've got to go on. But if we make this work, not only would we be able to protect Koyuki from the assassination, we'd probably be able to catch the actual assassins' off-guard and be able to grab them and pump them for information about the Akatsuki."

"So, we're going through with this?" June asked, making sure.

"Yeah, we are."

"Then I guess I have an answer for the guy."

"Naruto, you've been quiet throughout this entire talk." Azula said, looking at him while getting the others attention. "What's on your mind?"

"…This seems too easy." He finally admitted.

"What do you mean?"

"We go looking for information about the possible attempt on Koyuki, only to have the job itself offered to us? I don't know what the rest of you think, but this feels like a setup to me."

"But this could also be our only chance to stop the assassination, Naruto." Sokka told him. "We have to risk it."

"I know that. I'm not saying that we shouldn't do it, I'm just saying that we have to be careful and that we should never drop our guard."

"Keeping our guard up is a given. Neither Aang nor Katara are here to tell us that there's no need to be paranoid and that we can trust whoever wants our help."

"If Aang or Katara were here, they would've tried to browbeat everyone into saying no to the offer, they wouldn't have cared if it was the best way to stop it."

"That's the truth." He stated, making them all chuckle.

They walked out of the forest, heading back to the capital. As they walked, the same thought lingered in their heads. _"Is this a setup? Are we the ones being targeted now?"_

**End**

**Author's note: **Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

If you haven't already guessed it, I wrote the flashback scene as a jab at what happened with the Demon Brothers. I felt that irony would've been a great help in making Team Kakashi see how different Naruto was if they froze instead of him.

I threw the concept of a non-existent Icha-Icha novel for the hell of it. Come on, Jiraiya is a self-proclaimed Super Pervert and regularly peeps on women. Has there been any kind of Icha-Icha he _hasn't _written?

Congratulations to those who managed to catch the reference to my other story.

Okay, I've read the manga and I've watched the anime. I think it is safe to say the Fire Daimyo is an idiot. What kind of ruler has his advisors do all the work when it comes to the important decisions? How that guy lasted this long is beyond me.

The reason I had June act nervous is very simple when you think about it. The two times we've seen her in canon, she's always been calm, not batting a single eye at what's been thrown at her. While that might fun for a while, I think it's always a good idea to characters have more than one emotion, hence why she was acting like she had done either something very bad or very stupid (which, in a sense, she did).

I'll see you all next chapter!


	50. Planning and Listening

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 50: Planning and Listening

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Kakashi's room)

It was night outside and so mostly everyone was asleep. But while most of them were sleeping peacefully, Sasuke was tossing and turning. Sweat was pouring down from his head and into the bedding beneath him.

* * *

He ran through the streets of the Uchiha compound, past the dead bodies of his clan. He knew who he was trying to get away from; he had had this dream before. But despite reliving it, he could do nothing to stop it. He all but bolted out of an alleyway and onto the main street, only to find Itachi standing there, waiting for him in the shadow of the moon.

"It's a lie." He begged. "This isn't like you, big brother. It can't be."

"I have acted like the older brother you desired." Itachi told him. But then, he didn't continue his explanation. Instead, his form twisted and his features blurred, until who was standing in front of him wasn't Itachi, but Naruto. "Just like I once acted like the teammate you desired." He said.

"What?" Sasuke asked. He was shocked by how deep his voice was. Looking down at himself, he saw that he wasn't a child, but the person he was today. "What are you doing here, Naruto?"

His mouth turned into a sadistic grin. "And you called me a dobe? Take a good look around, you're supposed to be good with stuff like that."

He did, and his eyes widen with more and more horror as he did. Not only were there members of the Uchiha clan lying dead in the streets, the other members of the Konoha Eleven were there too. Asuma, Guy, Kurenai, Kakashi, Chōji, Ino, Tenten, Shino, Lee, Hinata, Shikamaru, Kiba, Neji, even Sakura. "What…what's going on here? What did you do?!"

"I got tired of you all begging me to come back, so I did something about it. Now, all that's left is you."

"You son of a BITCH!" roared Sasuke as he leapt for him, his hand going for his chokutō. But he grabbed nothing but air, which made him stop.

"Are you looking for this?" He asked, holding up the chokutō. Before he got an answer, he plunged it into the Uchiha's chest, making him fall backwards onto the ground. "You know you really should've seen that coming, even without your precious **Sharingan**." He commented as he causally walked up to the slowly dying Uchiha, standing over his head. "Thankfully, I know a way to fix that." He brought his foot and stomped down hard.

* * *

His eyes went open and he quickly sat up. He was about to scream, but his training as a shinobi made him choke it back down. His breath was ragged and sweat still poured down from his brow. Wiping the sweat off, he noticed that his hand was shaking a little. Noticing that the others in the room were still asleep, he shakily rose from his bedding and walked out of the room. As he walked into the common room, he saw that Sakura was sitting at the table, reading a book with only the light of the moon shining in from the windows and a candle on the table to give her light. He had forgotten that she had the first shift of guard duty.

"Sasuke?" She asked, noticing that he had entered the room.

"Hey, Sakura," He greeted her.

"Are you okay? You look a little shaken up."

"I'm fine, I…I just had a bad dream."

"What was it about?"

"The night of the massacre…at first," He answered as he sat down at the table.

"What do you mean? I thought it was the same thing every time."

"Not this time."

"What was different?" She asked, concerned about her teammate.

"Naruto was there. He took Itachi's place."

"And that was it?"

He shook his head. "No. He didn't just kill my clan. The Konoha Eleven was there."

"You mean we were…?" She asked, leaving the question in the air unfinished.

"Yes. He had killed everyone, even Kakashi-sensei and you. He told me that he was tired of us begging him to come back. He killed you all and then killed me."

"It is okay, Sasuke. It was only a dream."

"I know that. But still, I can't help but feel that wasn't just a dream. It also felt like a warning. A warning of what would happen if we kept pushing him to come back."

"I can understand what you mean, but he has to come back. He belongs here, with us."

"That's not really true anymore. He has his own life to live."

"We can still be a part of that life. We can be his friends."

He scoffed. "We're more likely to get him to come back instead of that."

"We can still try."

"Sakura, you've seen how he acts around us. Every time one of us tries to talk to him, he walks away. He'd rather talk to that Water Tribe guy, whatever his name is."

"Sokka, Sasuke, his name is Sokka."

"I know that!"

She fell quiet for a few seconds. "You're angry at him, aren't you?"

"Of course I'm angry at him! I remember what happened the first night we made camp. You saw the same thing I did!"

(Flashback)

Night had fallen and so, they had set up camp. They sat around the fire, eating their dinner. "Hey, Naruto," Sokka called to him. "I gotta wonder, what was your training regime?"

"What do you mean _was_?" He asked. "I still do the same regime, when I can."

"When can you not?"

"Well, you know. Fighting in a battle that can go for days on end, endlessly hunting for someone, protecting a person from assassination attempts, the list goes on." He listed, ticking the numbers off his fingers. "Why do you want to know anyway?"

"I feel like I've got a lot of work to do if I'm ever going to catch up with you." He answered honestly.

"You don't have as much work as you think."

"But I still have work. If I'm your rival, I need to be as good as or better than you." That statement made both Sasuke and Sakura stop what they were doing and looked at him. "But make no mistake, Naruto, I will beat you one day."

"Now _that_ is going to take a long time." He remarked drily. "If you're going to beat me one day, I'd suggest working on your strategies."

"What's wrong with the ones I have?"

"You mean besides the fact I knew about them the entire time?"

"Name one time that's happened," He challenged

"Are you kidding? I can give you three." He held up three fingers. "Ba Sing Se, the invasion of the Fire Nation capital, and the Boiling Rock." He stated, lowering a finger with each one.

"Oh come on. I'll concede Ba Sing Se and the invasion, but the Boiling Rock? There is no way you would've known we were coming."

"Of course I did, I was actually expecting you a couple of days later."

"You are so full of it."

"No, really, I was. You actually surprised me by coming when you did."

"And what in the name of Yue made think that it would take me a couple of days to ask where my dad was?"

"I assumed it would be because of you trying to get the courage to ask either Zuko or Azula and because of them trying to make sure that Aang paid attention to his Firebending lessons."

"That actually took a couple of tries." Azula commented. "Every time his attention wandered, we had to attack him by surprise to make sure he was paying attention."

"The fact remains, you guys got there a couple of days earlier than I expected, so that's a point to you."

"Wait, when did we start keeping score?" Sokka asked him.

"Since about five seconds ago. By the way, you're still a point behind me."

"What?

"Ba Sing Se and the invasion were a point to me, but the Boiling Rock was a point to you, so it's 2 to 1 in my favor."

"Oh, that's going to change."

"You wanna go right now?" He challenged, putting down his dinner.

His response was to leap at him. It soon became a playful wrestling match. Nobody interfered, but Jiraiya was giving a color commentary that was making some of the others start to laugh. Finally, it ended with Sokka on top of Naruto with his arm in a lock. "Say it. Say it!" He ordered Naruto.

"I won't!" He replied as he tried to get out of the lock.

"You will! Say it!"

"Alright, alright, Uncle! Uncle!"

He released the lock. "You heard him people! He said uncle! That's a point to me. We're tied now." He danced a jig around the fire in celebration.

"Yeah, yeah, I heard you the first time." He grumbled as he got back up. "But make no mistake, that's going to change soon."

"Of course it will, I'll be in the lead."

"Oh no, you won't. That will be me."

"Yeah right, in your dreams, Naruto!"

The two of them spent the rest of the evening before going to sleep arguing about who would be in the lead. But everyone knew they weren't being completely serious about it due to the smiles they had on their faces. And yet, those smiles and the argument irked one person there.

(End Flashback)

Sakura looked quietly at her teammate. "Are you angry at him or what he took?" She asked.

"What do you think?" He asked back. "The dobe was always the one who was trying to beat me. _I_ was his rival. Now of all sudden, he's got a new rival and I'm tossed away like yesterday's trash! You saw them, Sakura. They were arguing like the two of us used to do, except they don't take it seriously!"

"…Sasuke, how long have your eyes been like that?"

"What are you talking about?"

She took a small pocket mirror from her pouch and held it up to his eyes. "How long have you had the **Mangekyō Sharingan**?" She asked again. The mirror showed him that he had accidently activated the **Mangekyō Sharingan**. The design was a red six-pointed star with black lines forming a back hexagon in the middle, around a black pupil, and which all of it was surrounded by a black background.

"Damn, you've seen them." He muttered, deactivating them.

"How long, Sasuke?" She asked a third time.

"…It's been three years now."

"Did you kill someone?" The tone in her voice was almost accusatory.

"No, I didn't." He snapped at her before falling silent. "…It was the news that Naruto had left the village. The fact he had left us behind and I was a reason for that tore me apart. And I got the **Mangekyō Sharingan **as a reward for the pain of losing someone who was like a brother to me."

"Have you used it?"

"No." He answered, sounding offended. "This is only the third time I have activated the **Mangekyō Sharingan**."

"What was the second time?" She knew that the first was when he gained them.

"To make sure I wasn't dreaming or hallucinating."

"So, you've never used them? Not even against Itachi?"

"I said that already, Sakura."

"Why didn't you?"

"I chose not to, that's all."

She just stared at him for a few moments, before laughing quietly. "And I thought Naruto used to be the stupid one."

"I beg your pardon?" He asked, looking at her.

"You didn't need to hide something like that from us, Sasuke." She told him, fondly placing a hand on his shoulder. "We wouldn't have thought badly of you."

"You wouldn't, but the villagers might have. Besides, it's not a gift I wanted."

"What do you mean?"

"If I use the **Mangekyō Sharingan** constantly, it'll affect my eyesight. In the end, I'll go blind."

"Then don't use it constantly."

"It's not that easy, Sakura. The first time they activated, I felt like I was filled to the brim with power and it was begging to be unleashed. I felt like that everything in the world was and should've been mine. It was an addiction that would've been easy to fall to."

"What stopped you?"

"I looked in the mirror again and saw Orochimaru in my place. It scared me so much; I smashed the mirror to make him disappear. That was when I realized that the Curse Mark was influencing me. It had influenced me to leave the village and it would've influenced me to use the **Mangekyō Sharingan**."

"So that's why you went to Lord Jiraiya."

He nodded. "If I hadn't, I would've been a security risk for the village, last Uchiha or not."

She knew what he was talking about. If he had become a security risk, the elders, as well as both of the Councils, would've ordered him to be killed. "So you had Jiraiya take away the Curse Mark and never used **Mangekyō Sharingan**. And you were never going to tell me or Kakashi-sensei about it."

"That was the idea."

She sighed silently. "Sasuke, if it wasn't for the fact that it's the middle of the night and everyone else was asleep, I would slap you across the back of your head." He inwardly cringed, he had been there the last time she had slapped someone. The person went flying into a wall, making an indent that took the better part of three weeks to get rid of. "You don't need to keep all the cards you have so close to your chest. You have to tell us some of those things."

"I don't have to do it right now."

"I am well aware of that." She stood up from the table. "My shift is almost over and since you're up, you can take the next one."

"I don't have any problems with that."

"Good." She turned around and walked towards her room. "Good night, Sasuke."

He watched in silence as she closed the door behind her. _"You might say that, Sakura, but not everyone wants to see what cards I'm holding. Especially _that_ card,"_ He thought to himself.

It was something that he had been dealing with for quite some time now. Ever since Sakura had apologized for acting like a Fangirl back when they were Genin, the two of them had gotten along great as friends. But recently, he was beginning to feel…attracted to her. He wasn't sure how it had happened; he just knew that he was attracted to her (he had honestly lost count of the number of times he to refrain himself from using the **Sharingan** when she walked by. Even he had to admit that she had a great ass). He also didn't know what to do about it. He had never gone on a date and he could count on his fingers the number of women he knew who weren't Fangirls (and quite a few of said women would be _very_ insulted if anyone called them that). He wasn't sure how Sakura would take it, so he kept his mouth shut about what he felt (he also knew that somehow, Kiba and a few others would never let him live it down).

(Location: Team Paragon)

They sat in the tavern June had gone to. "Why exactly are we here this late?" Sokka asked as he quietly stifled a yawn. "There's virtually no one here." He looked around the tavern. It was somewhat seedy, but looked clean enough to get people in and drink. New furniture was right alongside with old, telling them that this place had been the spot for more than a couple of bar brawls. The light of the moon barely lighted the not-so-clean windows of the tavern, forcing the lights to be left on. Currently, the only people who were in the tavern were them and the barkeeper, who was slowly closing up for the night.

"It's always best to have this kind of meeting where no one can hear you." June told him. "So, always meet either during happy hour or when the place is empty."

"Do you see him?" Naruto asked. He had the hood of his cloak back up and wore a bone-white mask over his face, hiding it. They sat at a table that was up against the wall, so they could watch the tavern without someone walking up behind them.

"Yeah, he's coming up now."

"Who's that person with him?" Suki asked.

"I don't know. He wasn't with him when I met him."

"Hey, you're back!" The man greeted her as he sat down. The team (with the exception of June), took the opportunity to look him over. The best they could up with was: average. He had a plain looking face with muddy-brown eyes and hair. The other man just stood behind him. What he wore was covered by a traveler's cloak, but his pale blue hair, teal pupil-less eyes with purple markings underneath them, and his headband was plain to see.

"_Oh great, him,"_ Naruto thought darkly to himself. _"I thought Hatake broke his neck."_

"**I guess he didn't try hard enough."** Kyuubi replied.

"What can I say? We talked it over and we all agreed to take the job." June told the man.

"Great. My boss will be glad to hear that!" He exclaimed.

"Sir, we have to make sure they're the right people for the job." The second man told him.

"Oh come on, Nadare. They're perfect for the job. You can tell just by looking at them!"

"Even so, we must be sure."

"Your friend is right." Naruto said, deliberately lowering his voice so it sounded more guttural and harsh. "For all you know, we could green rookies who never handled a knife before."

"And are you?" Azula smirked as she whipped out one of daggers and pinned a fly on the opposing wall with it, startling the barkeeper.

"Does that answer your question?" She asked smugly. "And who exactly are you? I'm guessing you're some unimportant bodyguard?"

He stiffened in anger. "I am Nadare Rōga, shinobi of Yukigakure and loyal servant to the Daimyo of Snow."

"Now that's a contradiction if I ever heard one." Sokka mused as he fiddled with his boomerang. "You're loyal to the Daimyo and yet, you're planning to kill her."

"That _woman_ is not the Daimyo!" He snapped, eyes burning with anger. "The true Daimyo is Lord Dotō!"

"I believe that would be 'the true Daimyo _was_ Lord Dotō'." He replied condescendingly. "You need to work on your grammar."

"You little shit!" His hand reached into the cloak as if to pull out a kunai. He froze when he heard Akela start to growl and felt his teeth on his leg.

"Control yourself, Nadare." The first man ordered, his tone void of any humor or friendliness he had. "Dotō is dead, and unless you wish to join him, I suggest you act like a professional.

In silence, he slowly withdrew his hand. "Yes sir, my apologies."

"Good." He turned to face Sokka. "If you would be so kind to call off your pet, we can continue."

"He's not a pet, he's a partner." Sokka replied as Akela let go Nadare's leg.

"Ah, please forgive me for being rude." The humor and friendliness was back in his voice like a switch had been flipped.

"_That was weird."_ Naruto thought to himself as he stood up from the table and walked towards the dagger.

"**No kidding. Either that guy is one hell of an actor or he is hiding something." **The fox remarked.

"_Ten says he's hiding something."_

"**Given what we do, that's a sucker bet. For all we know, it could be both."**

"Can we please move on here?" Suki asked, pretending to sound impatient. "I'm getting bored here."

"Relax." June told her. "He still needs to know if we're good enough."

"Then hurry it up already, sheesh."

"Sorry about my friend, she's a little impatient." She told the guy.

"It's alright. I take it that's not the only thing about her?" He asked.

Sokka snorted. "Are you kidding? She's one of the best fighters you'll ever see."

"And how do you know that?"

"I married her." Thankfully, no one on his side of the table battered an eyelash when he said that, through most of them were thinking _"He's kidding, right?"_

The other man only raised an eyebrow. "Aren't the two of you a little…young to do that?" He asked.

"How is that any of your business?" Suki asked back. "You're here to ask about our abilities, not our lives."

He chuckled. "Good point." He looked over at Sokka. "So what can you do?"

"I'm handy with a boomerang and a jian." He replied. "Also, I'm good at creating plans and improving them."

"So, you would be a great help in the planning process, right?"

He shrugged. "If you hire us, I could possibly pass an idea or two."

He turned to face June. "I know you're a bounty hunter, so there's no need to ask you of what you do."

"Thanks so much." She replied dryly.

"And I'm guessing you're handy with a dagger?" He asked Azula.

"What gave it away?" She asked in return as Naruto came back to the table, handing her the dagger she had thrown.

"What about you?" He asked Naruto. "What can you do?"

"I'm the one who can get into any place without anyone noticing." He answered, sitting back down.

"Why do you wear the mask?" Nadare asked him with suspicion.

"Got caught in an explosion a couple of years back and ended scarring my face pretty badly," He easily lied. "But it's a great thing to use when I have to interrogate someone."

"Why would you use interrogation?"

"Sometimes we don't know when a bounty is, so we have to 'ask' people for information."

"I…see."

"So, do we get the job?" June asked.

Both the man and Nadare shared a look. "That is up to the boss to decide." Nadare finally said.

"Then why did we have this entire conversation?" Sokka asked, sounding insulted. "Were you trying to dangle a job in front of us and yank it away as soon as we got interested?"

"No, no, nothing of the sort." The man said placating, raising his hands in defense. "You could say this was a…preliminary interview. If you want to get the job, you'll to speak the boss."

"And are we going to have to wait for that?"

"No, not at all," He told him as he stood up. "If you will come with me, we can take you to see him."

"At this time of night?" asked Suki. "Does your boss not sleep or something?"

"He sleeps when he has to." He answered before turning around and walking away, Nadare right behind him. "Come along, come along."

They all shared a look and followed him out of the tavern. They walked through the streets, avoiding what few people who were still walking through the streets. As they walked, the buildings around them got seedier and seedier. The tavern they had left had been a little seedy, but not enough as to make it a disgusting place to be. The buildings around them could make it look like a top-class restaurant. It was getting to the point where it looked like a sneeze would collapse the building.

Finally they stopped in front of a warehouse. Unlike the other buildings surrounding it, it looked like it was built to last, which automatically warned the team. A building built like this probably shouldn't even exist in this part of the city. It would be too odd. "Here we are." The man declared as he walked up to the door. He opened it and walked through, Nadare walking in behind him.

The rest followed, leaving Akela and Nyla outside the warehouse. The inside of the warehouse was practically bare, save for a spot in the center. A couple of lights were on in the ceiling, but they all were focused on the center, leaving the rest of the place to be lit by the weak light of the moon. In the center of the warehouse was a large table, with maps and blueprints spread all across it. As they got in closer, they noticed that most of the papers there concerned the Daimyo's palace.

"So where is this boss of yours?" Azula asked, looking around. "There's no one else here except us."

"Ah, I knew I had forgotten something." The man said to himself before placing his hands in a handseal. **"Kai,"** He muttered and was enveloped in a cloud of smoke. When the cloud dispersed, the man had changed. His brown hair had turned black and his face was now covered with an orange mask that looked as if it swirled around a hole where the right eye should be. But their attention was on his dark cloak, a dark cloak that had red clouds on it. "Hello, my name is Tobi!" He greeted them in a childish voice.

"You're the boss?" Sokka asked. "I thought it would've been someone else."

"No, I'm the one who got pick for this job, so I'm the boss here. I kinda wish Deidara was here though. He'd be great at doing this kinda thing." He muttered the last part to himself, but was still loud enough for the others to him.

"Who is Deidara?" Naruto asked.

"Oh, just someone I know, he's not important right now."

"So, what was with the whole thing in the tavern?" June asked.

"It was exactly what it was, a preliminary interview. You people are so slow. This is the real test, right now." He told them, gesturing at the table.

"What are we supposed to do with all of that?" Suki asked.

"What? You can't see it? It's obvious. You guys have to figure out how to kill the Spring Daimyo."

(Location: Team Kakashi)

As the morning light shined through the windows, they sat at the table, eating the food in front of them. "Did everyone sleep well?" Koyuki asked.

"As well as we could." Sasuke answered, earning him a look from Sakura.

"Well, we should have a leisurely morning. But I will have a meeting with the Fire Daimyo and his advisors regarding the trade agreement."

"Why would the Daimyo be there?" Sakura asked, looking up from her food. "I thought he would've stayed out of this kind of thing."

"I'm not sure. Maybe he'll just be there for the sake of appearance. I just hope Princess Miki will be there. She's the one who I have been talking to."

"No need to worry, Miki will be there." Jiraiya assured her. "She's been putting as much effort into this trade agreement as you."

"I guess you're right. Are you all going to watch me throughout the day, or will you be taking turns?"

"We will be there to guard you as you discuss the trade agreement as well as beforehand, Lady Koyuki." Kakashi told her, gesturing to him and the rest of his team.

"What will you be doing, Lord Jiraiya?" She asked the Toad Sage.

"I'm going to go see what Naruto and his team have managed to dig up." He answered.

"Are you sure you will find them? The city is a big place." Sai said, earning him a glare.

"The kid might be good, but I'm better. I'm pretty sure I'll be able to track him down. But I also figure they'll try to send me a message. I'm guessing they'll use one of my contacts to pass it to me."

"What makes you think that?" Koyuki asked.

"I trained Sokka and Naruto for a month; it wasn't just combat lessons and teaching them how to properly use their weapons. I also tried to teach them how to use the intelligence they have and make it better."

The sound of someone knocking on the door got their attention. "Hey, Jiraiya, you in there?" called the voice of the bookstore owner. That set the shinobi in the room on alert, getting ready to attack.

"It's alright, everyone. I know who it is." He told them before getting up, walking over to the door and opening it. "What is it, Daichi?" He asked.

"This was addressed to you." He handed him a piece of paper. "I found it wedged underneath the door of my bookstore this morning."

"Who was it from?" He asked as he looked over the paper.

"If I had to guess, I'd say it was that kid and his group of friends."

"That kid?" He repeated.

"Yeah, the kid you've been looking for the past three years."

"I see. Thank you Daichi."

"It's wasn't a problem." He turned around and ambled away.

"What was that all about?" Kakashi asked.

"It was as I said, Naruto and the others passing information off to me." He replied as he came back to the table.

"Is there anything of importance?"

"Well, it seems that they have managed to get themselves in the middle of the plot to kill Lady Koyuki."

"They've what?" Koyuki asked.

"Apparently, June had inadvertently gotten them a chance to have an 'interview'. The message is brief, but they'll try to send more information soon."

"How soon is soon?" Sasuke asked, looking over at him.

"It doesn't say. But they do confirm that the attempt will take place during the upcoming dance."

"That's in two days." Sai pointed out as he finished his food.

"At least we'll have some time to prepare." Sakura noted. "That's more than we usually get."

"But there's nothing to prepare for if we don't get additional information." He argued.

"Of which I believe Naruto and the others will be able to pass to us." She replied, throwing him a look that dared him to continue the argument.

He looked at her, still baffled by her and Sasuke's behavior. _"He's a missing-nin who doesn't even think of them as friends and yet, they will still vouch for him. Why do they keep doing that?"_ He silently asked himself. _"Why do they cherish a bond that he has obviously cut off?"_

"Anyway, all we can do is wait for the information to be passed to us" Kakashi said, standing up from the table. "We've all been seen coming into the palace with Lady Koyuki. It will arouse suspicion if one of us leaves the palace and she's not with us."

"Then what should we do?" Koyuki asked him.

"For now, all we can do is act like nothing has happened. We act normally."

"If that's the case, then I suggest we take the leisurely morning we have out to one of the gardens." She stood up from the table. "Shall we?"

"We might as well." Jiraiya agreed. The others agreed and stood up from the table. They walked out of the room and down the hallway. Sasuke and Sai took the front while Sakura and Kakashi stayed behind Koyuki. Jiraiya walked beside her, to anyone who didn't pay close attention, he looked like a friend of the Daimyo.

They soon stepped out into one of the gardens the palace had to offer. It was filled trees and flowers and it also had a little stream that flowed through it. There was a path that one could take so that could walk through the garden and enjoy it to the fullest. They slowly walked along the path. Even though they weren't really paying attention to the garden around them, both Sasuke and Sakura had to admit it was soothing. It wasn't intentional, but the garden's relaxing feel was getting to them, though they managed to put it on the backburner and kept at doing their job.

They were crossing a small bridge when they met with Miki. "Hey there, Koyuki and company," She greeted casually. The last time they had seen her, she had been wearing a kimono that was the color of royal purple. Now, she was wearing a pair of tan shorts that stopped just before her knees and a light blue blouse. Her dark hair was held in a simple ponytail.

"Hello, Miki." Koyuki greeted in return. "That's an interesting choice of clothing."

She shrugged. "Eh, not really, it's just some of my casual clothes. Of course, the FB keeps trying to get me to wear more dresses and other whatnot." She said, rolling her eyes. "It's getting annoying now."

"Um…who exactly is the FB?"

"The Fat Bitch, AKA Madam Shijimi, AKA my stepmother," She answered as she watched the water in the river flow.

"Well, you were wearing a kimono when we first met."

"That was because I had just escaped from a formal dinner." She laughed. "You will not believe how many times they will fall for the 'I have to go to the bathroom' trick."

"Who were you dining with?"

"Just another one of those suitors my father and the FB are trying to shove down my throat." She answered with a shrug. "They both seem to think I need to be married before I ascend to the throne. There's no chance of that happening with the suitors they throwing at me."

"What's wrong with the suitors?" Jiraiya asked her.

"They are exactly like my idiot of a father. They can't form their own opinion to save their life and they leave all the decision-making to other people. Honestly, it's like my father wants his own clone to succeed him or something."

"Well, you could just do what your mother did. Let them have the throne, but you have all the power."

She shook her head. "No chance. I am the daughter of the Daimyo of the Land of Fire. When my father finally dies, it will be _me_ who's going to be sitting on that throne, not the FB, not any of my suitors or anyone else. I will be the one to rule this land, no one else." She declared with firm conviction.

When they heard this, both Sasuke and Sakura were stuck with an image of Naruto, back when they were Genin, with him shouting at the top of his voice that he was going to become Hokage. _"It's almost like looking at a female version of him."_ Sakura thought to herself. _"The only difference is she will probably go through with her promise."_

"If it helps in any way, your Highness, the Uchiha clan will support you once you ascend to the throne." Sasuke promised her, surprising the others.

She looked over at him. "Thanks for the support, but I thought there were only you and your brother left."

"It's a work in progress, I will admit that. But as long as there is an Uchiha, there is a possibility of an Uchiha clan. And right now, the possibility of an Uchiha clan will support you."

She grinned. "You know, maybe the FB was on to something when we suggested we get married."

"Not to be rude, ma'am, but I don't think that'll work." Sakura looked over at him with a question in her eyes, which he promptly avoided.

"Oh? Do you already have a girlfriend?" She asked with a grin.

"I don't think Fangirls qualify as girlfriends, your Highness." Sakura stifled a laugh, which came out as a snigger and earned a glare from him.

Miki didn't try to stifle her laughter. "You have Fangirls? You must have to beat them off with a stick, huh?"

"More like run away in a blind panic." Sakura stated with a full blown grin.

"Shut up, Sakura." He told her, his face in a scowl.

"Behave, you two." Kakashi reprimanded them.

"You know, I have got to spend more time with you guys." Miki declared as she walked away from the railing, the wood creaking slightly from her footsteps. "You're really entertaining."

"We try, Miki. We try." Jiraiya told her with a smile.

"Well, in any case, I got to go. If I stay in one place, odds are the FB will find me and try to drag me into wearing more formal clothes." She made a gagging noise. "I'll see you at the meeting in the afternoon, Koyuki." She told the Spring Daimyo as she walked past, her feet going from the creaking of the wooden bridge to the crunching of gravel in the path.

"I look forward to seeing you there, Miki." She replied with a kind smile.

"Yeah, same here, just keep an eye out for my father." She waved goodbye as she walked away.

(Location: Team Paragon)

"You want us to what?" Azula asked as they stood outside the pool of light that shone down on the center of the room.

"You have to figure how to kill the Spring Daimyo; didn't you hear me the first time?" Tobi asked childishly.

"We thought you already had a plan." June replied calmly. She knew that at this point, if you panicked, you were going to end up dead.

"We do. But if you want the job, you either have to figure out what the plan is or come up with a better one." Nadare told them with a small amount of smugness in his voice.

"You want us to come up with a plan out of the blue?" Sokka asked. "That's a little unfair, isn't it? We don't anything about this country, let alone the palace, and you want us to come up with a plan with no information whatsoever?"

"We didn't say that." Tobi replied. He gestured over to the table. "We have plenty of information right there. You're welcome to it."

"Do we have a time limit?" Naruto asked as he looked over the table.

"No, please, take all the time you need. However, you've only got one chance to convince us."

"And I'm guessing that we won't like the outcome if we fail, will we?"

"Of course you won't." Nadare told him with a slightly crazed grin and a twitch in his right hand.

"Right, let's get to it then." Suki declared. They stepped into the pool of light and walked towards the table, passing the two "employers". They stopped at the table and spread around it. They each took a map or a blueprint and began to look over them. Ignoring Tobi and Nadare, they got right into the planning. The rustle of paper filled the air as they picked things up, put things down, or passed them around. One of them would sometimes walk over to another, holding a map or blueprint in their hands and would discuss a point or an idea.

They lost track of time as they worked. The weak light of the moon slowly faded from the small, grime-encrusted windows, which began to make the room outside the center begin to get darker and darker. When the moon had finally vanished, it left the center with the only spot of light. But that did not concern them, what did concern them was what was in front of them.

"What do you have?" Nadare asked, getting their attention.

"You said we didn't have a time limit." June replied, not bothering to look up from the blueprint she had in her hands.

"No need to be snappish, Nadare's just asking." Tobi told him. "But seriously, what do you have?"

They all looked at each other and nodded in agreement, putting whatever they had in their hands down. "Alright, here's what we've gathered." began Sokka as he faced the two from across the table. "The Daimyo's palace is well guarded. There's seems to be routine guard changes every four hours at every entrance and no one gets in without being inspected."

"The rooftops are also thoroughly watched." Naruto continued, holding up a blueprint of the rooftops to help show his point. "Guard towers are positioned along the walls and they are able to see everything. If we try to go across the rooftops, or even try to run through the courtyard, we'll have arrows and other whatnot flying at us. But even if we managed to make it through all of that, the alarm will have already been rung and we'll be caught."

"Digging under will be impossible as well." Suki stated. "The guards patrol inside as well and also keep lookouts at key points in the building. The ground itself will be hard to dig through, which would slow us by quite a good amount of time."

"Even disguising ourselves as servants wouldn't work." Azula told them, pointing to a paper that had the information on the servants. "The servants live inside the palace and can only leave it through guarded exits, which inspects them every time they leave and every time they enter. They each have only one uniform and each is personally marked, so they know which is which. That process alone kills the idea. We can't get in to steal uniforms, because they'll know whose was stolen and be on the lookout for it."

"In all honesty, this does not look good." June announced. "Even the sewers are too small to crawl through. This palace is very well guarded, doubly so since they've got a second Daimyo in there. The only way we can think of making this hit work is if we someone managed to walk past the guards without them stopping us. But I don't know if anything less than a party will make that work."

"A party? Is that all you need?" Tobi asked them, cocking his head to the side, like a dog listening to a weird sound.

"Pretty much, yeah," Sokka said, keeping a straight face. Despite the fact that they knew there was going to be a party in the palace, they had to pretend they didn't know about in order to fool both Tobi and Nadare.

"Then you should've said something earlier!" He exclaimed with glee, waving his arms dramatically.

"Why?"

"The Fire Daimyo will be throwing a dance in two days to celebrate the trade agreement between the Land of Spring and the Land of Fire." Nadare explained. Even though he tried to hide it, everyone could hear the snarl in his voice when he said "Land of Spring".

"Wait, hold on." Suki told them, leaning over the table and grabbing the blueprints concerning the entrances to the palace. "Hmm…we could probably make that work."

"What do you got?" Azula asked her. Even though they knew what to say, they were playing it up for all it was worth.

"We could possibly use the disguise method, but not with the servants. We use fake identities and pretend we're there for the dance. While the rest of us mingle with the crowd and keep an eye out, one could get close and take the Spring Daimyo out."

"You mean all of you? That might be a bit hard." Tobi said as he took a thinking pose.

"What do you mean? We can all get in."

"Well…what about him?" He asked, pointing at Naruto.

"What about me?" He repeated, sounding a little offended.

"You're wearing a mask."

"And so are you." He replied in a deadpan tone.

"My point is that if you're going to try and get into the dance, they might ask you to take off the mask."

"He has a point." June agreed as she picked up a piece of paper that described the Fire Daimyo. "According to this, the Daimyo doesn't like any ugly people to be in his presence. His guards are likely to know this and will try to stop you from getting in."

"Did you guys forget what I can do?" He asked in a growl, looking directly at them.

"What can you do?" Nadare asked him condescendingly. "Are you a master of disguises?"

"I'm an ex-shinobi." He answered shortly. However, if he had been hoping that would stop the questions there, it didn't. It just made their "employers" more interested.

"Oh really?" asked Tobi. "Which village are you from? We might have someone who knows you."

"It doesn't matter, I left it behind."

"Oh come on, which village was it?" His voice took on a whiny tone.

He snarled. "What do you want to know? That I was from one of the Five Great Shinobi Nations? I wasn't. I was from one of the minor villages and when I got bored, I left. That's all there is to it."

"What rank were you when you left?" Nadare asked.

"I was a Genin."

"So you know the **Henge **jutsu?"

"Obviously," He answered with a sarcastic tone. "Is there anything else you would like to know?"

"Where's your headband?" Tobi asked curiously.

"Where's yours?" He asked back.

"Alright, alright, I won't ask." He said, holding his hands up defensively. "But you are able to use the **Henge** jutsu, right?"

"Were you not paying attention? I already said I knew it."

"Perfect! You guys are hired!" He exclaimed, silencing the mostly dark room, no one heard anything, except for the faint hum of the lights above them.

"That's it? He tells you he knows one jutsu and we're hired?" June asked.

"Oh no, that was just the finishing touch. You guys managed to figure what would go wrong if we try to go over or under and managed to adapt the disguise plan once you heard that there was a dance. All we need to do now is make sure you five are dressed up for the occasion."

"So, how exactly is this going to happen?" Sokka asked, trying to stay calm. Both he and the rest of the team knew that if they could get the details, they could alert Jiraiya and the others, giving them a chance to prepare.

"It's as you said. The six of you will disguise yourselves as guests and kill the Spring Daimyo."

"Hold on, six?" Azula asked.

"Nadare here will be joining you. You five will keep watch and will also ensure that he successfully kills the Daimyo."

"I'm guessing that it has to do with that Dotō guy from before." Naruto asked, despite already knowing the answer.

"Yes. It does." Nadare answered with a more obvious snarl.

"Okay then, is there anything else?" Tobi asked, scratching his head.

"Yeah, there is." June said. "How much are we getting paid for this?"

"Oh, right. I knew was forgetting something." He walked away into the darkness, disappearing from sight. All they heard was his footsteps, which soon stopped as well. They started up again, this time with the sound of something being dragged and him grunting comically. "Aaannddd here we go." He declared as he dragged a big briefcase into the light, setting it down on the ground. He knelt down and opened it up. Pulling the top up as he stood back up, it revealed a good amount of ryō bills.

While the amount would've gotten any single person's attention, Naruto and the others didn't look impressed. In fact, they almost looked offended by the case. "That's it? That's all you're going to pay us with? A single case of cash?" demanded June.

"What? No! We wouldn't cheat you like that!" He assured her, flapping his arms like he was trying to fly.

"Then what in the name of the spirits is that for?" She pointed at the case.

"It's an example." Nadare explained. "If the job is successful, each of you will receive five briefcases, the same amount as you see here." He tapped the briefcase with his foot.

They all stared at the case and the promise that it held. The case was all but filled to the brim with cash. Four more cases just like that for each one of them would set the amount of cash to a number that would've stuck them dumb if they weren't trying to act professional. _"Kami, he wasn't kidding when he said that we would be set for life if we took this job." _Naruto thought to himself.

"**It's a very impressive amount."** Kyuubi admitted.

"So, do we have a deal?" Tobi asked.

"Yeah, we'll take the job." June said, looking away from the briefcase and the promise it held.

"Yay! That's great!" He said, clapping his hands with childish delight.

* * *

They walked through the streets as the sun struggled to rise above the horizon and bring light to the new day. People were beginning their morning routines, whether it was heading to their jobs or opening their shops. The street was filled people and the air was full with the sounds of feet slapping down on the ground, people talking to one another, and the occasional bird. All-in-all, it sounded and looked like a normal day in the capital of the Land of Fire. But as they walked, the surrounding people would give them a little room, due to what they looked like and the vibe in the air around them, it was the vibe of don't-piss-us-off.

The pace they were walking at was what some people would've called a little sluggish; others would've called it slow and left it at that. But they didn't care what other people were thinking of how they walk, they were concentrating on making sure that one foot was in front of the other. They had spent the entire night ensuring that they had gotten the job to take out the Spring Daimyo and not getting killed in the process. The fact that an Akatsuki member was involved in the planning confirmed the idea that they were behind it. But at that point, they were focusing on getting to the hotel that June had gotten rooms at.

They eventually got there and immediately proceeded to the rooms they had been given, Akela and Nyla again stayed outside. It was spacious enough for them. It wasn't by any means a five-star hotel, but it also wasn't a hole in the wall. There were two separate rooms, one for the girls and one for the guys. There was single sink and toilet to share in a small room off to the side. They walked into the room and they all sat wearily on the beds with the exception of June, who was leaning against the wall.

They just sat in silence, going over what had happened to them during the night. "…Hey, Sokka?" said Naruto.

"Yeah?" asked Sokka.

"Did you and Suki really get married when we weren't looking?"

He shook his head tiredly. "No, I just threw that in on the spot. I thought it would help them accept Suki's abilities."

"I see." They fell silent again for a couple of minutes, until he took a breath. "Okay, they want us back at the warehouse in ten hours. We have information that we need to pass onto Jiraiya. Does anyone think we need to send it right away?" No one said a word. "I thought not. In that case, there's only one thing we need to do now."

They all shared a look and a nod. "Sleep," They chorused.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Okay, from what I've read, most people believe that you have to kill someone close to you in order to get the **Mangekyō Sharingan**. Personally, I like to think that you don't need to actually kill someone. If you felt that you've managed to make someone close to you change into something completely different and you feel responsible for that, you feel that you had, in essence, killed the person you knew and thus, would've gotten the **Mangekyō Sharingan**.

For the record, I am a firm believer in Naruto/Sakura, always have and always will be. But let's face the facts, if Naruto gets someone else (like Azula), who else is Sakura going to end up with. And don't say Lee, because no matter how hard I try, I cannot see that working. What I'm trying to do here is have Sasuke fall in love with Sakura. I have read too many stories where they marry and either they divorce, or Sakura still acts like a Fangirl. But that there are also stories where neither of those things occur and that's what I'm trying to aim for.

Now I know that officially, Kakashi had killed Nadare. But all we saw was the two of them smashing into the ground and then Kakashi walking away with Nadare's legs sticking up in the air. Personally, that could also be interpreted as he was simply knocked unconscious and Kakashi had thought he had killed him. That's why Naruto made that remark.

Recently, someone has told me that my descriptions, for a lack of a better word, stink. If anyone has felt that the story has suffered because of that, I apologize. I will try to do better in that department in new chapters and try to touch up the old ones when I can.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	51. Observing and Preparing

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 51: Observing and Preparing

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Kakashi)

Sasuke and Kakashi stood alongside the wall behind Koyuki while Sakura and Sai kept watch at the door. The meeting room was a surprisingly small, circular room. The walls and the ceiling were made of dark stone. There were windows up near the ceiling, circling the room. The table in the middle of the room was rectangular and also made of stone. Five chairs, with high backs, lined the two opposing sides of the table, with the chair of the Fire Daimyo seated at one end between them.

The Daimyo was actually sitting in said chair, fanning himself to keep cool. It was the only thing he practically did. On one side sat his advisors, garbed in black robes and tall hats. On the other side sat Koyuki, Miki, and Jiraiya. Both sides were actively talking about the trade agreement. "Lady Koyuki, may I bring your attention to item 5 in the agreement?" The senior advisor asked her. While there were five advisors there, only the most senior advisor was to talk openly, the rest were there to quietly debate and argue over things.

"The proposition of bringing railroads and by proxy, trains into the Land of Fire?" She asked, looking at the item on her copy of the trade agreement.

"Yes. We have yet to decide on where the stations for these trains will be built."

"Well obviously, one such station will be built here in the capital of the Land of Fire." She told them, reaching for a map that lay on the table and tapped her finger on where the capital was. "If we were to make straight line from the capital of the Land of Spring to the capital of the Land of Fire, we would have to make several stops along in order for the trains to refuel."

"We see no problem with that." He told her as he looked at the map as well. "But there will be additional costs if we are to do a straight line between the two capitals."

"What kind of additional costs?" Miki asked as she looked at the map.

"If we were to build a line that went straight from both capitals, there would be costs in the clearing of forests, tunneling through mountains and the constructions of bridges to cross rivers and streams. And there is also the possibility of other nations and by extensions, other shinobi attempting to sabotage the entire operation."

"The possible sabotage would simple to fix." Jiraiya commented, turning everyone's attention to him. "Just employ shinobi to guard the railroad crews. Depending on the mission ranking, more experienced shinobi will be used."

"What do you mean by 'depending on the mission ranking', Lord Jiraiya?"

"Well, there will probably more than one spot where the crews would be working at, and some would probably be more dangerous than others. Depending on the amount of danger the crews would be in at a certain location, the more experienced or the more shinobi will be placed at each location."

"I see your point, Lord Jiraiya." The advisor admitted. "On a side note, would Konoha be interested in having a station being built? It would certainly bring you more customers."

He shook his head. "Tsunade and I talked it over before we came here. Even though the railroads would likely be built throughout the Land of Fire, Konoha would like to be kept away from them."

"But what would be the point, Lord Jiraiya?" Miki asked him. "Konoha's location is on the map itself." She pointed at its location on the map. "You're not exactly hidden if you put it out for everyone to see."

"Please keep in mind, Miki, that the only to get to Konoha right now is only by foot. And Konoha is not just guarded by walls." It was also guarded by the **Kanchi Shisutemu Jutsu** (Sensing System Technique), a jutsu that surrounded the village in a dome of chakra. When people came into contact with the dome, it checked their intents. If someone was coming to the village to give a mission, or to pass supplies, they would pass through without any problems. However, if anyone tried to just walk in without any purpose, like a wanderer, they would be hit by a built-in Genjutsu that would turn them around. If any enemy of Konoha knew how to get pass the dome's Genjutsu, it would still alert the Barrier Team, who would in turn alert the rest of the village. "Besides, a station inside the village would put strain on both the barrier and the Barrier Team. Also, if Konoha was to be on a railroad line, people who would just be passing through would be hit by the Genjutsu, which would probably make them get off the train and walk away from the village."

"Couldn't you just re-key the chakra coding in the barrier?" One of the other advisors (the youngest there, by the looks of it) asked, standing up and earning him disapproving looks from the other advisors.

Jiraiya gave him a hard look. "If you knew anything about the **Kanchi Shisutemu Jutsu**, you would know that it was set in place by Madara Uchiha, Hashirama Senju and Mito Uzumaki themselves. I might be skilled in Fūinjutsu, but not even I'm dumb enough to try and tamper with what they created."

"Sit down and be silent!" The senior advisor hissed at him. He sat down, embarrassed.

"He won't be an advisor much longer." Sasuke whispered to Kakashi underneath his breath.

"Focus on the job, Sasuke, not on the politics." He whispered back.

"Kinda hard not to with this job," He quietly remarked with a small smirk.

"Just focus."

"What if we were to build the station just outside of Konoha?" Koyuki suggested, placing her finger on the map. "There's a small town just outside the village. If we build the station there, the barrier wouldn't be interfered with and you would still get your additional customers."

"That could work, I suppose." Jiraiya mused, looking at the map, his eyes going back and forth between the location of the village and the town. "I'd have to run it by Tsunade first though."

"At least it's settled for now." Miki commented.

"Shall we continue?" Koyuki asked, bringing everyone's attention back to their copies of the agreement.

"Yes." The senior advisor agreed. "Now, about item number 6, concerning the trading and distribution of Chakra Armor—" He was interrupted when Jiraiya gave a snort of derision. "Is there something you would like to say, Lord Jiraiya?"

"Where exactly are you planning to distribute this Chakra Armor?" He asked him.

"To the shinobi of Konoha, of cours—"

"No thanks." His statement surprised everyone at the table.

"I…uh…I beg your pardon, Lord Jiraiya. What did you say?"

"I said no thanks. Tsunade and I both agreed that Konoha does not want any of the Chakra Armor the Land of Spring crafts."

"But, Lord Jiraiya, surely it would benefit Konoha greatly if you were to have Chakra Armor." Koyuki protested.

"No, not really," He replied, looking like he had already won that point of the discussion.

"Not to be rude, Lord Jiraiya, but are you blind?" Miki asked, sounding both astounded and a little offended. "Distributing Chakra Armor to Konoha shinobi would greatly benefit them as well as give you an edge over other shinobi. That's why it went into the agreement in the first place."

"Kakashi, you've fought against enemy shinobi who had worn Chakra Armor. What's your professional opinion on them?" He asked the masked shinobi, turning everyone's attention to him.

He cleared his throat. "My professional opinion is that while the Chakra Armor is beneficial due to the fact they can drain the chakra sustaining Ninjutsu and Genjutsu and can also amplify the user's own chakra, there are also drawbacks that can fatal."

"What kind of drawbacks?" The senior advisor asked.

"If two people wearing Chakra Armor touched each other, whether by accident or not, the end result would be an explosion that would kill the two. Also, if we were to have this armor, we would be so focused on our efforts of disrupting our enemies Ninjutsu and Genjutsu; our weakness would then become Taijutsu. Once they'd find that weakness, they would exploit it."

"That's simple enough to fix, ensure that the weakness of Konoha shinobi, once they have Chakra Armor, is not Taijutsu."

"That won't help in the long run." Jiraiya told him. "It only takes one person to make Taijutsu their weakness and the rest will follow."

"Then…what are we to do with the Chakra Armor?" Koyuki asked, trying to think of a solution to the problem.

"Just issue it to the city and town guards in the Land of Fire. None of them use chakra, so they can still focus on Taijutsu and would only have to worry about standing close to each other. They get protection from Ninjutsu and Genjutsu and you won't have to worry about a surplus of the stuff piling up somewhere."

"That could be much more beneficial, actually." Miki mused, looking over the map. "If we did the Chakra Armor to town and city guards, they would be able to better handle themselves if they were attacked. We wouldn't have to worry about losing and retaking the cities or the towns. The loss of manpower would go down by a big number, wouldn't it?" She asked, looking over at the senior advisor.

"Ah…well…just a moment, please." He replied before sitting down and turning to face the other advisors. There was about five minutes of them whispering amongst themselves, while the other side of the table and the shinobi politely pretended not to hear them (although, it was a little hard due to the fact that the whispers got a little loud at some points). Finally, they were done and the senior advisor turned to face them. "Yes, that would be more beneficial." He agreed.

"Then it's settled." Koyuki stated. "Now then—"

"I have a question, Lady Koyuki." The Fire Daimyo said, surprising everyone there. He was there for the sake of formality. No one had expected him to even speak, let alone ask a question.

"Uh…yes?" She asked. For an unknown reason, a small fear began to grow in her stomach. She didn't know what he was going to say, but somehow she knew she wouldn't like it.

"It is about item 12 in the agreement, the 'approval of allowing Konoha shinobi to infiltrate Yukigakure and ensure that its loyalty is to the Land of Spring.'" He read off his copy of the trade agreement.

"Yes, is there something you disagree with?"

"Surely Yukigakure does not need any external forces to help them. This item is not needed at all. I must ask that it be removed." That statement practically stunned everyone in the room.

"My lord, we cannot remove the item." The senior advisor told him. "It was the first thing that had been agreed on since the agreement first came into discussions."

"Tsunade has been preparing a squad of shinobi for this _exact_ mission." Jiraiya continued, trying to explain the situation to the Daimyo. "All they need to hear the trade agreement has been signed and they'll start the mission."

"That will not be necessary, Jiraiya. You will scrap the mission." The Daimyo ordered.

"My lord, we have put _thousands_ of ryōs into this mission, in order to build backgrounds, fake identities, bribes to give to the right officials. We cannot scrap this mission." The advisor objected. "To do so would severely harm our treasury."

"Such things are trivialities. I have already given you all an order, the mission is to be—"

"Father, shut up," Miki said, interrupting him and surprising the rest of the people in the room.

It was safe to say the Daimyo was the most surprised. "What did you just say, Miki?" He asked, sounding like he didn't believe what he had heard.

"I said shut up. You are here for appearances sake and that's it. You cannot just have an item removed when you yourself have not been involved in the negotiations. So we are going to ignore you and continue on with the meeting."

"Now see here, Miki—" He began to say.

"I told you to shut up!" She interrupted him, standing up from her chair. He flinched and actually tried to make himself smaller in his chair when he heard her voice. "You are not going to do anything, you are not going to say anything, you are just going to sit there, look stupid, and not do anything or say anything that will stall or hinder this meeting, are we clear?" He could only nod weakly as he cowered in front of his daughter.

"_Kami, it's like watching her mother all over again."_ Jiraiya thought to himself before smiling slightly. _"I've actually missed it."_ The rest of the room was stunned on how she handled her own father and eliminated a potential problem to the trade agreement.

"Okay, now that that problem's been taken care, we will ignore what my idiotic father has said and continue." She said as she sat back down, further insulting the Daimyo. But he didn't admonish her, or even say anything in return. He just sat in the chair, trembling. Everyone else in the room ignored him and continued the meeting (or in the case of the shinobi, maintaining watch).

(Location: Team Paragon)

While the rest of the team was taking the time to sleep in their beds, one of them was sitting on the roof, watching the dawn sky. Even though he didn't have the cloak or the mask on, he still used a **Henge **jutsu to make his hair black, his skin pale, and his eyes a light shade of green. The team had spent the previous day sleeping for ten hours straight, and then going back to the warehouse (but not before being able to send a message to Jiraiya). There, they spent the rest of the day, as well as a decent portion of the night listening to Tobi and Nadare actually tell them how the plan to kill the Spring Daimyo worked and then trying to commit all of the facts to memory, including the fake identities that they were using and their backgrounds. Today was the day when they would go and purchase the right clothing for the upcoming dance.

But for now, he sat on the roof of the hotel; smoking a cigarette and watching the faint lights of the sun push up from the horizon. **"Kit, what in the name of Kami are you doing up this early in the morning and on the roof?" **Kyuubi grumbled as he woke up inside his cage.

"Hey, fox, you sleep well?" He asked as he took a drag and blew it out into the air.

"**I slept fine, until I noticed that you were on the roof. Again, **_**why**_** are you on the roof?" ** He demanded with a little bit of grouchiness in his voice.

"…I had a nightmare." He admitted with no shame.

Whatever grouchy, annoyed, or irritated thoughts he had vanished when he heard those words. **"Which one was it?"** He asked, concern showing in his voice.

"The one where I thought I was carrying Gao." He answered, shivering slightly as the dream came back to him with crystal clarity.

* * *

He was straggling to walk through a battlefield as he carried another person, a boy who was only a year or two older than him, on his back. He wore the armor of the Fire Nation infantry and it was caked in mud, blood, and an assortment of other things he didn't want to know about. "Naruto…it's too late." The slightly older boy croaked as he held on.

"Oh shut up, Gao." He replied as he focused on where he was walking. "You need to save your breath and your strength. We're almost back to camp."

"I won't…make it." He gasped as he tried to breathe.

"Oh yes, you are. You are going to make it and you are going to pay me back those five silver pieces you owe me, you got it? You are going to make it." When he got no response, he stopped walking. "Gao? Gao, did you hear me? Say something Gao, you're scaring me."

"**You should've left him behind."** A dark, ghostly voice whispered in his ear. **"It's too late for him."**

"No, it's not." He growled. "I promised that I would keep him alive, and I never break my promises."

The voice laughed and the sound unnerved him. It sounded like the ratting of bones against each other. **"And you've done a marvelous job at keeping those. How many others have you promised to keep alive. How many of those promises were broken?" ** It asked with cruel glee. Before he could answer, it continued. **"You know what? Don't bother answering. All you have to do is look around; you'll see your answer."**

He did look around the battlefield. All around him were skeletons upon skeletons wearing Fire Nation armor. Some were clumped together while others were just scattered around the battlefield. But each one looked as if they had been fatally wounded. "What…who are all these people?" He asked as he turned around and around to look at them all.

"**They're the soldiers who died because of you."** The voice whispered in his ear. **"They all died because you failed to keep your promise to them. Maybe it's time they said something about that."**

The skeletons started stand up around him. Slowly, one after the other, they would rise up from the ground and dragged themselves closer to him, the black holes that were the eyes drilling into him, the grins that the skulls had on seemed vicious and crazed. "You promised that you would keep us safe." Gao's voice said in his ear. He then realized that the flesh he was holding had turned to bone and a skeleton's hands were draped over his shoulder. He took a quick glance back and saw a skull straight at him. "You let us die."

"I didn't mean to, I swear." He replied, tears forming at the edges of his eyes. "I tried to save you all, I did." He told the skeletons that had now surrounded him. "I did my best."

"It wasn't enough. Now, you must pay." The boney hands grabbed hold of his throat and tightened while the rest of the skeletons descended upon him.

* * *

"…**Kit, you have got to do something about those dreams."** Kyuubi told him.

He shook his head. "I will not, they are my punishment."

"**How can they be a punishment?"** He demanded, despite already knowing the answer.

"They're my punishment for failing the soldiers who had died and for breaking my promises." Despite the calm and collected (as well as a little sarcastic) image that he gave off, Naruto was actually scarred and traumatized by the things he had seen. The night he had killed the two assassins from the Earth Kingdom (which he had now long suspected was ordered by either Long Feng or Yāo Jing), he had spent the rest of that night kneeling in the sea, either trying to wash off non-existent blood on his hands, or throwing up when he remembered what he did. He had seen soldiers that he had led or fought beside die before his eyes, some were ones he could've saved if he had been faster. He even had to kill some to put them out of their misery.

"**We've been over this more times than I care to count, gaki. You have to move past it."**

"I can't. They were my responsibility and I failed them." His voice filled with sorrow at the mistakes he made.

"**And you're letting them haunt you in your dreams."**

"We both know that the dreams don't come every night." He argued as he took another drag. He blew it out into the shape of a circle and watched a nearby bird fly through the air. What he said was true. The dreams weren't constant; they just showed up when they did. The longest period of time he had between them was two months, the shortest was three days.

"**We also know that when they do come, they haunt you relentlessly. And every time I've offered to help quell them, you've refused."** He fired back. **"Have you forgotten how many times you've come close to accidently hurting someone while you were dreaming?"**

He hadn't forgotten. That was the main reason he usually tried to sleep alone. There had been too many times where he had woken up only to find himself standing over someone, either with a weapon ready to strike, or with his hand about to grab their neck. Waking up and realizing what he was about to do, scared him as much as the dreams did. "You know why I refuse your help, Kyuubi."

"**You use my chakra all the time, Naruto."** He argued with exasperation.

"No, I don't. The last time I actively used your chakra was so I could make those animals stop from going on a rampage in the circus." In truth, he was actually quite scared of using the Kyuubi's chakra. The last time he had really used it; he gave into his rage and did something terrible.

(Flashback)

The sound of a huge rock sailing through the air filled his ears until it smashed down to the right of him, showering him with small pebbles. He paid no attention to that as he ran through the battlefield, trying to keep his head down. He kept moving, dodging incoming rubble until he slid in behind a steel barricade, next to another soldier, who he recognized as Gao. "Remind me again why exactly we're trying to take a city without any siege engines, ladders, or even a piece of rope?!" He demanded.

"Because our captain has serious delusions of grandeur and was high on ember spice when he ordered the attack," Gao answered as he ducked his head to avoid a showering of rocks. It was no small secret that the captain was an ember spice addict and treated his own company like they were his own personal toy soldiers. No one tried to press charges against him because his father was a general in the Fire Lord's council, thus allowing him to do whatever he wanted.

Naruto had been with the company for only four weeks and even he hated the captain. He often wondered how that man got into the military, let alone having the rank of captain. In the end, both he and the rest of the company chalked it up to his father pulling some strings (or in the case of the captain, a _lot_ of strings). The only thing they could do was make sure he didn't get too out of hand.

Naruto had been bunking with a Firebender who was named Gao for those four weeks. Gao was an easy guy to get along with, although he was prone to trying to be number 1 when it came to competitions. His grey eyes looked like they were holding back a good amount of humor (except when you made him mad, that was when they looked like he was trying to decide on whether he should barbeque your ass or broil it). His black hair was always slicked back, like he ran water through it every day. The two of them got along great (although the competitions they did get out of hand at times). However, the one thing they couldn't stand was how the captain behaved.

That morning, after they found one of the woman soldiers outside his tent, beaten black and blue and was also raped, Naruto had had enough. He walked into the tent and found the captain getting high on ember spice. He threatened to press charges and the captain laughed it off, saying it wouldn't go through. Gao then stepped into the tent and declared that if the charges wouldn't go through, he would challenge the captain to an Agni Kai. Most of the soldiers in the company had gathered around the tent when he said that. The captain then became indignant. He demanded that they turn themselves in for punishment which they refused to do so. He then ordered his second-in-command to put them in chains and the second-in-command refused. He then threw a childish fit, screaming that his orders were to be followed to the letter and asking them if they knew who he was. Finally, it was Gao who stopped the fit by punching the captain hard in the face and said that he was the guy they were sick of and would be willing to kill at the first chance they had.

It was at that point orders came in to give support in the besiegement of an Earth Kingdom fortress. The captain (who was still high on ember spice and now furious at his entire company for disobeying him) ignored those orders and ordered everyone to attack the fortress themselves. Despite the fact that they knew they would likely get killed in doing so, they also knew that if they refused, he would've used the opportunity to have the entire company court-martialed.

"Do we know where anyone else is?" Gao asked as they sat behind the barricade.

"Don't know. I lost sight of most of them once the rocks started flying down on our heads." Naruto answered. They felt the barricade shuddered on their backs as it withstood another pounding from a boulder. "What do you think the odds are of us surviving this?"

"I'll be honest with you, Naruto. It doesn't look good." Gao always had a knack for calculating the odds. He used it on the battlefield as well as the playing table (where nobody except Naruto would play him). "We're all but stuck behind this barricade. If we try to move, there a very good chance of being spotted and getting rocks hurled at us."

"We can't stay here forever, Gao. They'll send out troops to flush out the soldiers who survived the rocks. And we can't try to retreat because we'll either be killed by the rocks, or the captain will try to have us executed for cowardice. If he talks fast enough, he'll probably make it stick." They both covered their heads when a rock the size of a door sailed over the barricade and smash into the ground just in front of them.

"Agni take it!" He swore as he covered his face to protect it from pebbles. "Well, do you have an idea? I would love to hear it."

He tried to take a peek out the side of the barricade, only to quickly pull his head back when a rock almost made contact. _"Too close for comfort! Way too close for comfort!"_ He mentally shouted at himself. "Right now, I'd say we cut our losses and try to make it back to base."

"So instead of dying by rocks, we'll die by execution? Real nice plan there, Naruto," He said with heavy sarcasm.

Another rock pounded against the barricade, almost making them jump away from it. "You got a better one? Look, if he accuses us of running away, we'll just say we thought we heard the call to retreat. So unless you have a better idea, we'll have to go with this one."

"Ugh, fine! We had better come out of this alive!"

"Of course we'll get out of this alive; you still owe me those five silver pieces." He said with a semi-serious smile that still managed to convey the humor. "Don't worry, Gao. I promise to keep you safe."

"Don't make promises you can't keep, Naruto." He replied in a solemn tone. "I made that mistake once; I've never made it again."

"Gao, you're going to get out of here alive. I'll keep you alive, I promise." The sound of rocks failing down around them stopped, creating a silence that was almost disturbing. "…You ready?" He asked after a few moments of the dreadful silence.

"Shut up and run." They tore out from behind the barricade like someone had lit a fire underneath their ass. What followed them wasn't the sound of rocks being thrown in their direction, but the sound of the fortress gates being swung open and footsteps pounding the earth. "I don't know about you, but I don't think we really want company right now!" He shouted at Naruto.

"Then let's run faster!" He shouted back. They picked the pace up considerably, but that got the soldiers' attention. They went after the two soldiers, shooting arrows and throwing javelins at them (there were no Earthbenders amongst them, as Earthbenders need a solid stance to throw a rock, which they can't do if they're chasing down someone). However, the distance between the two groups was wide, so the arrows and javelins didn't really reach them. But the sound of their footsteps hitting the ground just behind them spurred them on.

But the Earth Kingdom soldiers noticed this as well, and so ran faster after them, closing the distance. By then, they were using their arrows and javelins more careful, only trying to take a shot when they thought it was close enough. They stilled missed, which still made the two think that things were going to be fine. _"Almost out, almost out."_ Naruto chanted inside his head, the sound of his footsteps slapping against the ground filling his ears.

An arrow flew towards them, slicing through the air. Unlike the other arrows that had been shot, this one had been fired when the distance was shorter. There was virtually no chance of it missing, and it didn't. The sounds of the arrow piercing flesh, someone stumbling, and Gao's cry of pain made Naruto stop, he turned around and saw Gao on the ground with an arrow in his back. He raced back and grabbed hold of him. "Come on, Gao." He grunted as he pulled his shoulder around him, pulling him back up onto his feet. "We're almost out. You're going to get out of this alive!" He started to run again, only he was slowed down by the extra weight.

"Naruto…I'm dead…weight. Just leave…me." Gao told him, his breath ragged and filled with pain, like it was painful for him to even whisper, let alone talk.

"Oh no, I ain't doing that! I promised I keep you alive and I always keep my promises! Stay with me!"

"I…thought I…told you not to…make promises you…couldn't keep. Just leave me behi—" An arrow punctured his throat, cutting him off. The force of the arrow made him stumble again, this time bringing Naruto with him as they fell to the ground.

Naruto was the first to recover. He reached for Gao's arm, only to realize that his friend wasn't moving. "Gao? Gao, say something," He said, only to hear nothing. He stood up and tried pull him up as well, only to let go when he saw the blank look in his eyes. He just stared at the dead body. _"He's dead? That can't be right. We were going to get out of here. We almost made it. He can't be dead. I promised to keep him alive and I never break my promises. Gao can't be dead!"_He thought to himself.

"**Naruto, focus!"** roared Kyuubi, getting his attention. **"You have to run. Leave him behind!"**

"_NO!"_

"**RUN, NOW!" **He ordered. But as he did, the Earth Kingdom soldiers surrounded the two. Their weapons were out, raised, and ready to use.

"Show us your hands!" One of the soldiers ordered as he held a nocked arrow at Naruto's face.

"You killed him." He whispered, ignoring them. "You shot an arrow through his throat and killed him."

"I said show us your hands! Do it now!"

He continued to ignore them. "I promised to keep him alive. I never break my promises, never. And now Gao's dead, because of you." That was when one of the soldiers tried to make him put his hands in the air by poking him with his spear. He whipped around, yanked the spear out of the soldier's hands and beheaded him with a single swing. The soldiers all watched as the head flew through the air, held in their place by shock. As the head landed on the grounded with a wet _SPLAT_, the sound of the spear hitting the ground brought their attention back to Naruto. "…Kill you. I'll kill you." He said, repeating himself.

"**Naruto, don't give into your anger! Please stay calm! Don't become enraged!"** Kyuubi pleaded with him. But it was already too late. He began to draw upon the fox's chakra, which manifested itself as a red cloak covering him completely that boiled and hissed with bubbles that kept bursting. His canines elongated and his whiskers became darker and thicker. The soldiers began to back away in fear from him. In their eyes, what was standing in front of them wasn't human anymore.

"**Don't do it, Naruto!"** The fox tried one last time. But his pleas fell on deaf ears.

"I'LL KILL YOU ALL!" He screamed at the soldiers, staring at them with red, hate-filled eyes. The last thing he remembered was lunging for them.

(End Flashback)

When he came to, he was back in the base, four days later. He had learned from the other soldiers who managed to survive the bombardment of rocks that he had all but torn the soldiers apart with his bare hands. One of them had tried to run back to the safety of the fortress, only to be tackled by him and having the fortress gates smashed open. It was then he learned something that horrified him to both his core and bones.

He had killed every single person in the fortress. Soldiers, civilians, men, women, even children had not been spared from his rage.

Even though the captain had been arrested for disobeying orders and being found out for using illegal drugs, it still didn't help. In his own eyes, he was a mass murderer. Even though he couldn't remember what had happened, just the mere memory of the preceding events still made him feel ill. He had made a promise to keep Gao alive and he failed in keeping it. To him, that was worse than killing people (which was really bad in his books).

And despite his efforts over the next two years, soldiers still died while they fought next to him or underneath his command. Some officers had told him that the lives of common soldiers don't matter and that he shouldn't care about them (every time he heard that, he had to restrain himself from attacking the officer in question and beating to him a bloody pulp). Other officers (more often than not the ones who climbed up the ranks instead of inheriting their rank) could understand what was he was feeling and told him that while they understood, he had to let them go, that he had to move on. But despite what they told him, he just couldn't let them go. He could still remember each soldier that had lost their life in front of him, and that haunted him.

"**Kit, you've got to get past this." **Kyuubi told him. He had seen just as much as his Jinchūriki (even more, if he was counting his previous ones). **"These dreams are making you lose sight of what's around you."**

"What? What the hell are you talking about, Kyuubi?" He demanded as he took a drag, sounding confused and irritated.

"**If you keep this up, you'll lose sight of what's around you and that'll catch you severely off guard, or even get you killed." ** He tried to explain. **"It's happening right now and you haven't even noticed. The Konoha shinobi have gotten stronger when you weren't looking."**

He held back a laugh. "Oh, you have got to be kidding." He protested.

"**If you had been paying attention, you would've notice that they aren't the same as before." ** He pointed out.

This time he did laugh; a brief bark of one. "That's ridiculous. I fought each team that came after me, whether it was physical or mental. And I either won or fought to a draw."

"**And you do think that they would've just stayed the way they were after you beat them? They've upped their training and have improved immensely. You would've noticed this if you had **_**paid attention**_**." **He said, placing emphasis on the last two words.

He scoffed. "Like it'll matter, I beat them once and I could do it again. Come on, I even beat Orochimaru!"

"**NARUTO UZUMAKI!" **The fox roared, letting the roar echo inside of his mind, making hold his head in his hands. **"Are you telling me you have forgotten Lesson Number 9?"** He asked with a dangerous tone in his voice.

"No, I haven't forgotten." He said with a wince. "Did you have to yell that loudly?"

"**If it had gotten my point across, then yes," **He answered simply.

"What point?"

"**Both the Konoha shinobi and Orochimaru had underestimated you; you were the lesson to them. The only difference between them is that you allowed the Konoha shinobi to live." **He pointed out in a matter-of-factly tone. **"And because you let them live, they improved themselves and they will not underestimate you. Do you understand what I'm trying to tell you, Naruto?" **

"Yeah, I guess do." He admitted with a small sigh. "…It was pretty arrogant to threaten Itachi and Kisame then, wasn't it?"

The fox shook his head. **"No. It would've only been arrogant if you had said that you could've taken them on alone. Thankfully, you weren't dumb enough to say that."**

"Don't you have any trust in me?" He asked in a whiny tone that he knew irritated the fox.

"**Not when you act like that I don't. Knock it off."** He ordered, annoyance ringing clear in his voice.

"Naruto, what are you doing up there?" Azula asked, poking her head out the window and looking up straight up at him. "Are you trying to peep on us?"

"That's not even funny, Azula." He told her, taking one last drag of the cigarette before flicking it away. "…I had a nightmare."

She swiftly climbed up to the roof. "Again?" She asked with evident concern as she sat down next to him.

"Yeah, again," He answered shortly.

"Why didn't you get me?"

"Because I didn't think Sokka would've wanted to wake up and start demanding what the hell we were doing." He drily remarked. Despite the attempt at dry humor, he knew what she meant. Somehow, the dreams didn't come to haunt when Azula slept in the same bed of him. This had been the first time in a while they had slept apart from each other.

"…Are you alright?" She asked with gentleness strangers would've thought she didn't have.

"A little bit."

"Naruto, you have to let them go. They're haunting you because you let them."

"Spare me, Azula. I already got the lecture from a certain furball." He told her with a slight groan.

"**It's for your own good and we both know it."** Kyuubi told him.

"If you've heard it before, why haven't you done something?"

"It's not that easy. I've tried, but I can't just let them go. They were my responsibility, and I failed them. If I let them go, I feel like I would be abandoning them."

"How could you be abandoning them? They're already gone." She asked, confused.

He smiled slightly before tapping the side of his head. "But they're alive in here. I can remember all of them and the good memories I have."

"But the good memories come with the bad ones, and it's the bad ones that haunt you." She noted with distaste.

"If I can stop for a second during a day to remember the good times I had with people I had lost, then that's enough for me."

"Even if it means you have to suffer nightmares?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I've been doing that for a while now, I can deal."

"But I can't." She told him, hugging him from the side, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. "I don't like it when you suffer because you're being stubborn. And I'm fairly certain that the soldiers that had died wouldn't want you to do this either."

"…You're probably right, they wouldn't like it." He admitted quietly as they watched the sun finally start to show itself. "But I just…can't. I can't let them go."

"You'll have to try. Not even you can hold on to them forever."

"I guess we'll find out, sooner or later." He said. They spent the rest of the early morning just sitting in silence, letting the rays of the rising sun wash over them, bathing them in their warm light.

(Location: Team Kakashi)

The meeting was over and everyone had gone their separate ways. Despite the one outburst from Miki when she told the Fire Daimyo off, everything went rather smoothly (although the shinobi had noticed that the Daimyo had been giving his daughter looks with something in his eyes that put them on edge). Koyuki walked beside Miki and Jiraiya while Kakashi and his team walked either in front or behind them, keeping watch.

"Well, that was entertaining." Miki commentated as they walked, the sounds of feet hitting the wooden floor filling the hall.

"I'll say. The last time I saw the Daimyo get quailed like that was when your mother was pulling his strings." Jiraiya commented. "Did she teach how to do that, or did you just let it loose?"

"Just let loose, I guess." She said with a shrug. "My idiot of a father had been interfering with things that he had just passed onto his advisors for quite some time now. It had getting on my nerves and that move he tried was the straw, so I just…told him to stop."

"I think that was a little more than telling him to stop." Koyuki quietly remarked. "That was more like telling him off."

She thought it over for a brief minute. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I did tell him off." She chuckled at the memory. "Kami, that was fun!"

"How was telling off one's father fun?" Sai quietly asked Kakashi.

"You know, Sai, I'm not quite sure myself." He answered with an eye-smile.

"Well, I have to leave now." Miki said as they approached where the hallway split into two halls. "I'll either see you guys around, or at the dance tomorrow. Bye." She turned to the left and walked away as they turned to the right.

"I think the Land of Fire will benefit greatly when she takes the throne." Koyuki stated as they walked down the hallway.

"I can agree to that." Sasuke said as he kept his eyes out for possible dangers.

"You keep that up, and she may very well marry you, Sasuke." Sakura noted with a small grin.

"That's not even funny, Sakura." He told her while also glaring at her. Even though he had feelings for her, he still got annoyed when she said things like that.

"Oh lighten up, will ya?"

"Please remember that we're on mission right now, you two." Kakashi reprimanded them with complete seriousness. "We can discuss Sasuke's love life later." He said, his seriousness turned into humor and earned a scowl form Sasuke.

"Lord Jiraiya, is something the matter?" Koyuki asked as they approached their rooms.

"It's nothing, just something I noticed." He answered as Sakura opened the door, letting the others walk in before following and closing it behind her.

"What's that?"

"I'm just trying to figure out where the hell the Twelve Guardian Shinobi was at during the meeting. At least one of them should've been standing behind the Fire Daimyo during it, but not even one had shown itself." The others had heard of the Twelve Guardian Shinobi before. They were shinobi who had pledged themselves to the protection and service of the Fire Daimyo. The origins of the group dated back to the first days of Konoha. Both the Shodaime Hokage and Madara Uchiha had sent six of their clansmen to protect the Daimyo. This was to show that not only would the twelve shinobi obey the Daimyo; they would also do together, despite past grievances. It worked and the Twelve Guardian Shinobi had been created. They were known by the sash they wore, bearing the symbol of fire on it.

"Wasn't Asuma-sensei a part of that group?" Sakura asked as she sat down next to Koyuki, remembering the sash that Asuma wore around his waist.

"Yeah, he was at one point in his life." Kakashi answered her question. "He left after a…incident split the two in half and eventually break apart."

"What kind of incident?" Sasuke asked from where he leaned against the wall, genuinely curious.

"That's something that only Asuma can tell you." He told them. They accepted the fact. They knew that Kakashi hadn't been a part of the group, so he shouldn't be the one to tell the tale.

"That's another thing." Jiraiya noted as he began to pace the room. "The group broke apart after that. It's been a little more than a decade since then; I would've thought that the Daimyo would've reformed them by now. I'd say he hasn't if they weren't in the room."

"Perhaps they had to be elsewhere?" Sai suggested as he stood near the door.

"That required all of them? I have never heard of anything like happening before. As I said before, at least one of them should've been there."

"What are you suggesting, Lord Jiraiya?" Kakashi asked from where he stood against the window. "That the Fire Daimyo didn't reform the Twelve Guardian Shinobi?"

"It's a possibility." He admitted. "Besides, wouldn't have Asuma heard something or been asked to rejoin if the Daimyo did reform the group?"

"_He does have a point."_ The masked shinobi admitted. _"That would've been the kind of new that Asuma wouldn't have kept to himself, especially since he's with Kurenai."_ Ever since they came back to the Elemental Countries, both Asuma and Kurenai had been a little more open about their relationship. It was getting to the point where everyone was wondering when the wedding was going to be (Ino was among the more vocal about that).

"Why would the Daimyo not reform his protection group?" Koyuki asked. "I know that would be something I would want reformed quickly."

"I don't know." Jiraiya admitted as he stopped pacing. "But somehow, I get the feeling it's connected to the death Miki's mother."

"How could that be possible?" Sasuke asked. "You said that she died a year after the Kyuubi had attacked and that the group disbanded a little more than a decade ago."

"Look, I don't know how or why, but I just have a feeling and quite frankly, it's not a good one."

"Are you sure, Lord Jiraiya?" Sakura asked him.

He looked her straight in the eye. "The last time I had that kind of feeling, it was just after the Yondaime Hokage had been elected and it was coming off of Orochimaru. We discovered what he had been doing shortly afterwards. Trust me when I say that this is a feeling that should be paid attention to." The room fell silent as they thought over his words and what they implied. It was something they had all felt, Jiraiya had just been the first to voice it. There was something going on with the Fire Daimyo and they didn't know what it was.

Their thoughts were interrupted when the door that led to the hallway was knocked on. "Excuse me? Is anyone in here?" A voice asked from the other side, a voice that sounded like it belonged to a young boy.

Sai opened the door and looked at who it was. It was indeed a young boy, one who looked like he was just about to enter his teens. "What is it?" He asked as he slowly brought his hand closer to one of his kunai.

"Um…I, uh…I'm here to see Lord Jiraiya." He explained, his voice faltering as he looked at the shinobi standing in front of him.

"I have this, Sai." Jiraiya told him as he walked up to the door. He nodded and walked away, sitting down at the table. "So what do you want, kid?" He asked the boy.

"Um…my manager would like to know if he should have your usual order come here or wait." He explained, clearly trying to fight his nervousness. It was hard, considering he was standing in front of a living legend.

"Tell him that I'll come get it once I'm done in the capital." He said. "That way, I can get it on the way out."

"Understood sir," He said, not moving from his spot.

"Was there something else?" Jiraiya asked, noticing he hadn't moved.

"Yes sir. My manager told me to give you this." He pulled a letter out and handed to him. "He said you read as soon as you get it."

He took the letter. "Thank you. If that's all, you may leave." The boy bowed his head and quickly left. Jiraiya closed the door and turned around to face the others, opening the letter as he walked towards them.

"What is it?" Koyuki asked him.

"It's another message from the others." He told them as he read the letter. "It has the details of how exactly the assassination will go." He looked over a certain passage. "Huh."

"What is it?" Sakura asked.

"They say that the Akatsuki are definitely involved, so they don't exactly trust what has been planned. They're telling us that if the plan changes without them knowing, we may have to adapt on our own."

"That's a little obvious." Sasuke noted. "Of course we would have to adapt if the plan changes without them knowing."

"I guess they were just trying to make sure we knew." He said as he kept reading the letter. "There's a postscript for Kakashi at the bottom."

"What does it say?" Kakashi asked. Jiraiya handed him the letter. He took it and began to read the bottom.

PS

Hatake

The next time you try to kill a shinobi from Yukigakure, just lop off his Kami-forsaken head! Nadare Rōga is still alive and he's got a bone to pick with Koyuki!

Naruto

"That's not good, not good at all." He declared as he finished reading it.

"What is not good?" Koyuki asked, her gaze going between him and the letter.

"According to Naruto, Nadare Rōga is still alive." She froze when she heard that.

"How is that possible? You broke his neck!" Sasuke objected.

"I guess I didn't try hard enough. If he is alive, odds are he'll be a part of the assassination. Therefore, we're going to have to be more watchful and keep an extra-sharp eye out during the dance."

"That being said, we should plan how we will counter this plan." Jiraiya stated, holding out a hand towards Kakashi, who gave him back the letter. "Sai, get the map of the dance hall." He ordered. The pale shinobi briefly disappeared into the men's bedroom and returned with the map, which he opened and placed on the table. They all crowded around it, as Jiraiya explained what they should, pointing at places on the map.

(Location: Team Paragon)

They had spent the day going on a shopping spree, which the girls enjoyed more the guys, despite the fact it was for getting into the palace. The fake identities and the backgrounds that came with them had them going all over the marketplace. They went from dress stores to jewelry shops and everywhere in between. It was a tiring day, as everything had to be perfect, down to the smallest of details. Even though the guys were much more exhausted than the girls, they knew that if even one detail was wrong, either one or possibly all of them would be caught and that would stop them from trying to stop Nadare from making the kill, so they held their complaining to themselves.

In the end, they gotten everything they needed, which they double and triple checked. As they walked away from the market, they took the time to write out a third message to Jiraiya, informing him of their disguises and the behaviors that came with them. They discretely passed it onto one of his contacts and made their way back to the hotel. After a quick dinner and bath, they went back up to the rooms and went over the information on their disguises as well as quizzing the others.

"So, Lord Manchou, how do your farms fare?" Naruto asked Sokka as they sat around the room with other's information in their hands.

"Not so well, I'm afraid. We've had a bit of a draught and the crops was a bit thin this year." Sokka replied, using a deep voice. "I only pray that Yue—"

"Who is Yue?" He asked, catching onto the mistake.

"Ah damn it, I meant Kami."

"Too late, they'll be onto you after that."

"I know, I know. Let's just move on." He turned to look at June. "So, Lady Gaiyuu, how is your little sister doing?"

"She is doing fine. She's been practicing hard at painting portraits. I think she could very well make a masterpiece soon." June answered, making her voice sound richer while also sounding like an older sister who was quite proud of her little sister.

"How remarkable, perhaps I should ask her to paint my portrait." Suki commented, making her voice sound lighter.

"I'm sure she would be quite honored to hear, Lady Jieichou. But I believe that she would ask you to wait a little while so she could practice a little more."

"Very well, I will wait."

"Speaking of practice, I hear that your cousin has entered the town guard."

"I'm afraid you must be mistaken, I do not have a cousin."

"Sorry, but you do." She said, her voice going back to normal. "It says so right there." She handed the paper back to Suki.

She looked it over. "Spirits take it, you're right." She cursed before handing the paper back.

"Perhaps we should take a break and review our information." Azula suggested.

"We really should." Naruto agreed. He was having trouble with his information. He knew everything but he kept mixing things up. While he was used to using disguises, he was more inclined to disguises that was usually a one-time use only. Any other disguise he came up with that lasted longer he usually improvised with, though he made to go overboard.

They handed back the information in their hands back to the proper user, but before they could start reviewing, a knock on the door got their attention. June, having been the one to pay for the rooms, got up and walked over to the door, opening it. "What is it?' She asked as she looked at one of the hotel employees.

"I was told to give you this." The employee explained, giving her a piece of paper. She took it and the employee walked away.

"Is it a reply from the Fucking Sadist?" Suki asked, using Jiriaya's nickname.

"No, it has the Akatsuki emblem on it." She answered.

"What does it say?" Sokka asked.

"That we have to get back to the warehouse, now."

* * *

They quickly made their way through the streets, brushing past people who were on their way home. They had not been expecting a summons from Tobi, so they didn't know what this was all about. _"Did they find out who we are?"_ Some members of the group thought. They tried not to focus on it, but it still loomed in their mind.

When they finally made it to the warehouse, the sun had set but there was still some light in the sky. The street was deserted, so they entered with ease, once again leaving the wolf and the shirshu outside. Again, the only lights that were on were the ones hanging over the center of the place. "Oh great, you guys made it!" Tobi said when he saw them come in as he stood in front of the table, looking over the blueprints and whatnot.

"What's going on here?" June asked. "I thought the next time we were supposed to meet was when we were to get into the dance."

"I know that. Trust me, I do. But something's come up." He told them.

"What do you mean? Where's Nadare?" Sokka asked as he looked around, trying to see if the shinobi was hiding from them.

"He already knows what's going on, so he doesn't need to hear it twice."

"Hear what twice?"

"There's been a slight change in the plans." He told them, holding his finger and thumb a few inches away from each other.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked. He, as well as the others, knew that those words could not mean anything good.

"You're not just assassinating the Spring Daimyo, you have a second target. So we need to go over the plan and make a couple of adjustments." He explained.

"Who's the second target?" Azula asked him.

"It's the daughter of the Fire Daimyo, Princess Miki."

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

A lot of stories I've read never mention the barrier surrounding Konoha, or even the Barrier Team. But I think I know why. It's because that in the anime, enemy shinobi manage to get past the barrier with ease as they try to attack Konoha. But the village is protected by more than just walls. The barrier is there. If you don't know how to explain it, just add a little more detail to what you already know.

I would like to thank Fan of Fanfics21 for inspiring me for the rooftop scene. Recently, I have had an argument with a reviewer (who shall remain anonymous, as that argument was between him and me). He was the one who pointed out my lack of detail. He also accused me of making Naruto a Mary Sue. If anyone has thought the same, I profoundly apologize for that, when I started this story (hell, when I started period), I did not know what a Mary Sue. I was only trying to make sure my Naruto was not godlike (which in my humble opinion, is the same damn thing as a Mary Sue). Having looked over a couple of my chapters, I will admit that while it was accidental, it was still there. However, despite him telling me that, as well as telling me that I needed to adjust it, he did not give any _ideas_ on how to do said adjustments. I had asked Fan of Fanfics21 for a second opinion and he more or less agreed. The difference was that he actually suggested a few things.

If you believe that I'm going to be bringing in Sora as well as the others that have to do with the Twelve Guardian Shinobi, think again. I said I wasn't bringing in any of the anime arcs and I meant it. I'm just using it as an explanation as to why something is off about the Daimyo.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	52. To Dance and To Execute

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 52: To Dance and To Execute

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Team Paragon)

They sat in one of the rooms in the hotel, silence engulfing the entire place. It was the morning after the impromptu meeting with Tobi. "Okay, I think we can all agree that this is now officially bad." Naruto finally said in a hushed voice, so that they didn't arouse suspicion. The others could only silently agree with him. "Sokka, you got any ideas on how to make this work to our advantage?" He asked the resident idea guy.

"No. I don't have a single one." He said dejectedly. "Tobi threw us for a big enough loop that I don't have any ideas on how to make it work for us. Also add in the fact that we can't pass this information onto Jiraiya and the others." After Tobi had informed them of their second target and showed them the changes in the plan, he told them that Nadare would be staying close by. He said it was so it would be easier for them once they were to head out to the party, but they suspected an ulterior motive.

"So, what exactly are we going to do then?" June asked, saying the question they were all thinking.

"I think the only thing we can do right now is just play it by ear." Suki said, earning looks from the others.

"You mean improvise? That's incredibly risky, Suki." Naruto told her.

"This is coming from the master of improvisation?" Azula asked, rising an eyebrow.

"Azula, even improvising can only go so far. I might've successfully improvised a couple of things other people thought required extensive planning, but even _I_ recognize the fact that you can't do that kind of thing while attempting to stop an assassination from the inside."

"Well, there's a first time for everything, right?" Sokka asked him.

He stifled a groan as he covered his eyes with his hand. _"I hate it when someone says that."_ He mentally growl.

"**If I remember things correctly, you've said it quite a few times yourself."** Kyuubi drily commented.

"_Oh, just shut up, furball."_ He snapped at the fox. "Sokka, you do realize that this entire thing has likely become more complicated because of what you just said, right?" He asked the Southern Tribesmen.

"Oops, sorry," He apologized, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Never mind him." June said, waving him off. "Do we have anything else to offer?"

They fell silent as they all tried to think of an idea. But whenever one of them thought of one, they dismissed it for a variety of reasons (too dangerous, too impractical, too stupid, too distracting, etc. etc.). In the end, all they had was that one thing. "So…I guess we'll be making this up as we go?" Suki asked, voicing what they already knew.

This time, Naruto didn't bother to stifle the groan. "If we screw this up, I am going to kill you people." He warned them.

"No you won't. You love us too much." Azula replied with a small smirk.

"That might be true for you, but the others, not so much."

"Thanks so much for the vote of confidence." June drily remarked.

"Let's try and be a bit more serious here." Sokka said told them. "There are a lot of things that could go wrong here."

"Sokka, you just stated the obvious." Naruto pointed out.

"It had to be said." He defended himself.

"No it did not."

(Location: Team Kakashi)

They mostly sat around the table, letting the morning sun shine through the windows. The air around them was tense but quiet, almost like the calm before the storm. "Are you ready for tonight, Lady Koyuki?" Sakura asked her.

"Yes I am, Sakura." The Spring Daimyo answered. "But you've asked me that three times already."

"Oh, right, sorry. I'm just a little nervous." She apologized, blushing lightly.

"_You're_ nervous? How do you think I feel?" She asked in attempted good humor (which sort of work as most of the people in the room began to chuckle). "Besides, I thought you would've been more used to this kind of thing since the last time we were together."

"Sakura has always been more on the recovery/standby team when it came to missions." Sasuke remarked as he leaned against the wall, fiddling with a kunai.

"Well, I _am_ a medic, Sasuke." Sakura replied archly.

"And I've never said you weren't. You just really haven't been on the front lines all that often." He told her with a small smirk.

"Why are they acting like this?" Sai asked Kakashi, who was sitting across the table from him. "They're acting like they're about to fight."

"Oh, it's just their way of getting rid of the pre-mission jitters." He answered absently, his focus on the orange book in his hands.

"Pre-mission jitters?" He repeated in disbelief. "There is no such thing."

"Trust us, Sai. There is such a thing." Sakura assured him. "If we don't get rid of the jitters, then we'll be nervous throughout the entire mission and be more likely to make mistakes. With a mission such as this, we really can't afford mistakes."

"Don't bother trying to explain it to him, Sakura." Sasuke told her. "He'd need emotions to understand."

"There's no need to be rude about it, Sasuke." She said in reply.

"I am not offended. It's true that the concept of emotions often escapes me." Sai admitted to them. "It escapes me just as much as the concept of bonds does."

"How does the concept of bonds escape you?" Koyuki asked him. She thought the concept was pretty straight forward.

"What puzzles me is this." He looked over at his two teammates. "Despite the fact Naruto has said quite often that you are not his friends anymore and that he would rather cause a massacre then come back to the village, you still consider him to be your friend. I could be wrong, but aren't bonds supposed to go both ways?" His question got everyone's attention; even Kakashi looked up from his book to listen to the answer.

Both Sasuke and Sakura shared a look. He merely lifted an eyebrow in a silent question and she simply nodded her head in acknowledgement. He turned back to look at Sai. "Back when we had just started," He began. "I had thought that Naruto was just a useless idiot, a dobe who had passed due to sheer luck. But once we had gotten used to each other, I realized that he was pretty entertaining to be around. He was a good rival…and a good friend." He admitted the last part after some hesitation. "And yet, I threw that in his face when I ran from the village. But he still went after me, for our bond. He had accepted me for me and thought I didn't realize it until later, I had done the same. He had become my friend and I had become his."

"But he still fled the village himself, throwing the bond in your faces as well." He pointed out.

"And we chased after him, the same way he did for Sasuke." Sakura replied. "The only difference is that we took longer than he did." She noted with a small chuckle.

"You did all that for the sake of your bond with him?" He asked, confusion written plainly on his face. "Especially since he doesn't want anything to do with you?"

"We've accepted the fact that he probably won't come back to the village." She said with a small amount of sadness in her voice. "But we can hope that he'll be our friend again, even if he said he didn't want to be."

"I…I don't what to think about what you've said. It doesn't make sense to me." He honestly admitted.

"Look at it this way, Sai." Sasuke told him. "Had I successfully left Konoha, odds are you would've been having this exact conversation with Naruto about me. The only difference would be that by now, he would've already convinced you."

"…You think so?" He quietly asked.

"He was that kind of person."

"I think you meant to say he _is_ that kind of person, Sasuke." Kakashi commented, his attention back on his book.

The door to the room opened and Jiraiya walked in before he could reply. "I've got another message." The Toad Sage announced.

"Who gave it to you this time?" Koyuki asked him curiously.

"That's not really important." He told her, waving it off as he opened the letter.

"Was it the hot springs or the brothel, Lord Jiraiya?" Kakashi asked, looking over the top of his book.

"I said it wasn't important!" He repeated with a bit more harshness while also avoiding eye contract with the women in the room.

"What does the letter tell us now?" Sai asked, focusing on the mission.

"They gave details of their disguises and backgrounds. That is so we know what to expect from them." He explained as he placed the letter on the table.

"And what are they?" Sakura asked, deciding to also focus on the mission.

"Sokka will be posing as a Lord Manchou; a minor noble who has most of his revenue comes from farming. Recently, his farms have hit by a draught and as such, his crops were much smaller. He is a humble man who only wishes to ensure that he, his family, and those who work or serve are fed and cared for, surprisingly not in that order." He remarked.

"So, Sokka will be a caring noble who is also a farmer." Kakashi summarized.

"Correct. Suki is Lady Jieichou, the daughter of a noble. She is quiet and will not be the first to attempt conversation. Her cousin has joined the town guard where they live and has been the talk of the town since. June will be Lady Gaiyuu, a noble who is also a collector of rare animals. She inherited her title after her parents suspiciously died. However, she has a little sister who learning to paint portraits and is becoming quite skilled. They are quite attached to each other and Gaiyuu will take any insult directed at her sister as one to herself. Are there any questions?" He asked, looking up.

"No." Sasuke answered. He had moved away from the wall and stood next to the table, putting the kunai away.

"Good. Moving on, Azula will be known as Yoen, the guard to Jieichou. She is supposed to stay silent, but if she speaks, it is likely to be short and to the point, if she is annoyed, sarcastic will also be added. She is also supposed to be fiercely loyal to Jieichou and will take any insult to her as an offer to a fight. Naruto will be going as Kikan, a man who has recently made his fortune in gambling. Supposedly, he went into a casino with only a couple of ryōs and had managed to break the bank. But despite that, he does not flaunt his newly gained wealth. He is quiet and also conservative, but he is also generous. If anyone asks him about the wealth, he'll brush it off like it's nothing."

"Is that it?" Koyuki asked.

"That's only the basics." He admitted, as he touched the small seals that lined the bottom of the letter, creating a large cloud of smoke. Once the smoke dissipated, more documents lay on the table. "Here are all the details." He started to shift through them all. "Hmm, that's odd." He commented.

"What is it, Lord Jiraiya?" Kakashi asked him, closing the book and placing it down. Anything that the Toad Sage found odd required your attention.

"Out of all these documents, I'm not finding a single forgery. These all seem legit." He noted.

"Are you sure about that?" Sai asked as he looked at the documents as well.

He threw the Root operative a hard look. "I've been in this business a lot longer than you have, Sai. I think I would know the difference between an authentic document and a fake."

"Are there any photos?" Sasuke asked as she began to move the documents around to find said photos.

"Only those of Team Paragon, who look like they didn't know they were being photographed." He replied, tapping each photo that was attached to each background document. "This is very, very strange. It also warrants investigation."

"But you can't do that, Lord Jiraiya." Sakura objected. "People are expecting you to be there at the dance."

"You seem to have forgotten four simple words, Sakura." He told her as he folded his hands into a handseal. **"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"** Another Jiraiya appeared with a cloud of smoke and a _POOF!_ "You know what to do." The original told the clone, handing him all the documents. The clone nodded, took them, and walked out the door.

(Location: Team Paragon)

The sun was setting and the gate to the palace had a line forming in front of it. People were walking slowly to the gate and showing their invitation to the guard, who allowed them to pass after inspecting their invitation. Despite what people thought of the Fire Daimyo, his parties and dances were great places to make new friends (AKA alliances) and also agreed on trade agreements, marriage proposals, etc. etc. So, a lot of the nobles and the people who wanted to have connections always flock to these events.

"Invitation please," The guard said as Sokka walked up to him, wearing a fake beard and a kimono that had seen a lot of use. It was a dark brown and had spots that looked like they were stitched back together. Some of the edges looked frayed and the entire outfit looked a little big on him. However, there was room enough for him to strap his Zanpakutō against his back with the coat covering it (just in case).

"Here you are, sir." He said, handing him the invitation.

The guard looked it over and handed it back to him. "Enjoy the party, my Lord." He told him.

"Thank you, but there's no need to call me that." He replied before taking the invitation and walking past him.

The guard turned his attention back to the line as Suki, Azula and June walked up. "Invitation please," He told them.

"Here you go." June handed him the invitation. She was wearing a black dress that fell all the way down to her feet, with a slit on the side that showed tantalizing glimpses of her legs. She had taken her skull headpiece off, letting her hair down. Suki had dressed a bit more conservatively. She wore a grey kimono with a black obi holding it together. She kept her hands folded to look demure, but also to keep them near where she had hidden one of her fans. Azula didn't wear a dress. Instead, she wore a black business suit with a white shirt underneath the jacket. There were no bugles in her jacket that would've shown weapons, but she kept her gloved hands loose and ready, showing that she knew how to use them. She stood close to Suki, ready to place herself in her way.

"Alright, you two can go." The guard said as he handed back the invitation. "But she stays." He pointed to Azula.

"What?" Suki asked, sounding both worried and nervous.

"This invitation is for the Lady Gaiyuu and the Lady Jieichou. Anyone else can't go inside."

"But…but she has to come with us!" She protested, putting a hand on Azula's arm, like it was a precious thing.

"If she's not on the invitation, she is not coming in." The guard replied adamantly.

"Oh, come on. You can make an exception this one time, right?" June asked him.

"If she's not on the invitation, she is not coming in." He repeated stubbornly.

Before either one of them could say anything, Azula spoke out. "Lady Jieichou, Lady Gaiyuu, let me talk to him for a minute." She said to them.

"Are you sure, Yoen?" Suki asked.

"Just give me a minute." She walked up to the guard and leaned into his ear. "Look, there is properly a good reason why I'm not on that list." She whispered.

"And what's that?" He asked with obvious disbelief.

"I've been with Lady Jieichou since she was ten. She's very shy and extremely nervous when around strangers, so she relies on me. We practically live together. Her father probably didn't put me on the invitation because he thought I would be able to get in with her."

"Well, you can't."

"What's the problem here? Are you afraid that I might muck up the security in there if I go in there or something? Fine, I will let them know that I am there and will do nothing to stand in their way. My priority is Lady Jieichou. Are you happy now?"

He tried to think of a defense, but whatever idea came to his head couldn't hold. "Okay, fine." He said, giving up. "You can go in. But I want you to inform security of your presence. You make a scene, it'll be on you, got it?"

"Yes. Thank you for understanding."

"Just get in there already." He growled into her ear.

She nodded and stepped away, turning back to Suki and June. "Everything is fine now, milady. We can head in now."

"Are you sure?" Suki asked, looking at her so-called bodyguard with worry evident on her face.

"We're fine." They walked past the guard and through the gate.

"Laying it on a little thick, weren't we Suki?" June asked under her breath.

"It got us through, didn't it?" She whispered back.

"Invitation please," The guard asked the next person who walked forward, now a little annoyed.

"Here it is." Naruto handed him the invitation. He wore a black suit, complete with black shirt underneath. Only one button was open and he wore no chains or necklaces underneath the shirt. The clothes looked recently bought and yet, they worked on him. He was using the **Henge** jutsu to make his hair a deep red, his eyes a glowing teal, and his whisker marks disappear. He unconsciously drew the eye of single woman that was there and was completely unaware of it (which making Kyuubi trying desperately not to snigger, which he always did when this sort of thing occurred).

"Alright, get in there." The guard rudely, handing back the invitation.

"Is something the matter?" He asked as he took the invitation back.

"Nothing that concerns you, now get moving." He snapped, jerking his thumb at the gate.

"Did it have to do with that group before me or something?"

"I said it is nothing that concerns you."

"Alright, alright, thank you." He started to walk past and then stopped. "Actually, hold on."

"What is it now?" The guard growled as he swung around to face him, only to find a hand full of cash in front of him. "What the…?"

"Here, take it." He said with a smile. "Think of it as a big tip for have to deal with people like us."

"I…uh…it…it's my job." He replied weakly.

"Nevertheless, I insist you take it."

"Um…thanks, I guess." He reached out hesitantly and took the money. His eyes widened after quickly counting it all. "This is over two grand!"

"And you deserve it." Naruto told him honestly.

"Thank you, sir. Thank you very much!"

He shook his head. "No, thank you for putting up with this line," He told him before walking through the gate. He saw that the others had stayed close to the wall next to the gate. "Everyone is in, right?" He asked as he quickly made his way over to them.

"You can see everyone, can't you?" June asked; her voice laced with sarcasm.

"Wait, where's Nadare?" Sokka asked as he examined the courtyard. "I don't see him."

The others looked around, but they didn't see him either. "I thought he was going to meet us once we were inside." Suki said, blanking on some of the details. "I thought he was supposed to go ahead and meet us in the courtyard."

"It was either that, or in the dance hall." Naruto told her. He was also blanking on some of the details and that was a feeling he didn't like.

"Alright, everyone, stay in your groups and head into the dance hall." Sokka ordered, taking charge. "Once inside, we look for Nadare and go from there."

"Fine by me, let's get this party started." June declared as she started walking towards the main building, Suki and Azula behind her. After a few minutes, Sokka walked away as well, making sure he kept his distance from the girls. Naruto just stood against the wall, waiting as he took out a cigarette and lit it. He took a couple of minutes smoking it before snuffing it out in a nearby trashcan. Once he was done, he began to make his way towards the palace and by proxy, the dance hall.

(Location: Dance Hall)

"I should've packed a dress." Sakura moaned quietly as she stood against the wall, watching the nobles dance.

"You wouldn't have been able to wear it." Sasuke told her as he stood next to her.

"You don't know that." She objected.

"Sakura, we're shinobi currently on a job. Dancing was not part of it. We are here to keep watch and ensure that our charge stays safe." He looked at the crowd with an annoyed look. "Besides, why would you want to dance like that? It's nothing but a big pain in the rear, if you ask me."

"Well, I wasn't." She told him. "And the only reason you don't like this kind of thing is because of that mission two years ago."

"I made you swear to never talk about that again!" He hissed at her. It had been his first mission as a Chūnin. He and the Konoha Eleven had to infiltrate a foreign noblewoman's estate and obtain information that was important to their client. Their way in was a masquerade ball the noblewoman was holding, therefore making Sasuke spend about a week learning how to dance. They got in and while the others hunted down the information, he distracted the entire ballroom by dancing with the noblewoman. However, within a couple of hours, they had learned two things. The first was that the information had been passed on verbally and the second was that the noblewoman had a fetish for younger boys. By the time they had located the noblewoman, she was with Sasuke, who had been strapped to a bed and was within five seconds of involuntarily losing his virginity. Once the mission was done, he made everyone swear never to talk about what had happen unless they wanted him to do something very unpleasant to them with a **Chidori**.

"Are you two kids enjoying yourselves?" Jiraiya asked them as he walked up to them.

"Just barrels full of it, Lord Jiraiya." Sasuke replied with heavy sarcasm and a glare at Sakura.

"If that's true, then what's with the look?" He asked, noticing the glare.

"Never mind him, Lord Jiraiya." Sakura told him. "Sasuke doesn't really like ballrooms."

"Oh yeah, I had heard about that particular mission."

"Who told you!?" Sasuke demanded, trying not to shout.

"Who do you think? Tsunade told me." He replied, not at all offended at the tone Sasuke had used. "So why aren't you dancing, Sakura?"

"I didn't pack a dress." She answered, a little embarrassed.

"So? Use the **Henge** jutsu." He told her with a shrug.

"Um…isn't that cheating?"

He gave her a look. "We're shinobi, cheating is part of the program. If using **Henge** to wear a dress is cheating, cheat away."

"I don't think many of the guys here would be interested in me anyway." She reasoned.

"Think again." He told her, gesturing to the hall behind him. She looked and saw that a good amount of the men (and a couple of women too) kept looking back at her. They looked interested in her, but they didn't do anything about it. While she was wondering why that was happening, Jiraiya could tell why just by looking at the person next to her glaring at the people who looked at her. "Hey kid, I want to talk to you." He told Sasuke quietly.

He nodded once. They walked away from Sakura so they could talk alone. "What is it?" He asked once they were out of Sakura's hearing range.

"When exactly are you going to do about you and Sakura?"

He became confused. "What are you talking about?"

"Come on kid. A village idiot would've known that you like Sakura, and he'd be the first one to say it aloud."

"So, would that make you the village idiot?" He asked, trying to deflect the question.

"I was the dead last in my graduating class. Look at me now." He replied with a straight face. "But back to my question, what are you going to do?"

"There's nothing to do."

"Right, that's why you're glaring everyone who even looks at her to death."

"What's the point here, Lord Jiraiya?"

"You like her, don't you?" He asked him, getting straight to the point. His answer was silence, which was all that he needed. "I thought so. You haven't told her, have you?"

"Of course I haven't." He said, looking at her out of the corner of his eye.

"And why is that?"

He fell silent for at least a minute. "…I don't want things to go back to the way things were." He finally answered.

"Now what is that supposed to mean? You're afraid that if you tell her, she'll become a Fangirl again?"

"Yeah, I am." He answered. When he noticed that Jiraiya was desperately trying not to snicker, he grew angry. "What? You think that's funny?"

"A little bit, yeah." He answered, managing to not snicker. "Sasuke, you do remember that Sakura was trained by Tsunade, right? Trust me when I say that the chances of her becoming a Fangirl are both virtually and literally nonexistent."

"If you say so," He said with a shrug of his shoulders.

"I do say so. Anyway, in the event that you actually want to do something about you and Sakura, let me know. I can give you a couple of tips."

"You would give me a couple of tips? I think I'd rather announce my presence to the Fangirls."

"For your information, gaki, I happened to be quite good at getting couples together." He told him, offended. "Who do you think got your parents together?"

"What? What do you mean?" He asked. "My parents got along fine with each other."

"That's only after Minato and Kushina helped me lock them in a room together for a couple of days."

"You did what!?"

"Don't get your panties in a twist. We had permission from their parents and we made sure to pass in food."

"How…how long were they in there?" He asked, almost scared of the answer.

"Long enough," Jiraiya answered with a shrug. "They got married soon afterwards. Quite frankly, we always suspected that Itachi was conceived in that room."

"Stop, please. I don't need to hear that." He all but begged, trying not to shudder at that thought.

"You were the one who asked." He told him before walking away. He quickly noticed Naruto walking into the hall and signaled him to come over.

"I wish I hadn't." Sasuke muttered to himself as he walked back over to Sakura.

"What was that all about?" She asked, curious.

"Something I am never telling you." He answered shortly.

"Now you've got me interested."

"Forget it, I'm never telling you. Let's focus on the job."

* * *

Azula had to admit, the dance hall was very well done. The dance floor was spacious enough to allow everyone there to dance without hitting each other. A group of musicians sat at a corner, playing a slow tune. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling, shining down light. Tables surrounded the dance floor with light food so that people could sit down, eat and relax for a couple of minutes before getting back up to dance again.

"This place is something." Suki noted quietly as she looked around. "I know this might sound odd, but I think the ballrooms of Ba Sing Se would have a hard time comparing to this."

"Trust me, they would." June told her as they watched the people on the dance floor swirl around and around. "What the ballrooms in Ba Sing Se lack is elegance. They're all gaudy and horrible, heavy on the pieces of art and paintings that clash horribly together. This place does not have any of that and was done quite nicely."

The other two looked at her in surprise. "…When were you in the ballrooms of Ba Sing Se?" Suki asked her.

"I think the fact that she's a fashion critic is a bit more noteworthy." Azula said.

"I had a couple of jobs that had to deal with Ba Sing Se's 'high society', if you can call it that." She said, distaste evident when she said high society. "So I had to learn how to blend in and understand what was fashionable and what wasn't. Not a bright point in my career as a bounty hunter."

"You must've had a lot of male admirers. How many hearts did you have to break?" Suki asked with a small grin. She knew that June had to have admirers; she was that kind of woman.

"Like that would be something I'd tell you." She replied, a little irritably.

"Ladies, can we please focus on our mission?" Azula asked pointedly. "I see Kakashi and Sai are standing against the west wall. I'll go see them and let them know of my 'priorities'." She told them, placing emphasis on priorities. "The two of you might want to get back into character."

They both nodded and Suki began to look worried as she walked away. She made sure to look like she was keeping an eye out for possible dangers against Suki (AKA Lady Jieichou) as she slowly made her way over to Kakashi and Sai. But just as she was about to approached them, a hand grabbed her shoulder. "What are you doing?" A voice hissed in her ear.

She turned around and came face-to-face with Nadare, who was wearing a hood to cover his hair and eyes. "I'm trying to stay in character here by informing the shinobi about my priorities. Are you trying to make a scene and get my cover blown?" She demanded.

"Is everything alright over here?" Kakashi asked, standing between them. Both he and Sai had noticed that Azula was making her way over to them, but grew concerned when she was stopped by a hooded man. He quickly made his way over to see if Azula's cover hadn't been blown.

"_Damn, he's fast."_ Azula thought to herself. "It's nothing. This gentleman thought I was someone else, that's all."

"Yeah, what she said." Nadare agreed. "Sorry about that, ma'am." He apologized to Azula before turning around and walking away.

"That was a little close. Had that not gone any farther, we would've had a fight on our hands." Kakashi noted as he watched Nadare walked away. He knew who it was, despite the hood he wore over his head.

"It might have very well been." She agreed as the two of them watched Nadare disappear back into the crowd. They tried to look for him, but he was invisible to their sight.

"Anyway ma'am, we had noticed that you were coming this way. Is something the matter?" He asked her, pretending he didn't know her.

"Yes, I was making my over to speak with you." She told him, getting back into character. "My name is Yoen, Lady Jieichou's personal guard. I'm just here to tell you that my Lady is my primary concern. So please do not interfere if something happens with her, I will take care of it."

"Thank you for informing me. I will inform the other shinobi here."

"Then my business is done. I will return to my lady." She turned around and began to walk away.

"I hope you aren't hiding anything in your pockets." Kakashi's voice spoke from behind her. "It would be quite bad if weapons were to be drawn if the trouble occurred."

"I have no need to hide weapons." She told him as she kept walking. "I am a weapon."

"Then try not to kill anyone." He said with an eye-smile before going back to his place against the wall.

As she made her back, her mind was racing. _"What did he mean 'hiding anything in your pockets'? He should've known, or at least saw that there wasn't anything in the pockets."_ She thought to herself. As she mulled it over, realization struck and struck hard. _"Wait a second, he didn't..."_ She quickly and subtly checked the pockets, feeling a piece of paper in her breast pocket. _"Agni, not just fast on his feet, he's fast with his fingers too."_ She silently praised. She withdrew her hands from the pockets as she walked back to Suki and June.

"Is everything okay?" Suki asked with concern, staying in character. "We saw what happened."

"It's nothing, milady, just someone who thought I was a person that he knew." She answered with a straight face.

"It was Nadare, right?" June asked in a hushed voice. She just nodded in answer. "How did he get in without us knowing?"

"I don't know."

"Look out, we've got incoming." Suki warned them. They looked in the direction she was and saw a couple of noblemen about their age swaggering over to them. Their positions changed immediately, June morphed her face into an expression of uncaring, Suki became more nervous and stood slightly behind Azula.

"Hello, ladies!" The leader of the group, a boy with lank hair and a sneer on his face, said as they approached them. "You girls are looking for a couple of guys to dance with, right?"

"Actually, no, we're not. We were actually having a conversation." June told him indifferently. "Thanks for interrupting."

"Ah, come on. Don't be like that." Another of the guys, a brute of a boy with hair cut very short and a piggish nose, said cockily. "We know you're looking for a good time here and we can provide."

"That one in the middle is hot." A third, who looked like he had over-gelled his hair and had a bad case of acne, declared, looking at Suki with hunger in his eyes. "I'd love to take her to the floor, along with a couple of other places." Had this been any other time, she would've done something publically humiliating to him, but she had to remain in character.

However, Azula did something about it. "Would you mind keeping such thoughts to yourself?" She asked, covering more of Suki from view. "Lady Jieichou is not some sort of sex doll for you to drool over."

"Are you kidding? I want to know what's underneath that kimono."

She scowled at him. "If I hear one more word like that come out of any of your mouths, you will all end up in considerable pain." She warned, her fists tightening up.

They just laughed it off. "Looks like we have a bit of a fighter here, guys," The leader said as he looked at her. "Are you her girlfriend or something?"

"That's hot!" The second one declared, actually drooling at the prospect. "Go on and give her a kiss! And make sure to include tongue!"

Azula took a step forward, intent on seriously harming the pack of idiots in front of them. However, she was stopped when Suki grabbed her arm. "Yoen, don't. They aren't worth the trouble." She told her.

"I cannot let that insult just pass, Lady Jieichou." She all but snarled.

"We don't need to make a scene. Please, let's just walk away." She pleaded with her.

"…Fine." She agreed after a couple seconds of silence between the two groups. The girls turned around and began to walk away.

"Hey, where the hell do you think you three are going?" The second boy demanded.

"Isn't it obvious?" Azula asked, not bothering to turn and face them. "We're leaving."

"No, you aren't. Get back here!" He yelled.

"It's alright, let them go." The leader told him. "We're obviously too much man for them."

"That's funny, I don't see men in front of me." June declared as she stopped, turned around and looked at them, making Suki and Azula stop as well. "All I see are three arrogant, pathetic little boys who don't how to treat a lady properly. Perhaps you should go back to your mothers and actually pay attention when they teach you manners."

"Who the hell do you think you are, you little bitch!?" The third boy demanded, getting the attention of nearby people.

"That's easy enough. I think I and my friends know the difference between boys and men. And you three are most certainly not men. Good evening." She turned back around and kept on walking, Suki and Azula right beside her.

"You get back right now, you whore!" He shouted, gaining more attention from nearby people, who now had looks of disapproval on their faces.

She stopped once more and looked back. "Did you boys happen to notice the wolf and the large creature waiting outside?" She asked them. "It'd be a shame for something unfortunate to happen to you three, wouldn't it? I mean, the creature does have a toxin in its tongue that can paralyze a person for about an hour and the wolf does enjoy meat." She started walking again, not bothering to look at the expressions on their faces, although Azula and Suki managed to hide the smirks they wore.

As they walked through the crowd, they noticed Sokka was making his way towards them. Suki gestured to an empty table and he nodded in agreement. "That was nicely done." He complimented them as they sat down. "All I got was a discussion on farming methods." He groaned slightly. "I am so glad we looked over everything. I probably would've gone straight to blows in that conversation, but you ladies handled it amazingly."

"Thank you." June said as she stretched her legs a little. "But I was surprised that they didn't come after us."

"That might have been because their parents arrived just after you walked away and all but dragged out of the hall." He told them with a grin.

"I wish I could've seen that." Azula remarked with a small smirk. "It serves those idiots right."

They all quietly shared a laugh, but soon got serious again. "Azula, I saw what happened over there." Sokka told her. "Were you made?"

She shook her head. "I managed to get out of there fine. But Kakashi did slip me something when I wasn't looking." She reached into the breast pocket and pulled out the small piece of paper. She briefly read it and then past it to the others. Each took a brief moment to look at it before handing to the next person. Once they were done, Suki handed the paper back to Azula. She closed her hand around it and burned it to ashes with a quick Firebending.

"We need to inform Naruto." June said as Azula discreetly dipped her hand past the tablecloth and dropped the ashes. "Does anyone see him?" They started to look around, not moving from the table. It was a little difficult; due to the fact the place was crowded and most people were on their feet, giving them a bit of a blocked view.

"There he is." Suki said. "He's over to the right of the dance floor, being swarmed by girls." They all looked to where she had said. Naruto was indeed standing to the right, just within sight of Sasuke and Sakura. Girls had surrounded him, but it didn't look like he was enjoying the attention.

"You should really put a collar on him or something." June told Azula as they watched him try to wave the girls around him away. "Just show who he belongs to."

"I can't really do that right now, seeing as we're undercover." She replied. "But I guess I really should do something soon."

"Well, there go the girls." She noted with a small smirk as the girls finally left him alone. His eyes searched the hall until he found them sitting at the table.

"Um…why is he glaring us to death?" Suki asked as she tried to avoid making eye contact with the glare Naruto was throwing at them.

"I don't think he's glaring at us." Sokka told her. "I think he's glaring at me." They watched as Naruto raised his hand and give his ear a tug before lowering it and started walking towards the dance floor.

"What is he doing? And what was with tugging his ear?" June asked.

"I think he just told us he's about to play it by ear." Azula remarked.

"But what is he doing?" The others, as well as the shinobi, were asking that same question. Soon, the sound of people talking, of people dancing, even the sound of the music playing stopped as everyone's eyes were on him. He made his way through the dance floor, people moving away from him like he would hurt them if he didn't. When he stopped, he was standing in front of the royal table, at which sat the Fire Daimyo, Koyuki, Madam Shijimi, Jiraiya, and Miki.

"Princess Miki, may I have this dance?" He asked in a formal tone. But no matter what the tone he used, he still had stunned the entire dance hall. Nobody had ever so brazenly walked up to the Royal Princess and asked her if she wanted to dance. She was supposed to have a dance card, which was supposed to completely filled.

"May I ask your name, sir?" Miki asked in return.

"It's Kikan, your Highness." He said with a small bow.

"That man who recently made a fortune when he gambled in a casino with a single ryō bill?"

"I think the rumors are getting a little exaggerated." He said with a small chuckle. "It was more than just one ryō."

"Rumors do tend to do that." She conceded. "But why do you wish to dance with me?"

His expression became confused. "I'm sorry, your Highness, but who _wouldn't_ want to dance with you? Besides, I had thought you would've wanted to do justice to the dress you're wearing." The dress was a long, strapless one that was the color of midnight blue. She wore no necklace or earrings and only wore minimal makeup. But she was stunning nonetheless, especially with her hair down.

"Were you not aware of the fact that I have a dance card?" She asked him, only blushing faintly at the compliment.

"If it is full, then I apologize, your Highness." He answered with an apologetic bow of his head.

She laughed. "Oh, it's full, trust me." She told him, before standing up from her chair. "But screw it; it'll just be full of suitors the FB and my father are trying to shove down my throat." She looked pointedly over at the Fire Daimyo and Madam Shijimi before walking around the table to stand in front of him. "You may have this dance, Mr. Kikan."

"Thank you, your Highness." He thanked her with a bow of his head. She curtsied a little in return before offering her hand. He took it and led her down to the dance floor, which completely emptied itself as they approached.

As they stood in the middle of the floor and readied themselves, the lights above dimmed until there was only one light, which was focused on the pair. The musicians began to play a song that the Princess considered to be an old favorite.

(Start FFX-2 OST: Eternity ~Memory of Lightwaves~)

As the music played in the air, the two danced. It was a slow dance, but everyone's eye was on them. There was no misstep, no hesitation, and no awkwardness between the two dancers. They danced as if they had been doing this for a long time. "You dance well." Miki praised him as they dance.

"Thank you." He replied. He spun her around slowly and she followed through, spinning gracefully. "Princess Miki." He said underneath his breath as she came back to him. "Whatever you do, please do not show anything on your face. My name is Naruto Uzumaki. My team and I are with Jiraiya and the other Konoha shinobi on assignment to protect the Daimyo of Spring."

"How do I know you're telling the truth?" She asked, keeping a blank face as they danced.

"We came into the capital with Jiraiya the Toad Sage, Kakashi Hatake, Sai, Sasuke Uchiha, and Sakura Haruno."

"Anyone could've known that." She pointed out.

"They came here to ensure that Lady Koyuki and your father completed the trade agreement they had negotiated, which would bring trains and railroads into the Land of Fire as well as allowing Konoha shinobi to infiltrate Yukigakure. While there are many more items in the agreement, these two are the most important. Only those who were apart of the negotiations and Lady Koyuki's protection detail know the contents of the trade agreement."

"Okay, you're telling the truth. Why are we having this conversation?" She asked.

"The Konoha shinobi are here in order to protect Lady Koyuki from an assassination attempt. While one team stayed with her at all times, the other would hunt down any information about the assassination. Recently, we have learned that there is a second target." He informed her.

"And how does that concern me?"

"The second target is you." If she was shocked or surprised, she didn't show it. "I'm sorry, but we heard about this at the last minute, so we couldn't come up with a concrete plan to protect you." He apologized as they twirled.

"That is not important, what is important is that both Koyuki and I remain alive. However, she is the more important target, so if you have to choose, protect her." She ordered him.

"I would say that you are both important."

She shook her slightly. "No, she is the Daimyo of a country. I am just a princess."

"That may be, but we still have to lure the assassin out. If he goes after you, we'll be able to stop him."

"I've got an idea." She told him. As the song ended, he dipped her slowly and pulled her back up.

(End FFX-2 OST: Eternity ~Memory of Lightwaves~)

As the rest of the lights came back on, the crowd began clapping, applauding them for the dance. "Thank you for the dance, Mr. Kikan." Miki said to him with a smile.

He shook his head. "No, thank you, your Highness. I had the honor of dancing with the most beautiful woman here." He praised her. "You definitely look beautiful in that dress."

"Would you like to see me out of it?" She asked with a sly grin. If the crowd had been stunned to silence when he asked her for a dance, they were now picking their jaws up from the floor. Even Naruto was stunned, although he managed to keep it at a small blush. "I'm sure you've got a couple of _special_ moves that I would love to see."

"Well…if your Highness would want me." He said. _"She's kidding, right?"_ He silently asked himself.

"**I ain't telling ya."** Kyuubi said with a grin. He loved watching things that made his host either squirm or nervous and wouldn't try to do anything to spoil the fun.

"Call me Miki, and I definitely want." She turned around and walked away. "Come see when you're bored here, I'll be in my room." She walked out of the hall with everyone watching her leave.

Looking over to see Sasuke and Sakura still standing against the wall, he subtly jerked his head in the direction of the door Miki left through. Sasuke had managed to see the jerk and nodded in acknowledgement. He tapped Sakura on the arm and they quickly made their way through the crowd and left through a different door.

As Naruto made his way off the dance floor, he was soon accosted by Nadare. "Why didn't you kill her?" He demanded in a growl. "You had a perfect opportunity!"

"If I had tried to kill her, someone would've noticed me trying to pull the kunai out. Besides, who tries to kill someone in the middle of an empty dance floor during a slow dance?" He asked with a scowl. "That's just wrong."

"I don't care if it had been a public orgy!" He snarled. "You had a chance and you missed it!"

"What part of 'someone would've noticed me trying to pull the kunai out' are you not listening too?" He asked back, trying to keep his voice low. "And we can't do anything about her now since she walked off with those two shinobi going after her. We should concentrate on the Spring Daimyo."

"Fine, you and your group make a distraction. I'll take care of the rest." He walked away and disappeared into the crowd. "We'll deal with the princess afterwards."

"_How helpful of him,"_ He mentally growled.

"**So what are you going to do, kit?"** Kyuubi asked him.

"_I'm still working on it."_ He told the fox as he saw the others come towards him. "In my defense, I didn't know she was going to say that stuff." He said quietly when he saw Azula's angry look. "All she said beforehand was she had an idea to lure out the assassin."

"Sure she did." She replied, not believing a word.

"It's the truth, I swear."

"Can the two of you have this talk later?" June asked pointedly. "Naruto, Kakashi passed us information that you need to hear."

"I already know." He said, stopping her from continuing. "Jiraiya caught me as I was walking in."

"That's good to know." Suki said. "But what are we going to do? We can't attack Koyuki ourselves, Nadare's supposed to do that, and we can't fake an attack on the princess now."

"Nadare told me that we had to make a distraction so that he can take care of the rest. Does anyone have any ideas?" He asked, looking at the others.

"Hm, let's see. We're middle of a crowded room and someone needs to kill someone without the rest of the people in here noticing." Sokka mused as he looked around the hall, noticing the dance floor was beginning to fill up again. "Perhaps if two of us started a fight in the middle of the dance floor, that would be get the most attention. And if one or two others would try and stop it, it would get more attention."

"So, any volunteers?" asked Suki, looking at the others.

"Oh, I think we have the perfect first two candidates." June remarked with a smirk, looking at both Naruto and Azula. Before he could say something or even object to the idea, he was sent flying backwards by a punch, courtesy of Azula. He crashed into a nearby table, the sound echoing throughout the entire hall and earning everyone's attention. Even the musicians had stopped playing to see what was going on.

"You will apologize!" Azula yelled as she stomped over towards him.

"Apologized for what? I didn't do anything!" He protested as he tried to stand back up.

"You lie!" She punched him again, this time sending him into the dance floor, scattering the few people on it. "Apologize, now!" She ordered as she came at him again.

"Tell me what I did, and then I'll apologize." He told her as he stood back up. She snarled and tried to punch him for a third time. While the sound of flesh hitting flesh was heard in every part of the hall, it was not her hitting him; it was him blocking the punch with his hand. But that didn't stop her in the slightest. She crouched low and knocked his feet out from underneath him with a sweep.

He fell to the floor with a crash and she took advantage of that by sitting on his chest. She raised her hands to start pummeling him, but Sokka burst out of the crowd and grabbed them. "Please, there's no need to fight in here!" He told them as he pulled her off of him. "Play along." He whispered in her ear.

She nodded slightly before yanking her hands out of his grip. "Who the hell are you!?" She demanded, turning to face him.

"My name is Manchou." He introduced himself.

"That was a rhetorical question. I don't care about who you are." She snapped at him. "This doesn't concern you; now get out of my way." She turned around to face Naruto, ready to fight again.

"Please! There is no need to fight!" He pleaded.

"Oh yes there is."

"Yoen, that's enough!" Suki shouted as she stepped out of the crowd, June behind her.

"He insulted you, Lady Jieichou!" She replied, looking over at her. "I can't let that slide!"

"Well, if you tell me what I did to insult your lady, I'll apologize." Naruto told her, standing back up. "But all you're doing is hitting me."

"That's because you're being oblivious! You know damn well how you insulted Lady Jieichou!" She snapped at him.

"No, I don't, you idiot!" He snapped back.

She leapt for him again, but Sokka grabbed hold of her. "Let go of me!" She ordered.

"The two of you don't need to fight!" Sokka told her, grunting with supposed effort as he try to hold her still.

"I said LET GO!" She twisted out of his grip and unconsciously slugged him across the face, sending him stumbling back.

"YOEN!" said a horrified Suki.

She pretended to also be horrified at what she did. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to do that." She apologized as she tried to help him up.

"What in the name of Kami is wrong with you, lady?!" Naruto demanded as he came over and helped Sokka up as well.

"If you had just apologized, that wouldn't have happened!" She growled at him.

"Please don't fight." Sokka begged the two of them as he tried to stand in between them. But they ignored him, stepping to the side.

"If you had told me what I did, I would. But you haven't!" Naruto yelled at her. They began to circle each other, pretending they were about to fight again.

"That's enough!" Jiraiya announced as he and Kakashi appeared in between them, stopping them from starting another fight. "You need to leave, now! You included!" He ordered, pointing at Suki, who pretended to look surprised.

"But I told her to stop!" She protested.

"And that's all you did. She's your guard; therefore she is your responsibility. Now the three of you will leave the royal palace right now!"

Before any one of them moved, Madam Shijimi screamed. Everyone in the hall turned to see what she was screaming at and were struck speechless. Koyuki was slumped over the royal table, a kunai in her back and blood running down it. Standing over her, with the hood down and wearing a crazed grin, was Nadare. "For the Land of Snow!" He declared loudly before disappearing in **Shunshin no Jutsu **(Body Flicker Jutsu).

There was literally five seconds of silence before the chaos ensued. Everyone rushed towards the table, some were screaming in panic, others were calling for the guards, and everyone was wondering who the man was and how he managed to sneak up on the Spring Daimyo. However, no one realized that, as they all rushed towards the royal table, they didn't realize that eight people disappeared from the room the minute all hell broke loose.

(Location: Nadare)

He bolted down the empty hallway. Everyone might've been in the dance hall, but he wasn't going to take his time to saunter out of the place. _"I finally did it, Lord Dotō."_ He said to himself. _"I finally killed that bitch. Now you can rest in peace. Once I get back to the Land of Snow, those loyal to you can take control once more."_ He picked up his pace; the thought of taking back the Land of Spring urged him on. The sound of his footsteps bounced off the walls and went back through his ears as he raced through the halls. Soon, it turned from the sound of wood to ground as he ran out into the open. The sun had fully set and now there was only the moon and the stars to light his way.

He ran past the gate, which had no guard due to what happened, and almost collided with Sokka. "I see you guys got out." He said as he stopped in his tracks in front of them.

"Did you expect anything else?" Azula asked cockily.

"No, I didn't. Now let's get to the princess." He looked behind him. "The guards are sure to be out looking for the assassin. If we're quick and careful, we'll be able to get into her room, kill her, and get out before anyone, even the shinobi guarding her, will notice."

"Before we go, there's something we need to discuss." Sokka told him, folding his arms and making it look like he wasn't going to move.

"What is it?" He asked impatiently. "Is it about the money? We'll be able to discuss that once we've killed the princess and escape, okay? Now let's get moving!"

"It's not that, actually." Suki said.

"Then what do you want?!" He all snarled at them, turning back to face them.

"Nyla!" barked out June. He felt something prick the back of his neck and then suddenly couldn't move. He lost control of his body as he fell to the ground. _"I've been paralyzed!"_ He realized. Hearing footsteps coming towards to him, he managed to look up to see who he thought was using the fake name of Kikan squatting over. Only his hair wasn't red, it was blonde, his eyes weren't a glowing teal, they were blue, and he had whiskers marks on his cheeks. "You!?" He managed to croak out.

"Me." Naruto replied before lifting his fist and knocking him out.

* * *

When he came to, he could feel that his hands had been bound to his sides and his legs were bound together. He could also feel a chair underneath him, but felt something binding him to it. He opened his eyes and saw that he was in an empty room. It was dark, save for the windows letting the moon shine through. He also could tell that he was being held in one of the rooms in the palace, due to the quality of the floor, walls, and windows. He then turned his attention to the ten people standing in front of him.

"I see you're awake." Naruto noted from where he stood.

"…You were working with them the whole time?" He asked, looking over at Team Kakashi.

"Yeah, we were." Sokka answered, holding his Zanpakutō in his hand. "We were trying to protect Koyuki from the hit from within."

He gave a horse laugh. "And a marvelous job you did at that." Sokka's grip on his Zanpakutō tightened and the expression on his face said he was seriously tempted to use it. Suki placed a hand on his shoulder, calming him down and also preventing him from moving.

"Nadare Rōga, why were you working with the Akatsuki?" Kakashi asked him, both his tone and face completely serious.

"Now why would I tell you that? Do you think I would sell out my comrades?" He asked the masked shinobi with a sneer. "You must be stupider then I thought, Kakashi Hatake."

"We can make you talk." Sasuke told him, his tone threatening.

"How would you do that? By torturing me? You don't look like you've changed much since the last time we met, Sasuke Uchiha." He taunted. "I guess I don't have much to worry about being tortured by you."

He smirked. "I never said I was going to be the one to torture you. My teammate will be the one to do that." He looked over at Sakura.

The captured shinobi followed his gaze. "Her? Ha! Good luck with that." He laughed loudly in her face.

Sakura smiled at the shinobi, making both Jiraiya and Sasuke advert their gaze, Sasuke because he had been on the end of the smile before and Jiraiya because he had seen that smile on Tsunade. Whoever was on the receiving end of that smile was not in for a good time (more like a _really_ painful time). "I know the location of each and every sensitive bone in your body, as well as the easily breakable and painful ones. I can start breaking those bones, causing you indescribable pain, until you're begging me to stop."

"Or I can slowly burn you to ashes." Azula stated with a sadistic grin. Opening her hand, she bent a small fire into palm. "All I would have to is start at your legs and slowly work my up. By the time I reach your nether regions, you'll be in so much pain, you be thanking whatever spirit you pray to if I decide to stop, which I might not." Both Sokka and Suki took a step back after they heard that come out of her. But Naruto and June acted like it was no big deal.

"So, which is it going to be, Nadare Rōga?" Jiraiya asked him. "Telling us everything you know, having every bone in your body being broken until you talk, or being slowly burned alive until you talk? It's your choice; I'd suggested you be quick about it."

This time he didn't laugh, he cackled. "You can't torture me, Lord Jiraiya." He said, making the name sound like he was someone you shouldn't be around with. "I have valuable information you need, so you can't torture me, so that puts both having my bones broken and being burned alive out of the question. I will be need alive, so you'll have to take me back to Konoha with you in order to make me break." He threw them a smug grin, the kind where you wanted to punch it off him. "I'll save you the trouble, I won't break. I may have valuable information, but all I have to do is to wait for my comrades in the Akatsuki to rescue me."

"You are quite mistaken there, Nadare." A voice to the side told him. Everyone swung their heads to where the voice was coming from. They were caught off guard when they saw Tobi sitting on a window ledge they would've sworn was locked. But he wasn't using the child-like voice Team Paragon had heard him use, he speaking with a deep voice, sounding completely serious. "The Akatsuki has never considered you to be a comrade. You have been nothing but a pawn."

"What?" Nadare said, stunned to be stripped of a notion he thought was a guarantee, the smug grin disappearing from his face. "You must kidding, Tobi!" He protested.

"I assure you, I am not. Now please be quite, I have more important things to concern myself with." He turned his gaze to the Konoha shinobi. To Team Paragon, the mask seemed to be different. It looked harsh, unnerving, and a little scary. "Hello, Konoha shinobi. I assume you are currently threatening Nadare to get the information he has, correct?" He asked, being polite.

"You should know. You were listening in beforehand." Jiraiya accused him.

"I was doing nothing of the sort. I have just arrived."

"Then how do you know what we're doing?" Sasuke demanded, preparing himself for a fight.

"Simple really, I know how shinobi from Konoha operate. You'll capture a target, pump him for information at nearby location, then take him back to the village and pump him again, this time fully breaking him." He gave a small laugh. "If you want to try that with Mr. Nadare here, then by all means, go ahead. But if you want to try to get the information out of me." He shrugged his shoulders. "Catch me if you can." He then rolled his body off the ledge and down to the ground. They heard the sound of feet hitting the ground and then running off.

"Somebody go after him!" Jiraiya ordered. Before he even got to the third word in that sentence, both Naruto and Kakashi were already out the window and after him.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Yes, that conversation between Sai, Sakura, and Sasuke about bonds was necessary. He had that same conversation with Naruto about Sasuke. All I'm doing is reversing the situation. Besides, how else is he supposed to become the Sai we all know and love (and punch through a door when he gives us a bad nickname)?

If anyone thinks I really shouldn't have put the information down with the aliases only not to really use them later on, I apologize. I'm still trying to figure out how to write a conversation that doesn't look like it came off a script or even reads like one. It's a work in progress and one I'm trying to stay on top of.

If you're going to ask me what Team Paragon was informed of, I'm not going to tell you. That would be spoiling the fun and I make an effort not to do that. It's actually kinda fun reading the reviews and see how you all try to figure out what I'm going to do.

However, there is one question which is beginning to annoy me. And that would be the question of is Ursa the Air Paragon. Okay, let's get straight to the facts here: URSA IS FROM THE FIRE NATION! AT WHAT POINT IN TIME DID WE START MAKING HER AN AIR NOMAD!? And don't try to use Naruto as an defense, look at Chapter 47 and read the two rules. Could you people be a little more creative in your thinking? It's not that hard. Really, it isn't.

I'll see you all next chapter!


	53. To Chase and To Ascend

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.

Bodyguard of Azula

Chapter 53: To Chase and To Ascend

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

"**Biju/spirit talking"**

"_**Biju/spirit thinking"**_

(Location: Naruto & Kakashi)

The second their feet hit the ground, they went after the Akatsuki member. They tore through the street, people either getting out of their way or getting pushed aside. "Go higher up!" Kakashi told Naruto. "You'll be able to reach him faster!"

He nodded in agreement and veered off. He ran through the crowd, ignoring the screams and cries of surprise of people who leapt out of his path and over to a nearby building. He didn't stop once he reached the side of the building; he placed a foot on the wall and ran up it. Reaching the top, he leapt over the edge and raced across the rooftops. Without the people in the street in his way, he was able to run faster, gaining ground on Tobi.

But Tobi saw him on the rooftops when he looked behind him. "That's cheating!" He complained, reverting back to the childish tone he used before. "If you're going to cheat, then I'm going to cheat too!" He started to duck, weave, leapfrog over people (making them briefly shout in protest), and run alongside building walls, all the while flapping his arms like he was an idiot or trying to fly. But it served a purpose as it made following him more difficult.

"_Kami, he's more annoying than when the fox is right!"_ Naruto silently swore.

"**Hey, I resent that accusation!" **Kyuubi protested. **"Besides, we both know now that's all an act. If what we saw in the room was the real him, then we really have to be careful."**

"_Thank you, Captain Obvious!"_ He leapt across the gap between rooftops before turning right, staying on Tobi's tail. It was difficult, due to the fact he had to make to keep an eye on the Akatsuki member while also making sure that he didn't crash into anything (which had happened before, when he hadn't been paying attention).

Kakashi stayed on the ground, running through the crowd (which had been thinning ever since they started). Normally, he would've tried to hit the target with a kunai so the target would be slower and would also leave him a blood trail to track. But what prevented him from doing that was the people in his way and the fact that Tobi was all over the place as he ran. If he had been a less experienced shinobi, he would've gotten angry and started making mistakes. But he wasn't, he kept his cool and tried to keep his target in sight.

Pretty soon, the three of them were running through empty streets (or for Naruto, empty rooftops). They had also traveled far from the royal palace and even the business district. They were now making their way through the slums. Naruto had to be even more careful now, one wrong step and he would fall through the ceiling. But as he ran, he saw an opportunity present itself to stop Tobi. He quickened his pace, running ahead of his target, and then stopped. Pulling out a couple of kunai, he threw them in the direction Tobi was running, hitting the ground just in front of him.

"Ah, there are kunai in front of me!" He screamed the obvious, skidding to a stop just short of them. "Who threw those?!" He demanded, looking around exaggeratedly. When he looked up and saw Naruto standing on the rooftop, he yelped and ran down a different street, away from the Paragon.

"_Right where I want him,"_ Naruto silently cheered. When he saw Kakashi make the turn to continue after Tobi, he knew he had to get back in the chase, otherwise they would never catch him. He backed up to the other side of the rooftop, took a deep breath, and charged to the edge. He leapt across the wide gap between the different sides of the street, feeling like he was just hanging in the air for a brief moment. The moment ended when he landed on the other roof, rolling his body on impact and coming out of it in a run, catching up easily to Kakashi and Tobi.

Kakashi was slowly gaining ground as Naruto caught up with them. He quickly drew out a shuriken and threw at the side of Tobi's head. The sound of it flying through the air alerted the Akatsuki member, as he did a sharp turn into an alleyway. Kakashi wasted no time as he made the same turn, flashing through handseals. **"Doton: Doryūheki **(Earth Style: Earth-Style Wall)**!"** He cried out, slamming his hands into the ground. The ground in front of Tobi shot up out of the ground, blocking his way with a wall that had four bulldog heads sculpted on it. "You've got no place to run now." He declared as he stood in front of the orange masked Akatsuki member.

Tobi didn't reply, he simply looked at the top of the wall, gauging the distance to the top of it and the time it would take to get over it. "Don't even think about it." Naruto warned him as he landed on the wall. "We've got you, start talking." He ordered, pulling out a kunai.

"Very well," Tobi said, his voice once again losing the childish tone he spoke with before. "What is it you would like to know?"

(Location: Team Kakashi & Team Paragon)

"Well, now what do we do?" Sai asked as he looked out the window Naruto and his former sensei had leapt out of.

"We really can't do anything now." Sokka pointed out from where he sat on the floor. "So you might as well as pull your head back in."

"What do you mean you can't do anything?" Nadare asked, looking frantically at them.

"You're not useful anymore, Nadare Rōga." Sasuke told him as he walked up to the chair, then around it so he stood behind him. "You know what that means."

"But…but I still have valuable information!" He protested, desperate to find a way out with his life. "You can't kill me when I have that to offer."

"You do realize that Akatsuki member offered us that same valuable information, which would probably be a lot better than what you would probably have, and all we have to do to get that information is to chase him down, right?" Sakura asked. "So, it's rather pointless to keep you around."

"But you don't know if they'll be able to catch him, so I'm still your best bet."

"You obviously don't know Naruto all that well." Azula said with a smug smirk. "He'll catch him, there's no doubt in my mind about that. So, again, you're not useful."

He tried to come with up with something that would keep him alive, but came up with nothing, despite racking through his brain several times over. "Indeed, I am not." He admitted in a defeated tone. "So kill me already."

Sasuke raised his hand, ready to strike the killing blow, only to stop when Jiraiya shook his head slightly. "I have one question for you, Nadare, before you die. Why did you help the Akatsuki kill Koyuki?" The Toad Sage asked him.

He didn't answer for a couple of seconds. When it looked like he wouldn't answer, he did. "If I had succeeded in this mission, I would've become one of their members. It should've been my initiation mission." He gave a harsh, bitter chuckle. "How wrong was I? Go ahead and kill me. My greatest wish has been fulfilled, now I can serve Lord Dotō in the afterlife."

"Was your greatest wish killing Koyuki?" Suki asked him, anger in her voice.

His chuckle turned to crazed laughter. "I thought that would've been obvious. That bitch is dead and the Land of Spring with her. Long live the Land of Snow!" He declared loudly and with glee.

Everyone else shared a look with each other and all had the same thought. June walked away from the wall she had been leaning against and made her way to the door. She banged on the door a couple of times. "Hey, could you come in here for a quick second?" She called out to the other side of the door.

The door opened and when Nadare saw who it was, his mind snapped. "No! No, no, no, no, no , no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!" He screamed. "YOU'RE DEAD! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE DEAD! HOW IS THIS—" He would've continued ranting, had the sound of birds chirping not filled the air. He felt a shock hit his heart and filled his body with indescribable pain. The last thing he heard was **"Chidori **(One Thousand Birds)**."**

(Location: Naruto & Kakashi)

"How about we start off simple? Were the Akatsuki involved in Dotō's revolt?" Kakashi asked.

"Of course we were." Tobi answered. "He paid us to help him overthrow his brother's rule and we did."

That answer threw them a little bit. "…That was too easy." Naruto told him. "Why would you answer so easily?"

"I told you, didn't I? If you wanted to get the information you so desperately wanted, all you had to do was catch me. You did, so I will tell you what you want to know." He explained patiently, not bothering to look up at him. "Was there anything else you wanted to know?"

Both Naruto and Kakashi shared a look that showed their disbelief and suspicion. They both knew something like this was simply too good to be true. Tobi was not going to reveal everything about the Akatsuki, they could tell that by his choice of words. "Why were you trying to have the Daimyo of Spring and Princess Miki killed?" Kakashi demanded, turning his attention back to him.

He took a thinking pose that purposely annoyed them. "Well, if I had to be specific, Koyuki was for entertainment's sake, but Miki was business."

"What the hell does that mean?" Naruto asked. "You call having a Daimyo killed entertainment?!"

"No, I consider watching you all running around, trying to figure out how to keep her safe entertaining. Oh don't look so surprise." He admonished them. "I told you already, I know how Konoha shinobi operate. What you were doing was obvious if one knew where to look."

"And Miki was business?" Kakashi repeated.

"You should have your ears either cleaned or checked, Kakashi. I already told you that."

"How is she different?" He asked.

"Well, I had to make a passing attempt at protecting my interests, didn't I?" He asked like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"What do you mean by that? How would killing the princess of the Land of Fire protect your interests?" Naruto asked, being baffled at what he heard.

"It would keep her father on the throne longer, for one." He pointed out. "Let's face it; the capital is one mistake short of having the Daimyo overthrown and placing his daughter in charge. If she's dead, that'll be delayed for a while."

That was when Kakashi made the connection. "The Fire Daimyo is working with you, isn't he?" He accused the Akatsuki member.

"He asked you to put the second hit on his daughter?" Naruto demanded, also realizing what that meant. _"Who would ask to have their own daughter be killed?"_ He silently asked.

"**Are you forgetting the Asshole?"** Kyuubi asked in return. **"He was fairly mad after Zuko and Azula had left."**

"_That was a rhetorical question, fox!"_

"You would both be wrong." Tobi announced, getting their attention again. "The Fire Daimyo does not work with us. We just pull his strings. He is used to that happening to him, considering his first wife had been doing it to him ever since they were married."

"How do you know about his first wife?" Kakashi asked him, not liking where this was going.

"That's simple; we were the ones to have her killed." He answered with a straight face. "Once she was dead, we moved in and took her spot."

"You depraved a girl of her mother when you did that!"

"Irrelevant." He shrugged his shoulders. "She was a nuisance and had to be removed. Once she was gone, we had control of the Land of the Fire."

Naruto became confused; something wasn't clicking in his mind. "If you had control of the Land of Fire, you must have known about me being a Jinchūriki. Why didn't you demand the Hokage to hand me over?"

"A Daimyo demanding the Jinchūriki of the resident Hidden Village be handed over when he knows it has to stay in the village? That would've been too odd for anyone." He said, making it sound like he was explaining it to a child.

"I am not an _it_." He growled at the masked man.

"Again, irrelevant," He said, ignoring the growl. "You did give us a bit of a surprise when you left the Elemental Countries I'll admit. Thankfully, we had a way to correct that."

Kakashi immediately understood what he meant by that. "You let the investigation go through." He said aloud. "You could've stopped it and you didn't."

"Investigation?" asked Naruto. "What investigation?"

"The investigation of you, Naruto Uzumaki," Tobi told him. "You didn't know? Remarkable."

"What's he talking about, Hatake?" He demanded of Kakashi, looking straight at him.

"Allow me to explain." Tobi said, stopping Kakashi from speaking. "After you left, Tsunade had asked the Daimyo to open an investigation on you when he got to the village. We allowed this to happen because we knew that everything the pervious Civilian council had done would come out into the open, giving her the chance to get rid of them. Then she had the Konoha Eleven look at your medical records, once they were done, she told them about what happened with the Kyuubi. Once they heard that, they looked for you everywhere in the Elemental Countries."

"Why waste resources and effort looking for me, when all you had to do was watch them?" He muttered aloud.

"Exactly, you have improved in using your brain." He praised him while also subtly insulting him. "Of course, we had occasionally sent a team to see if they had found anything, and to give the impression we were looking for you too. It gave them an incentive to keep looking for you whenever it looked like they were on the verge of giving up. It may have taken them three years to find you, but they did in the end."

"Wait." Kakashi interrupted. "You said that you had to make a passing attempt at protecting your interests."

"Yes, I did say that." He conceded.

"Why would you only try a passing attempt? You have control of the Fire Daimyo; the Land of Fire is yours to command. You should've tried everything to make sure it stayed like that, but you only made a passing attempt. Why?" He asked, suspicious.

"Very observant, Kakashi Hatake, you certainly live up to your reputation." The Akatsuki member praised him. "Yes, we would've tried harder to protect the Fire Daimyo from being overthrown, if he actually mattered in our plans. We have enough resources that the loss of a Daimyo and his country does not matter, even if it is one of the Five Great Shinobi Countries. Truth be told, controlling him and controlling the Land of Fire was nothing more than amusement."

"You call playing with a ruler and his country amusement?" Naruto demanded, outraged at the idea. He had spent enough time in Ba Sing Se watching Long Feng treat the place like his own personal toy to earn his hatred of anyone who did the same.

"Yes, I do. Watching those advisors scurry around and try to make sure that the damage was kept to a minimum was amusing, at first. Now, it's become a little boring. I've been looking for an excuse to get rid of the Daimyo for a while now and you've managed to do it for me. Thanks for that."

"What do you mean? The Fire Daimyo is still alive." Kakashi protested.

He turned his gaze over to him; the hole where his right eye should almost seemed to bore straight through. "Do you think I'm an idiot? I knew what your plan was the minute I had stepped into the dance hall and looked at the royal table, just like I knew what Naruto and his little team were doing when I saw his bounty hunter friend in the bar. I could've stopped your plans the second you all walked into the capital."

"Then why didn't you?" He asked as both he and Naruto searched through their memories of the dance, trying to figure who Tobi had been disguised as, despite knowing the fact it was a long shot. They still had to try.

"To let you think you had the advantage. But now, you know that you never had a chance. You've been dancing to my tune the entire time. You might as well hand over the Kyuubi's Jinchūriki now to save yourself the trouble of realizing it when it's too late."

Naruto leapt off the wall so fast he caused a gust of wind in the spot he had been in. He landed in front of the Akatsuki member, grabbed hold of his throat and slammed him against the wall. "There are three things you need to remember." He growled as he held the kunai close to the hole in the mask. "One: don't talk about me like I'm not here. Two: I don't obey Konoha anymore, telling them to had me over would be pointless. And three: do you honestly think I would let you and your friends revive that _thing_ willingly?" He asked, saying the word "thing" like it was the stuff of nightmares.

While Kakashi was confused, Tobi actually chuckled. "So you know his origins. How did you find out?"

"Like I would tell you that," He replied. What he had learned that night was something he wasn't likely to forget.

(Flashback, Location: Fire Nation Capital, Royal Palace)

Night was in full bloom over the Fire Nation. Most people were fast asleep in their beds, dreaming of things they wouldn't really remember in the morning. The air was mostly quiet, save for the occasional crackle of a nearby or the sounds of a guard as one of them walked by. If one looked up into the sky, they would see that the stars were out in full, along with the moon in all its glory.

Naruto couldn't sleep, so he sat on the roof above Azula's bedroom, keeping watch over her while also stargazing. He found the practice to be somewhat relaxing (he had yet to find something that would rid him of his nightmares) and it allowed him to keep an eye on the princess. "The moon's full." He noted, looking up at it.

"**How observant of you,"** Kyuubi sarcastically remarked. **"Next you'll be telling me that the stars are bright."**

"What's got you in a mood?" He asked the fox. He had recently noticed that whenever the moon was full, the Bijū got incredibly grouchy.

"**Nothing that concerns you,"** The fox replied. **"I just hate that damn thing."**

"How can you hate the moon? It's just a big ball of rock floating around the planet that also helps Waterbenders do their thing."

"**Well that 'big ball of rock' and I go **_**way**_** back."**

When he heard that, he had to restrain himself from laughing out loud. "What? You slept with one of the fishes or something?" He asked with a grin.

"…**Where in the name of Kami did you get that idea?"** The fox asked him. That idea was so farfetched and weird; you didn't really expect it to be said out loud.

"How else would you have a history with the moon? I can't think of anything else that would imply having a bad history with the moon, and that's considering the fact we're talking about you." He pointed out.

"**And what's that supposed to mean?"** He asked, sounding offended.

"Out of the two of us, who was the one who kept giving a running commentary of women in boot camp who would probably be good in bed?" The blonde asked pointedly.

"**How many times do I have to tell you I was bored? There's only so much I could take of watching you doing laps, pushups, or whatever it was you were doing." **He defended himself. **"Besides, I have never met those spirits; I can't speak for the other Bijū." **

"Okay, now you've got me confused. How would you have a history with the moon without knowing the fishes? Especially since one of them _is_ the Moon Spirit?"

He scoffed. **"Please, it's not that hard. Those two didn't realize that the old moon was destroyed and the new one had something inside it until about five hundred years after the fact."**

"Oh, I see." He said. He was about to turn his attention back to the sky when he computed what the Kyuubi had said. "Wait a minute. What do you mean by 'the old moon was destroyed'? What are you talking about?"

"**It's a long story, really long. You probably wouldn't be interested."**

"Oh no, you are not going to try to wave this off. How the hell do you know that the moon has something inside in the first place? That's the kind of thing that needs an answer. So start talking fox." He ordered.

"**You're not going to let this go, are you?" **The Bijū asked, hopeful he just might.

"Of course I'm not, now start talking."

"**Fine, I'll talk." **He stifled a defeated sigh. **"What do you know about the Sage of the Six Paths?"**

"Only what they told me in the Academy. He was the first to discover the truth of chakra and tried to use it to bring the world into an era of peace. He eventually created the Shinobi and was regarded as the Shinobi no Kami (God of Shinobi). He eventually had two sons, whose descendants would eventually become the Senju and Uchiha clan, respectively." He remembered that part well, considering the teachers kept going over the sons.

"**Did you ever wonder how he got that title?"**

He thought it over for a moment. "Not really, no. I always figured he got it because he was the first actual shinobi." He knew the title had also been given to the Shodaime Hokage and the Sandaime Hokage, both legendary figures themselves (when he was younger, he had a hard time believing the fact that the Sandaime held that title).

"**There was a little more to it than that. He also created the Bijū."**

"Wait, he what?" He asked, surprised.

"**I weep at the education you got."** The fox told him in a deadpan tone.

"Shut up, that's not exactly general knowledge. So you're saying that the Sage created you guys himself? He just made nine creatures of chakra from scratch?"

"**You would be correct, from a certain** **point of view."**

He groaned quietly. "Would you just give me a straight answer, Kyuubi? You're giving me a damn headache." He asked, using the whiney tone that the fox hated.

"**Alright, alright, just knock it off with that tone of voice." **He told his host with a snarl. **"Look, the Sage of the Six Paths got most of his fame and his title from a single event: his victory over the J****ū****bi."**

"The Jūbi? But I thought there were only nine of you!" He protested. He had never heard of a tenth Bijū and that was enough to make him nervous.

"**If you stopped interrupting me, perhaps I could explain?" **The fox asked pointedly. **"Look, entire armies had been sent up against the Jūbi and were completely annihilated within the span of a few minutes. Everyone lived in terror and fear as it rampaged around the world, until the Sage fought it."**

"And killed it?"

**No, he didn't. He sealed the Jūbi inside of himself and became its Jinchūriki. It allowed him to harness and control the overwhelming power of the Jūbi." **

"And so he kept it inside himself for the rest of his life." That part he knew. If a Jinchūriki died, the Bijū within them died as well.

"**That's where you would be wrong. If the Sage had died with the Jūbi sealed within him, it would be free again and things would've gone back to square one. So he tried to find a way to prevent this from happening. Eventually he succeeded."**

"How did he do that?" He asked, curious.

"**He used a jutsu called **_**Banbutsu Sōzō **_**(Creation of All ****Things) to separate the chakra of the Jūbi from the body. With the chakra, he used it to create nine beings and gave them life."**

"Which would've been you and the other eight Bijū, right?" The blonde asked, saying the obvious.

"**How very observant of you," **He drily remarked.

"Thank you so much for noticing." He replied in the same dry tone. "Besides, if he took the chakra out of the Jūbi, what the hell did he do with the body?"

"**That's where the second moon comes in; the first moon had been accidently destroyed during their battle, which put the Moon Spirit into a coma-like state and made Waterbending half as strong. The Sage used a jutsu called **_**Chibaku Tensei **_**(Heavenly Body Bursting from the Earth) to tear out an immense of the earth, placed the body deep within it, and then hurled into orbit. That's also why you humans have never found any evidence of the battle between them; he used the battleground to make the moon."**

"How much of the earth did he use?"

"**Well, you know how there's a big ocean between the Elemental Countries and the Bending Countries?"**

"Yeah, I sailed on it."

"**That used to be a continent."** The fox told him with a completely straight face.

It took Naruto a few minutes to get that computed. "Okay, are you telling me the entire battleground between the Sage of the Six Paths and the Jūbi was an entire freaking CONTINENT?!" He all but screamed.

"**That's what the Sage told us."**

"Oh, well that makes all the difference, doesn't it?" He asked with agitated sarcasm. Then he heard what Kyuubi had said. "Wait, what the Sage told you? You knew the guy?"

"**He raised us. We learned everything from him, including his fight against the Jūbi. Hell, we thought of him like a father."** He could still remember those days and he remembered them fondly. **"And whenever he talked about his fight against the Jūbi, we could always hear the undercurrents of hatred and bitterness in his voice."**

"So that's why you don't like the moon, because it reminds you of something you once were and something your father figure hated."

"**We always thought that if we became the Jūbi again, we would be disappointing him. Besides, we could see where he was coming from."**

"You mean you can remember everything about the Jūbi?" He asked.

"**Not exactly,"** The fox admitted. **"I don't know about the others, but I could only see the memories of the Jūbi in my dreams. Well, I say dreams, it was more like nightmares. All I saw was wanton destruction, death, complete and utter chaos and terror." ** He shuddered. **"I may be a creature who enjoys a little mayhem once and awhile, but even I draw the line at trying to make the world I live in burn."**

"Yeah, I guess I can understand why you would hate the moon if you saw that when you dream." He admitted. "I'll be honest with you, Kyuubi, that's a lot of information to take in. I do have one question though."

"**What's that?"**

"How in the bloody blue hell does one _accidently _destroy a moon?" He demanded.

"**We actually asked him that once. He got embarrassed and mumbled something about 'one wrong jutsu at the wrong moment'."**

When he heard, he was very hard-pressed not to snigger or even laugh. It didn't sound right; a legendary (if not outright mythical) person who made out to be that he could do no wrong had accidently destroyed something that wasn't even on the planet. It just sounded like the beginning of a bad joke.

(End Flashback)

"Why the hell are you people trying to set it free?" Naruto demanded, maintaining his grip on the Akatsuki member's throat. "Do you honestly think you can control it?"

"Why yes, we do." Tobi answered nonchalantly, acting like nothing was wrong. "Why else would we be set on it?"

"Because you're all certified insane, that's why." He accused him. "Do you not realize what will happen? This world would become hell on earth if it gets free!"

"And that's where you would be quite mistaken. You see, we have no intention of letting it run wild."

"Then what are you planning?" Kakashi asked. Even though he had no idea of what they were talking about, he decided to play along, pretending to know what Naruto knew and hoped it would be enough to get the Akatsuki's plan.

"It's quite simple." He told them. He then proceeded to walk _through_ Naruto's grip and through Naruto himself, his body passing through like nothing was there, making Naruto lose his grip and begin to fall forward. He would've crashed to the ground, had he not used the wall to steady himself, stabbing the kunai into it. "What we plan to do is use the Jūbi to create a reality without war or suffering, a reality in where no one dies." The masked man declared, looking up at the moon.

"And what would be the cost for that reality?" Naruto demanded as he turned away from the wall, leaving the kunai imbedded in it. He knew that there always would have to be a cost.

"We would simple take away the worlds' greatest weakness: free will."

That simple statement stunned both the Konoha shinobi and Fire Nation Paragon. "If you do that, then we would be nothing then slaves to a fake reality." Kakashi argued.

"That is infinitely better than this useless reality. Why would you want to live in a reality where everyone you've cherished will die? Where you speak to a monument or a grave, hoping for a small measure of peace?" He asked the two of them.

"We do that so we can live in honor of those we've lost." Naruto told him. "Even in death, they're still your comrades. If you don't remember who you've lost and cherish the memories you have of them, then you'll live alone. And that is the most painful way to live a life."

"I had hoped that you would've grown up since leaving Konoha, Naruto." He gave disappointed sigh. "I guess I was wrong, you're still as naïve as the day you left."

"No, I'm not. I've lost friends, people I've fought aside or led myself."

"But have you ever lost someone you truly cared for? Someone you cherished above all else? A person who if they died would make you feel like life had no meaning left?"

"…No, I haven't." He finally admitted, after an image of Azula wearing a slight scowl flashed through his mind. "But still, if they had died, I wouldn't try to bring them back. What would be done would be done, there's no changing that."

"And that's where you and I differ." Tobi stated. "You would still have faith in this reality, even if it had taken the one you cherished the most away from you. I would create a new reality where you wouldn't have to suffer such losses. Is that such a bad thing?"

"When you take away free will and make us puppets, yes, it is." Kakashi told him.

He turned to face the shinobi from Konoha. "You shouldn't open your mouth so easily, Kakashi." He warned him. "As I recalled, you were the one who caused the Akatsuki's plan to proceed the way it has. For that, I thank you." He looked up at the sky again, as if he was checking something. "I believe now would be the time for me to leave."

"Wait a minute, just who the hell are you?!" Naruto demanded. The fact that this masked man had allowed them to flounder around trying to stop the assassination from happening for the sake of amusement and also admitting to killing a mother just so they could rule from the shadows. That ticked him off to no end, but the kicker was the fact he let them go through with their plan just because he was bored with manipulating the Fire Daimyo.

"Ah, yes, of course. You would want a name to go with this person." He took the same mocking thinking pose. "What would you say if I told you that I was Madara Uchiha?"

"I would say you're full of it. You forget I've got someone who personally knows Madara Uchiha." He could also verify that statement by Soulbending, but that wasn't something he was going to say out loud.

He chuckled, sending a shiver up both Naruto's and Kakashi's spine. "In that case, you may continue to call me Tobi. But in truth…" He looked at both of them. For some reason they couldn't explain, the hole in his mask now showed an eye. But it wasn't an ordinary eye, it was a **Sharingan**. "I don't want to be anyone in this reality, since nothing in it matters to me." He turned his gaze onto Naruto. "I will see you again, Naruto Uzumaki, and I will make you see why your ideals are wrong. When that happens, you will gladly surrender yourself to us."

"It'll never happen, I promise you that." He growled.

"If you say so," He said. "Until the next game." The space around the hole in the mask began to distort itself, swirling outward and began to suck in the surrounding air, almost like a black hole. Before either Naruto or Kakashi could stop him, Tobi disappeared into the hole, which disappeared afterwards, leaving the two alone in a blocked off alley.

The two of them stood in silence for a couple of minutes. "…What is the Jūbi?" Kakashi finally asked Naruto.

"And here I thought you knew." He replied. "You're a Jōnin, you figured it out. The more important question is how the hell do you know that man?"

"I don't."

"Why do I have a hard time believing you?" He demanded. "You heard him just as well as I did. And apparently, you're the one who started all this crap. So who was he!?"

"I told you, I don't know!" He defended himself.

"Then start thinking, Hatake! That guy had us on a silver platter the entire time we were here. He seems to know everything about us and we don't a damn thing about him, except for the fact that he has a **Sharingan **for a right eye!"

"Naruto, it doesn't help us if we argue with each other! We do that, the Akatsuki gets the advantage over us. Let's get back to the others and tell them what we know, alright."

He knew that Kakashi had a point, but he was still annoyed by the fact he had been led around by the nose by Tobi. "Fine, let's go." He marched out of the alley, shoving past Kakashi as he came back onto the street.

Kakashi didn't say anything; he just stared at the empty space where Tobi had stood. _"Who was he?" _He asked himself. _"Why did he make it sound like he knew me once?"_ He shook his head, realizing that it wasn't the time to think about it. What was more important was to get back to the others and pass the information on. He turned around and walked away as well, tossing a kunai at the wall without looking. Wrapped around the hilt of the kunai was an explosive tag. Five seconds later, it detonated, causing a small concentrated blast that destroyed the wall. The next morning, all that would be left would be some rubble and a little scarring, nothing people would be a lot of attention to.

(Location: Team Paragon)

They were all waiting in one of the gardens in the palace; a few were quietly watching the fish swim around in a nearby pond. It had been a day since the dance. They had left the hotel they had been staying at and quickly moved into the palace, staying out of the way for the time. Things were already hectic enough without them adding fuel to the fire.

But that wasn't the only reason for their silence. After Naruto and Kakashi had returned and told them what Tobi told them of his own free will, they shared Naruto's annoyance. For most of the team, the plain fact that the Akatsuki had played them for fools with ease pissed them off. Sokka and Azula were especially irritated; they had been kicking themselves for not catching on. What were the odds of June talking to the same guy who was also working for the Akatsuki in disguise? What were the odds that the person they would be working and the one who actually be doing the killing had a very bad grudge against the target? Those weren't even odds to begin with; they had been planned right from the start. _"You should've seen that, idiot!"_ Sokka mentally yelled at himself. He stared sullenly at a nearby wall like he was considering how to exactly hack it to pieces with his Zanpakutō. Akela sat on his haunches nearby, patiently waiting. He knew that the mood Sokka was in would only be temporally.

June had also noticed his mood. "Sokka, lighten up." She told him as she leaned against Nyla's flank (the garden was big enough to hold the shirshu comfortably, as there was an entrance to outside the palace nearby). "So we got duped. You can't let that get you down. You win some, and you lose some. That's all there is to it."

"This is coming from the best bounty hunter in the business?" Azula asked with irritation evident in her voice.

She shrugged. "Hey, even I made mistakes starting out. But I don't beat myself up over the fact I lost a couple of bounties. You let that a couple of mistakes get to you; you'll be making a lot more. Trust me, I speak from experience."

"It's not that I'm angry about making a mistake." Sokka said, turning away from the wall and looking at her. "I'm angry that I was played. I'm supposed to be the idea guy and I had no idea about what was really going on."

"But this isn't the first time you were deceived, right?" She asked him. "You were deceived twice before."

"Those don't count." He objected. "Naruto did the deceiving and he's on our side now."

"Just because he's on our side now doesn't mean those don't disappear." She pointed out.

"She's right, Sokka." Naruto agreed, turning his attention away from the pond and to the rest of the group. "I led you on twice, that isn't going to go away. Neither is the fact that Tobi knew what we were doing from the start and let us do it."

"You don't sound too mad about that." Azula noted. She was still a little ticked off, but could see the reason in what June and Naruto said.

"Oh trust me; I'm just as annoyed as you guys. But instead of getting angry, it makes me motivated to beat this guy."

"You're using this as an example of Lesson Number 9?" She asked, getting confused looks from the others. Sokka and Suki had heard the two of them talk about these Lessons before in passing and Azula had inadvertently told the Kyoshi Warrior what the eighth Lesson was during the Chūnin Exam. But they hadn't heard the other Lessons or what they meant.

"Yeah I am taking it as an example." He answered. "I'm also taking it as an example of Lesson Number 1."

"Good point." She conceded, getting more confused looks from the others there.

"What are you two talking about?" Suki finally dared asked. "Could one of you please explain those Lessons you keep going on about?"

Before either Naruto or Azula could answer, Jiraiya came into the garden from another entrance. "What's up, F.S.-sensei?" Sokka asked the Toad Sage.

"My suspicions were right." He announced, not bothering to tell Sokka to stop calling him that. He had told them earlier about his suspicions on the aliases they had been using during the dance. "Those documents you sent me were legit. Not a single one of them was faked."

"We actually were using the identities of real people? What happened to them?" Suki asked. After hearing the Akatsuki had no problem murdering Miki's mother, she knew that there had to be more victims.

"Surprisingly, they're still alive. From what I could learn, it seems that each and every one of the people you impersonated had been helped by the Akatsuki. Five years ago, Manchou had actually suffered a drought and his crops had suffered. His lands were on the verge of starvation until the Akatsuki sent Kisame Hoshigaki to help him fix his problem. Gaiyuu and her sister had been abused by both their father and mother until she was eighteen. The only reason it had stopped was because the Akatsuki had sent both Sasori and Orochimaru to kill the parents, allowing Gaiyuu to inherit everything. Yoen was indeed Jieichou's bodyguard since the both of them were ten. As they got older, they fell in love with each other, something Jieichou's father disapproved of. He would've had Yoen killed had Itachi and Zetsu not managed to get them away. Nowadays, they're living happily together. Kikan was a man who was struggling to make ends meet and was in a good amount of debt. That night he went into the casino, his playing partner was an Akatsuki member called Kakuzu."

"How did the Akatsuki know about each of them? The fact each one of these people were in trouble and the Akatsuki came to the rescue doesn't seem like coincidence to me." June pointed out.

"It wasn't. Either they had contacted the Akatsuki themselves or a friend had told them about the group. There's just one thing that connects all these things. The Akatsuki didn't take money as payment for those jobs. Instead, they asked for the client's entire history, their past, hobbies, everything and anything about them. They were also told to deny any rumors they heard of them doing something that sounded out of character."

"How far back does this go?" Azula asked, being astounded at what she heard.

"Gaiyuu happened when Orochimaru was still in the Akatsuki, which is the oldest one in this group, and what happened to Kikan occurred about four months ago, which is the youngest."

"So the Akatsuki didn't just force people to give up their identities once they planned to assassinate Koyuki. They've been doing this for years." Suki stated.

"Which means either one of two things, either they've been planning this assassination for a long time, or they have aliases created for the long term." Naruto realized. "If a member of Akatsuki were to use one of these aliases to cause a scandal or kill someone, the real person would have a solid alibi, making any case the civilian or shinobi police try to open go cold."

"Thereby protecting both the Akatsuki member and the actual person," Sokka finished, realizing where Naruto was going.

"That depends on what you define as an Akatsuki member. Nadare had told us that his killing of Koyuki was supposed to be his initiation mission and if he succeeded, he would've become one of their members. The Akatsuki has only had ten members at a time, all of which were S-class missing-nin." Jiraiya pointed out.

They all thought over the information they knew, making the garden silent except for the pond and the fish inside its waters. "What if the Akatsuki had unofficial members?" Suki offered, getting everyone's attention.

"What do you mean by that, Suki?" June asked.

"I mean, like Akatsuki had members who worked for them, but weren't infamous. That way, they could work without being noticed."

"That's plausible." Jiraiya agreed, thinking it over. "It would also explain how they've managed to stay quiet until recently, but still complete missions."

"If that is the case, then what's with this 'initiation mission' Nadare was talking about?" Sokka asked. "If the Akatsuki members only have ten members, then the unofficial members would stay where they are."

"What if the initiation mission is the unofficial member's chance to become an official member?" Azula suggested. "They successfully complete the mission and they become one of the ten."

"But those ten are always S-class." Jiraiya pointed out to her. "I highly doubt they would allow an unofficial member who wasn't an S-class shinobi become an actual member. I looked over Nadare's file; he was only a B-class shinobi."

"Perhaps the Akatsuki has influence over the Bingo Books? If they did, they could easily have his rank be upgraded to S-class." Naruto said.

"If they did have influence over the Bingo Books, then they would've to have agents in every single country that issues a Bingo Book." That thought made everyone there nervous. Each and every one of them had the same thought. _"Just how big is the Akatsuki?"_ If what they had speculated was true, then the organization would be much, _much_ larger than originally believed. "Everyone, look," Jiraiya said to the others, bringing their attention away from their thoughts. "A lot of this stuff is pure speculative. For all we know, we could be wrong."

They all knew he was trying to reassure them, but it didn't really help. The fact that the Akatsuki was possibly bigger than just ten members was enough to make any sane person nervous. Still, it was the thought that counted. "He's right." June agreed. "Unless we've got evidence to support all this, there's nothing to prove. So let's relax."

"Speaking of relaxing, we might as well get ready." Sokka said. "It's going to start soon."

"That's a good idea." Jiraiya conceded. "Speaking of which, could you guys keep an eye on her until it starts?" After they all nodded, he walked back over to the entrance he came through and signaled to someone on the other side, who soon came in through the entrance.

"How are you doing, Lady Koyuki?" Naruto asked the Daimyo of Spring.

"I'm fine, Naruto." She told him with a smile. "But I wish you would stop being so formal."

"Sorry, ma'am, have to stay professional." He told her before breaking out a grin. "But it is good to see you made it through."

"Same here," She agreed. The official story was that the wounds she had suffered during the dance were surprisingly nonfatal and she was able to recover. However, the Fire Daimyo had accidently choked to death during the mass confusion and nobody noticed until it had been too late, leaving his daughter to take the throne. But as a very wise man once said, "Only an idiot believes the official story."

The actual story was something quite different. It was the kind of story that was more at home in a book then real life, and it all started after the negotiation meeting between the Spring Daimyo and the advisors of the Fire Daimyo.

(Flashback, Location: Team Kakashi)

They had just finished going over positions in the dance hall that would successfully stop the assassination attempt, if everything went as the letter described. But considering that meant it was very likely things would change, it also meant that they had no chance of knowing if the positions would remain good or not. That left them with trying to figure out a plan of adaption if things went south.

Ironically, it was Koyuki who came up with the idea. "Lord Jiraiya, may I suggest something?" She asked the Toad Sage.

"What's on your mind?" He asked in return.

"Is it possible to use this assassination attempt to our advantage?" That got everyone's attention.

"What are you thinking of, Koyuki?" He asked her, his tone suspicious.

She was quiet for a minute, unsure of how to answer. Finally, she looked him straight in the eye. "Could we not use this assassination to get rid of the Fire Daimyo?"

It was a grand total of five minutes before anyone said anything else. Kakashi was the first to break the silence. "Do you what you're saying, Lady Koyuki?" He asked her.

"Yes, I do." She confirmed. "You've all seen how the Daimyo acted during the meeting. If he's been like that ever since he came to power, then he has to go."

"Were you planning to take his place once he's dead?" Sai asked. If she was, Danzō would want to know A.S.A.P.

"No, of course not, I have enough trouble running one country. I don't want or need to run another one." She told him, frowning.

"Then would you be suggesting that Miki should take the throne?" Sasuke asked. "Is she even ready?"

"Oh yeah, she's ready." Jiraiya confirmed. "She's took lessons by watching her mother basically ran the country and she also had to watch how her father rules now. I think it's safe to say that if the Fire Daimyo dies, she wouldn't shed too many tears over him."

"We would be plotting treason if we went through with this." Sakura pointed out.

"It's only treason if we get caught." He replied with a shrug of his shoulders. He turned his gaze back to the Daimyo in the room. "So what did you have in mind?"

* * *

A few hours before the dance, the Fire Daimyo was alone in his room, writing a few letters before leaving for the dance. His concentration was interrupted when there was a knock on the door. "Yes? Who's there?" He called out, looking up from his desk.

"It's Jiraiya, my lord." The Toad Sage's voice spoke from the other side of the door. "There's something we need to discuss. It's about where we will be positioned during the dance. May I come in?"

"Yes." He stood up from his chair. "Please give me a moment, I locked the door." He walked over to the door, unlocked it and opened it. Before he said anything, his eyes rolled backwards and he collapsed. The last thing he had seen was a spinning **Sharingan**.

"Alright people, let's get this going." Jiraiya told the others standing in the hallway as he held the door open. "Kakashi, please make sure the Daimyo doesn't hit the ground."

The face-mask wearing shinobi quickly caught the falling Daimyo. "Got him," He quietly announced as he quickly walked into the room, using his free hand to cover the **Sharingan** with his headband. Sasuke and Koyuki followed him while Jiraiya closed the door. Sai and Sakura stayed outside to keep an eye out on the hallway.

"Lady Koyuki, please sit on the edge of the bed." Sasuke told her. She nodded and quickly sat down next to the unconscious Fire Daimyo, who had been positioned in a sitting pose. "Are you sure about this?" He asked her. If she wanted to back out of this, all they had to do was leave the room. The unconscious Fire Daimyo would wake up before the dance and no one would be the wiser.

"Yes, I'm sure." She answered with conviction.

"Then let us begin." Jiraiya declared. He focused his chakra onto the tip of his forefingers and pressed them on a spot on both of the Daimyos' backs. Just underneath that spot was one of the **Tenketsu **(Chakra points) and when he injected his chakra into it, it would be enough to have the two civilians' chakra to briefly activate, giving them the power to use jutsu for a short amount of time. "Kakashi, wake him up." He ordered, pulling his forefingers away.

Kakashi nodded and proceeded to slap the Fire Daimyo across the face. He woke up with a jerk, but went still as he gazed into Kakashi's **Sharingan**. Next to him, Koyuki was in the same situation with Sasuke. The two shinobi formed a handseal and the two civilians did the same. While all four of them were doing the motions, Sasuke and Kakashi were manipulating the Daimyos' chakra to activate the **Henge no Jutsu**, along with keeping the image of the target in mind. **"Henge no Jutsu,"** The four chorused together. The two Daimyos' were engulfed in plumes of smoke and when the plumes dissipated; they had switched places, Koyuki now sat where the Fire Daimyo sat and vice-versa.

"Everything set?" Jiraiya asked both Kakashi and Sasuke.

Kakashi nodded as he once again covered his **Sharingan** with his headband. "They know think they're the other person and will act accordingly until we break the hypnosis."

"So with any luck, Nadare will fall for it and attack the Fire Daimyo." Sasuke finished as he deactivated his **Sharingan**. "Now all we have to do is pass the information to Naruto and his team."

"Are you kidding? That's the easy part." Jiraiya stated. He looked at the Fire Daimyo (Koyuki). "Thank you for your time, my lord. We'll be leaving now." He said formally. Once the Daimyo had nodded vaguely, Jiraiya, Sasuke, Kakashi, and Koyuki (the Fire Daimyo) turned and left the room.

* * *

Jiraiya quick noticed Naruto walking into the hall and signaled him to come over. He acknowledged and casually made his way over to the Toad Sage. "What is it?" He whispered as he watched the rest of the people either dance or talk. There was a respectable distance between the two, close enough to hear each other but not close enough to make look like they were talking to each other.

"Small change of plans, don't try to stop the assassination." Jiraiya answered. "We switched Koyuki and the Fire Daimyo."

He could see where this was going. "Alright, you'd better inform the others then."

"Kakashi is taking care of that." Naruto walked away into the crowd. He was soon besieged by a lot of teenaged girls.

* * *

Azula pulled out the piece of paper that Kakashi had slipped into her breast pocket. It simply read:

Don't stop assassination. Koyuki and Fire Daimyo are switched.

She passed it to the next person beside her after reading it. The process repeated itself as each one took a moment to briefly read the note before handing it to the next person. Once they were done, Suki handed the paper back to Azula. She closed her hand around it and burned it to ashes with a quick Firebending.

(End Flashback)

And so, the Fire Daimyo was dead, long live the Fire Daimyo.

They all stood in the throne room of the Fire Daimyo. Like the dance hall, it was very well done. High walls and columns supported a roof of rare dark wood, the same as the walls. The columns were made of a grey stone that had nothing on craved on them. The walls also had nothing on them; there were no paintings, banners, or tapestries. The whole room was rather plain, but that didn't ruin it. In fact, it emphasized it. It all conveyed a simple fact, that this was a place for business, not fun. If one had to define the room, the words "simple elegance" would be the first choice.

Everyone who needed to be in the throne room was there, lining the carpet that ran from the throne to the door. Naruto and his team stood closet to the throne. They had gotten rid of their disguise and Sokka and Suki decided to dress a bit more formally then the others, Sokka in his armor (minus the face paint) and Suki in hers (plus the face paint). June, Azula, and Naruto, however, were content to be back in their regular clothes. Akela and Nyla had stayed in the garden, due to the fact that they would make quite a few people in the room nervous. Despite of the difference in what they wore, all four Paragons wore their Medallions out in the open for everyone to see.

The door opened and everyone turned their attention to it. Miki came through, dressed in a black formal kimono. Even though she was technically supposed to be in mourning for her father, everyone knew for a fact that she wasn't. The only thing she had said when they told him of his death was "It was bound to happen." Now, she made her way towards the throne that he had sat in. Behind was Team Kakashi, acting as guards. Jiraiya walked beside her, because the coronation ceremony was on short notice, there was no time for Tsunade to get to the capital (though she had been informed). As such, he was acting in her stead.

They walked down the carpet, the sound of their footsteps muffled by the carpet. As they finally approached the throne, the senior advisor stepped in front of them. "Who are you to approach the throne of the Fire Daimyo?" He asked aloud, even though he knew her answer (formalities had to be observed).

She stepped forward, away from Jiraiya and Team Kakashi. "I am Miki, daughter of Hideaki, Daimyo of the Land of Fire. I have come to claim my right as his heir." She answered, slowly and formally.

"Who supports her claim?" He asked, looking at the hall.

"I do." Jiraiya answered, stepping forward.

"And who are you?"

"I am Jiraiya of the Sannin, Toad Sage of Mt. Myōboku. I stand in the stead of Tsunade Senju, the Godaime Hokage and as such, we both support Princess Miki's claim to the throne."

"Does anyone else support her claim?" He asked again.

"I do." Sasuke answered, stepping forward and standing next to Jiraiya.

"And you are?" The advisor asked.

"I am Sasuke Uchiha, the Kurojishi no Sharingan, son of the Uchiha clan and their heir, Jōnin of Konohagakure. I stand here and declare my support for Princess Miki's claim to the throne, as does the Uchiha clan itself." He declared.

The way he made the statement and the way he looked, Naruto wasn't surprised when he noticed the love-struck looks the girls in the hall were throwing at his back. _"Of course he would get all that."_ He thought to himself.

"**Feeling jealous, are we?"** Kyuubi asked with a smirk.

"_No, I am not!"_ He protested. _"If anything, I'm glad that he's getting it and I'm not."_

"**You **_**are**_** jealous! I knew it!" **The fox declared triumphantly.

"Does anyone else support her claim?" The advisor asked for the third time. Silence filled the hall; no one was expecting anyone to answer the question. Miki already had the backing of the Toad Sage (and by extension, the Hokage) as well as the clan heir of the Uchiha. She didn't really need anyone else.

However, nobody told Naruto that. _"Oh fuck it. I might as well."_ He thought to himself before stepping forward. "I do." He announced, getting the attention of everyone in the hall, his teammates included.

"Uh…Who exactly are you?" The advisor asked as he looked at the stranger who stood next to Miki, a little uncertain on what was going on. He hadn't been informed about this blonde-haired man declaring his support for Miki, so he decided to go with formality.

"I am Naruto Uzumaki, child of the lost Uzumaki clan and son of the Yondaime Hokage, Paragon of the Fire Nation, bodyguard to Princess Azula, sister to Fire Lord Zuko. I am the Jinchūriki of the Kyuubi and Princess Miki has my support for her claim." He stated with complete confidence, no hesitation, and no fear. His eyes dared the advisor to say something in response. If he had looked back behind him, he would've noticed the girls were now giving him the love-struck looks. He also would've seen Azula giving all of the said girls death glares.

The fact that he had so brazenly announced who he was stunned the entire audience (minus the love-struck girls who were being glared to death). It wasn't exactly common knowledge that the Yondaime Hokage was his father and the fact he had just stated it out loud, along with the fact he said he was in what sounded like a high position as well as being the guard to royalty got the attention of quite a few people there. His status of being a Jinchūriki made a couple of people nervous, but the majority of the people there just ignored it for the other titles he had.

The senior advisor regained his composure and turned his gaze to Miki. "Do you accept these claims?" He asked her.

"I do." She answered.

"Do you accept the burden of which you ask for?"

"I do."

"Are you willing to stand for this land, through good and bad?"

"I am."

"Then kneel." He commanded. She knelt down onto one knee and bowed her head. Another advisor came forward and handed him the headdress of the Fire Daimyo. He took it, holding it in both hands, and placed it atop her head. "Stand and take your seat, milady." He told her, taking his hands away. Jiraiya, Sasuke, and Naruto stepped back away from her, joining the front of the crowd along with Team Kakashi.

She rose and walked towards the throne, a simple chair made of wood. She walked up the three steps and sat on the throne of the Fire Daimyo. Once she had sat down, everyone in the hall knelt down. "Hail Lady Miki, Daimyo of the Land of Fire!" They chorused as one, their combined voice rang through the room and reverberated against the walls.

"Thank you." She said with a smile as they stood again. "I know a lot of you were waiting for the day I took the throne. That day is here, and I promise to make sure that your patience will not be wasted. But there are things that need to be done." The smile disappeared as her expression became neutral. "Madam Shijimi, come forward." The stepmother of the new Daimyo stepped out of the crowd and walked up to the throne. It was obvious by the pleased look on her face and the smug smile she wore that she was expecting a reward. She stood in front of the throne, not bothering to kneel to her stepdaughter. "Madam Shijimi, ever since my mother died, you became my father's new wife. You've lived with me and yet, you placed a greater importance on your cat then me. You only saw me as someone to play dress or someone that had to be married right away. So I give you my first command as Daimyo." The smile on Shijimi's face (despite the things said about her) couldn't have been smugger. "Leave."

"…What?" Shijimi asked as the grin she had on became uncertain.

"Get out."

"I'm afraid I misunderstood you, Miki, could you pleas—"

"YOU WILL ADDRESS ME AS LADY DAIMYO!" She unexpectedly thundered, making most of the people there flinch and take a small step back (the shinobi, as well as Team Paragon, didn't budge). "And you misunderstood nothing! You are to get out, to leave, to never been seen in my sight again! As of this moment, I strip you of all titles and powers that are related to the status of the Daimyo's wife. Now get out of my sight before I strip you of _all_ your titles and powers and also give your Kami-damned cat to Konoha!"

The five shinobi (and one ex-shinobi) were quickly filled with hope. "My lady, please give us the cat." Jiraiya practically begged her. "I know many Genin, both former and current, who would just _love_ the opportunity to kill that cat. Just give us the word and they'll be on the creature like a pack of dogs. Actually, the Genin from the Inuzuka clan _would_ be on it like pack of dogs." He noted. That was enough to get Shijimi bolting out of the hall, screaming for her "precious Tora". As she left, everyone was wearing some sort of smile because that was one hell of a way to get rid of the stepmother you detested.

"Now that the fat bitch has been taken care of…" Miki said, earning a couple of chuckles from the crowd. "Naruto Uzumaki, come forward." The hall fell silent as he took a few steps forward, stopping at the base of the first step. "It is thanks to your warning of the assassination that I was able to have an excuse to walk away from the dance hall."

"All I did was dance with you, milady." He replied modestly. "You came up with the excuse yourself."

"True, although I was a little disappointed when you come to my room." She told him with a smile that would've made lesser men go weak at the knees (which would've been evident in the crowd, if you knew where to look). "I was interested to see what kind of 'moves' you had at your disposal."

"I'm sorry; Lady Miki, but I have a girlfriend."

"Could've brought her," She told him with a shrug of her shoulders. Once again, jaws were being picked up from the floor when the crowd heard that.

"That's not my decision ma'am." He replied, struggling to make sure he didn't blush (it was getting difficult). "You'd have to take that up with my girlfriend."

"It's not a bad idea, if you think about it." Azula spoke up, getting everyone's attention. "Actually, it sounds like it could be both interesting and entertaining." The jaws that were in the process of being picked up fell to the floor again. They could believe what they had just heard. His girlfriend had just given him permission to have a threesome with her and the new Fire Daimyo! Several of the young men there were cursing Naruto's luck. To them, only an idiot would pass this kind of chance.

But unbeknownst to them, Naruto was that kind of idiot. "I'd still pass, milady." He said to Miki. "I think the three of us would agree that the next morning would be a little awkward. Besides, it wouldn't feel right to me." That simple statement endeared him to many of the women there.

"Are you fucking crazy!?" Someone from the back of the crowd yelled out at him. Nobody battered an eyelash and kept facing forward (although there were sounds of someone hushing the person).

"Well, it's a pity, but I won't push you." Miki told him (which made him take a silent breath of relief). "Back to the matter at hand, I want to reward you for saving both my life and capturing the assassin." The senior advisor reached into a pocket and pulled out a folded piece of cloth. Unfolding it, he revealed it to be a sash that had the symbol of fire on it. "I ask you, Naruto Uzumaki, to become one of the Twelve Guardian Shinobi. I also offer you the position of being my personal guard." The crowd was surprised to hear that second part. To be asked to join the Twelve Guardian Shinobi was one thing, but to be asked to be her personal guard was another thing. If he accepted, odds are he would've become one of the most powerful people in the Land of Fire, second only to her. Practically everyone there (with a few exceptions) expected him to accept the offers.

However, he disappointed them once again. "I'm afraid I will have to decline your offers, Lady Miki, considering I already have a similar job protecting the Fire Lord's sister." He told her.

"Is there any chance I could persuade her to give you to me?"

"Again, you'll have to take that up with her." When he said that, Azula walked up and stood right by his side, looking up at the Daimyo.

"I said it might be interesting to share him." She told her, looking her straight in the eye. "I never agree to letting you have him to yourself and I never will." There was an indirect challenge in the sentence. It was as if Azula was trying to make Miki challenge her for him.

But she didn't rise to it. "Very well, I will not try to push you into something you do not want to do." She gestured to the advisor to put the sash away. "But I still feel like I should reward you."

"That isn't necessary, milady." Naruto told her. "I do not need any reward."

"And I feel that you do. At the very least, let me give you a title so people will remember your name."

"I already have a title, ma'am. I am the Paragon of the Fire Nation." He tapped the Medallion hanging from his neck.

Her face took a thoughtful expression when she heard that. "Just what is a Paragon? I've heard that the people in the Bending Countries could control the very elements themselves, without the need for chakra or handseals. Does being a Paragon mean that you are the most powerful wielder of that particular element?"

He gave a brief laugh. "No, it doesn't mean that. Besides, I'm not a Bender. You're born with that. All four Paragons, including myself, are Non-Benders." He gestured towards Suki, June, and Sokka.

"But what is a Paragon? She asked again, being genuinely curious about them.

Naruto didn't say anything; he just turned and looked at June. Being the eldest Paragon among them, she was probably the best at describing what they are. She met his gaze and nodded in agreement, before looking up at the Daimyo. "To be a Paragon is to serve your country, completely and utterly. You embody that country and do that, you must be the best. The reason that only Non-Benders can become Paragons is because we push ourselves to the very edge of our limits and break those limits to be known as the best." She explained.

"I see." The Daimyo was silent for a moment before turning to look at Naruto. "If I remember correctly, you used the name Kikan during the dance." She told him.

"Yes, milady, but I think whoever was trying to have you and Lady Koyuki assassinated was trying to be funny." He replied. It was a little more obvious now that he thought about it. Konoha had found about him around the beginning of spring and the actual Kikan became a rich man only four months ago. _"What are the odds of those being a coincidence?"_ He asked himself.

"**Those are no odds. It was deliberate."** Kyuubi told him.

"_You make it sound like I hadn't figured that out myself."_ He replied with heavy sarcasm.

"Naruto Uzumaki, when I had found out that it was you who managed to save me and that you were a former Konoha shinobi, I was curious." Miki said aloud. "So I read up on you. You have quite the impressive track record, despite it being short. You kept pushing yourself to be the best every time you came up against that tried to stop. You were an amazing shinobi and if what your fellow Paragon said is true, then you are most definitely worthy being one. So I, Miki, Daimyo of the Land of Fire, hereby name you the Shinobi Kikan (Shinobi Paragon). Let the countries know you as such."

He could only bow his head to her. "Thank you, milady, I can only hope that I do the title you gave me justice."

"I'm sure that you will." She assured him with a smile. "You may go." He back away and Azula followed, joining their friends in the crowd. "And now, the people will see their new Daimyo." She declared, standing up from the throne. She walked down the steps and onto the carpet, making her towards the door, where she would go through and walk onto a nearby balcony so she could greet her subjects.

* * *

They gathered near the gates of the city. Once Miki had stepped out onto the balcony and the people saw, there was a great amount of cheering. To them, she was the hope that they had waiting patiently for during her father's rule, the hope that she would be a better ruler then he had been. Miki had accepted the cheering humbly; she bowed her head in thanks while also smiling and waving.

Once that was done, she got down to business. Within two hours the trade agreement between the Land of Fire and the Land of Spring, which had been hashed out and haggled over long before Koyuki had arrived, was signed. Koyuki would stay in the capital to help Miki get used to being Daimyo, where she would be surrounded by guards 24/7 (even though the shinobi knew it wasn't likely for another assassination attempt to happen).

"Is everyone ready?" Jiraiya asked the others. Due to the fact that Sokka, Suki, June, and Azula run through the trees (as well as having Akela and Nyla), they would have to stick to the road. They could go a little faster, perhaps shave off a day or two, but it was still slower than he'd liked.

"Yeah, we're ready." June told him as she stood next to Nyla. As she double-checked everything she had, Sasuke walked up to the other side of the shirshu and began whispering in his ear.

"Alright, then let's get—" He was interrupted when Nyla began to growl loudly at Naruto, getting everyone's attention. It looked the shirshu was very angry at him for some reason.

"What's the matter with you, ugly?" Naruto asked him, only to hit the ground when he shot his tongue at him, letting fly over. "Whoa! Will you be careful? Now's not the time for—" He didn't finish the sentence due to the fact Nyla kept shooting his tongue out at him, forcing him to roll around on the ground. In the end, he took off down the road with the shirshu in pursuit. The others could only look on as this happened.

"What in the name of Yue was that all about?" Sokka asked. Sasuke couldn't take it anymore; he started to laugh out loud. Both Team Kakashi and Jiraiya looked at him in surprise. Sure, he smiled more than before Naruto left, he could chuckle at a joke (even crack one himself with a completely straight face). But they had never actually heard him laugh. To her surprise, Sakura found it pleasant. She couldn't help but laugh along with him.

"What did you do?" June asked him, turning around to face him.

"I might've told your shirshu that Naruto said a couple of unpleasant things when he wasn't around. I'm surprised it actually worked. Considering the way those two fought on the way here, I had thought it would take a bit more to get a rise out of him." He told her as he tried to stop laughing. She couldn't help but agree. Naruto had been insulting Nyla for so long, she had also thought it would be a little difficult to get the shirshu angry.

"Perhaps we should go after them before the creature tries to eat him?" Sai pointed out. The rest of them agree with what he said and began to run after Naruto and Nyla. Sasuke's and Sakura's laughter had dwindled down to sniggers. While the others could find the situation a little funny, they were more focused on either getting home or making sure Nyla didn't kill Naruto.

"_What an idiot."_ Azula thought to herself as they ran, looking over at Sasuke. _"He never should've done that."_

(Location: Konoha)

They stood in Tsunade's office, delivering their report to her while Akela and Nyla waited outside of the building. It had taken them about three and a half days to get back (the half day was due to chasing after Naruto and Nyla, whom they found collapsed on the ground against each other, exhausted). "Is that everything?" She asked Jiraiya.

"So far as we know, but a lot of this is pure speculation." He replied.

"That may be, but if a single bit is true, then we're in a lot more trouble than we originally thought." She pointed out as she leaned back in her chair.

"There is one way to confirm some of it." Naruto said, getting their attention. "We could pump Kabuto for information. He served under Orochimaru, and that bastard was a former member of the Akatsuki. He's bound to know more than what's written down." He saw the uneasy looks on Tsunade's, Jiraiya's, and Kakashi's faces and covered his face with his hand, pinching the bridge of his nose. "What happened?"

"…Two days after you, your team, and Jiraiya went back to the Bending Countries, Kabuto broke out of the cell we were holding him in." Tsunade told him. "He killed about half of the guards who tried to stop him. Once he got out of the building and onto the street, we lost him. From the tracking reports from both the Inuzuka clan and the Hyuuga clan, we believe that he was out of the village within an hour."

"And now you have no idea where he is." Sokka summarized, stifling a groan. "This is going to come back and bite us in the blubber, I just know it."

"Well it's not going to happen right now." June told him, leaning against the wall. "We should just focus on the main problem right now."

"She's right; we need to focus on the Akatsuki, not Kabuto." Sakura agreed with her. They all knew the two were right; the Akatsuki was the more pressing issue. But they couldn't deny that if Kabuto ever showed himself again, there was bound to be trouble.

"Regardless, both Teams Kakashi and Paragon have done well." Tsunade told them. "Even I cannot deny the fact that it's a relief to see Miki on the throne. You've obtained the information that was needed and possibly more if we can get it confirmed. You are dismissed." The two teams turned around and walked out of the office while Jiraiya and Kakashi stayed behind.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to see if I can find a place to train." Sokka said as he closed the door behind him. Sai just walked off without saying a word to the others. He had to report to Danzō.

"You want some company?" Suki asked with a smirk. "I could toss your rear to the ground again."

"The pleasure would be mine, Suki. Although, I'm sure that I'll be doing the same to you." He replied with a grin.

"You're welcome to try." She challenged. The two walked off together, eager to get in some sparring time.

"I gotta make sure Nyla hasn't attacked anyone." June told them as she walked down the hallway away from them, leaving Naruto and Azula alone with Sasuke and Sakura. The situation would've been awkward, if Naruto didn't turn around and walk away.

"Where are you going, Naruto?" Sakura asked. Both she and Sasuke had been hoping he would stay a while, so they could actually have a conversation.

"I'm going to see someone." He answered curtly, not bothering to turn and face them. "Don't bother asking me who it is, it's not your business."

"I'll see you back at the house then, Naruto?" Azula asked him, not bothered by the fact he was leaving her alone.

"Yeah, you have a good night, Azula."

"You too, and try not to get into trouble, okay?"

He stopped and looked at her with a grin on his face. "No promises." He told her. He turned back around and kept walking, soon disappearing from their sight.

(Location: Academy)

He stood in front of a classroom door, unexpectedly nervous. A small part of his mind urged him to forget this idea, to just keep on walking. **"Are you going to go in or not?"** Kyuubi asked in a bored tone.

"_I'm a little nervous here, okay? I haven't seen him in three years."_ He told the fox.

"**And now, you're standing outside the door to his classroom. Would you just open it already? It's boring just watching you stand there."**

"_Well pardon me for boring you."_ He retorted. He took a deep breath, opened the door, and saw Iruka Umino sitting at the teacher's desk, looking through papers. The sight gave him a nostalgic grin. "It's well after school hours and you're still here, grading tests." He said aloud, getting his attention. "Do you not have a life, Iruka-sensei?"

"Naruto?" He asked in surprise, standing up from his chair.

"In the flesh, Iruka-sensei, how have you been?" He asked in return. Iruka didn't answer, he just walked over to him and gave him a hug so tight, he difficulty time breathing. "Iruka-sensei…I need…air… for… continued existence!" He managed to choke out.

"I should let you suffocate!" Iruka growled out, but he released him anyway, letting him breath. "You were in the village a whole month before the final Exam. A month! And you don't bother to come and see me once!"

"In my defense, I was a little busy during that time." He protested as he got the rest of his breathing ability back. "I was going to fight Orochimaru, so Jiraiya was training my ass off!"

"In any case, it's good to see you again, Naruto." He said with a smile.

"You too, Iruka-sensei," He replied with a grin.

"You sure have grown." He noted as he looked over his former student. "I'm finding it hard to believe that you used to be the shortest in the class. Now look at you, whatever you ate in the past three years has definitely agreed with you."

"That and a lot of working out, I went from being in one military force to another in the span of a few weeks." He winced slightly. "That was an entirely different experience from the classroom."

"Did it do you any good?"

"Of course it did." He was a little offended at Iruka suggesting that it wasn't worth it.

"Then why are you complaining?"

"I'm not! I could even beat you now, Iruka-sensei." He said with a scowl on his face.

He laughed. "Of that, I have no doubt." The scowl on Naruto's face lasted for about two seconds before he joined in the laughter. "So tell me, did you find any good ramen over there?" Iruka asked him after they had stopped laughing.

"No, there wasn't any over in the Bending Countries. Besides it was no big deal." He replied with a shrug of his shoulders. "I haven't had ramen in three years."

"You mean to tell me you haven't been to Ichiraku Ramen ever since you got back? Who are you and what you done with Naruto Uzumaki!?" He demanded with a look of mock shock on his face.

"Very funny, Iruka-sensei, very funny," He told him in a deadpan tone.

"Sorry, I couldn't resist. How about we go there for a bowl or two? It'll be my treat." He offered, hoping that he would accept.

"Sure, why not?" He asked with a grin. "I just got back from a mission, so I could go for a bowl."

"That's the Naruto Uzumaki I know!" Iruka told him with a smile as they walked out of the classroom, the papers lying on the table, forgotten.

(Location: Ichiraku Ramen)

"Welcome!" Teuchi called out as he heard people come in. His back was to them, so he couldn't see who it was. "I'll be right with you so please take a seat." As the sound of chairs being moved filled the place, he stopped washing the dish in his hands and turned around. "Now can I get…ya…?" He asked, the question trailing off as he looked at who was sitting in front of him.

"I don't know about Iruka-sensei, but I could go for a bowl of miso ramen." Naruto said, casually sitting in the chair.

"I'll have the same." Iruka added.

He looked at Naruto, unable to speak due to the surprise. When he finally could, he turned to face the back. "Ayame, out favorite customer is back!" He shouted.

"What?" Ayame shouted in return. After listening to the sound of someone moving quickly through a kitchen, she appeared in the front, a look of hope on her face. "Is that you, Naruto?" She asked the blonde sitting before her.

"As I told Iruka-sensei: in the flesh." He replied with a grin. The grin disappeared with a yelp as he ducked his head to avoid a swipe of her ladle. "What was that for!?" He demanded.

"You don't show up here ever since you got back, you don't even bother to drop in to say hi!" She accused him, shaking her ladle at his face. "Did you find someone who was better at making ramen?!"

"No! I didn't, I swear! Nothing can compare to Ichiraku Ramen!" He promised the two of them. The last thing he wanted to do was insult Ichiraku.

"Oh really?" asked Teuchi. "And we're supposed to believe you? You, who didn't bothered to come once during the Chūnin Exams?"

"It's the truth! Besides, I haven't had ramen in three years."

"Why didn't you say so?" Ayame asked, her angry mood completely disappearing. Both she and her father went to work making the ramen, serving it in record time. Naruto broke the chopsticks apart, quickly gave thanks, and dug in with gusto.

"Ah, still the best!" He declared as he slurped down the noodles and the broth. "Another one, please!"

"Coming right up," Teuchi told him.

"You really should eat more slowly, Naruto." Iruka told him as he ate his ramen.

"I can eat slowly, but like I said, it's been three years since I had ramen. I couldn't hold it in." He replied. Teuchi gave him another bowl and this time, he did it more slowly. The two of them enjoyed their meal with Naruto mainly telling him some of the things he's done. A couple of those things managed to make Iruka laugh, which made him smile. "You know, there is one thing that's kinda been bugging me ever since the Chūnin Exam."

"Oh? What's that?" He asked him, curious. It didn't seem like a lot of things bugged Naruto recently.

"How in the name of Kami in heaven above did you and the crazy snake lady get together?" He demanded, pointing his finger at his former sensei, who could only stare him before laughing. "Hey, don't laugh at me! It's a serious question!"

"Sorry, sorry, I couldn't help it." He apologized as he tried to stop laughing.

"Well? How did you two get together?"

"I'll be honest with you, Naruto; I'm not quite sure myself. But I think it started when she walked in on me when I was undressing in the Academy bathhouse." The bathhouse was adjacent to the Academy and was available to teachers after a rough day or just wanted to quickly clean up. "She kept looking me over like I was a piece of prime meat. She wasn't embarrassed in the slightest." He could still remember her eyes roaming up and down his body while he stood in surprise, wearing only his underwear.

"But I'm guessing you were." He asked with a grin. He would be too; if he was in that situation (all he had in his experience was trying to make sure that Fangirls didn't break down the door to the room he was in at the time and running for his life away from them).

"Of course I was. After that, whenever we met, she kept giving my ass a squeeze and purring in my ear. Kurenai usually had to pull her off of me. I eventually asked her if she wanted to go out sometime and she all but pounced on me!"

"And how did the date go?"

"Surprisingly well, actually. She didn't try to molest or anything like that the entire time we were out. It was only after I walked her back home she started up again."

He grinned. "Let me guess: you tried to say goodnight and she pulled you into a round of tongue hockey?"

"…I haven't heard it be put like that, but yes. Then she dragged me up to her apartment."

"You must've completely worn out by the morning." He said with a chuckle.

"Of course I was." He admitted, before giving his former student a grin that was a little perverted. "But the sex was well worth it."

"That I don't need to hear." He stated, looking away to focus on his ramen.

"Are you sure?" He asked, the grin getting wider. It disappeared when they heard the faint sounds of feet stomping on the ground, a lot of them. "What's that noise?" He asked, not really expecting an answer. He got it when he heard Sasuke run past, screaming "HELP!" at the top of his lungs. What soon followed were the high-pitched squeals of his Fangirls as they screamed his name and chased after him.

"If I had to hazard a guess, I would say that would be Sasuke getting punished for that prank he pulled back at the capital." Naruto nonchalantly said as he continued to eat his ramen, while everyone else in the restaurant looked at him with surprise.

"What did you do, Naruto?" Iruka asked him.

He shrugged, "I just told them where he would be and that he wanted them. I had a clone shadow him until he was alone. Then I used a wireless radio to let them know his location. They took care of the rest."

"That's a little cruel, Naruto." Ayame accused him. Both she and her father had hidden Sasuke from his Fangirls enough times to know how scary they really were.

"So was having a shirshu who hates my very existence and who would love to see me dead go after me for a laugh." He replied, looking her straight in the eye. "This is just the return prank. Besides, I have to maintain my reputation as the best pranker in Konoha."

"You're still the same as ever, Naruto." Iruka said with exasperation.

"I'll take that as a compliment, Iruka-sensei." He said with a mischievous grin, making the others laugh. But there was also another reputation that he had to protect, one that was absolutely mandatory. There was a reason Azula had silently called Sasuke an idiot. To her, since he had worked with Naruto before he "left", he should've known and remembered the most important lesson of.

You don't prank an Uzumaki; they will prank back in equal measure or do worse.

**End**

**Author's note:** Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.

Thus ends the Daimyo arc. For those of you who were hoping to that it would last a little longer, sorry. I'm still getting used to writing an arc, not separate chapters.

Yes, Naruto knew about the Jūbi. Why else would he be up at the North Pole stopping the fish monster and killing Zhao?

The time when the moon was gone will be back much, much later. If you're going to tell me that the Waterbenders must have had some record of that event, let me point out this. 1: The event happened long before any of the current Waterbenders were alive. 2: It's one thing to have your power completely disappear and another thing to have it weaken. Personally, I think having it weaken is the more embarrassing of the two.

As I had said before, I like to think the Akatsuki is just more than ten members. Hell, the reason I think there were only ten in the first place is because that was how many fingers the Gedō Mazō had. If the Akatsuki had unofficial members, then they could have an invisible empire stretched across the entire Elemental Countries. Just look at when Deidara and Sasori invaded Suna. I'm pretty sure they don't wander around the countries, looking for the Biju and/or the Jinchūriki. They must've had informants and spies to tell them where to go.

Yes, that quote came from Joker in the first Mass Effect. That's just one of the many reasons why we love that guy.

I'm not quite sure how an actual coronation ceremony would go, so I kinda made this up. And the reason Naruto announced who he was wasn't because he was trying to show off. It was more along the lines of "oh what the hell" kind of moment.

For the record, when Miki and Azula were talking about the threesome, _they were kidding_. Please remember that Miki made the offer to Naruto during the dance with full knowledge of it never happening.

Yes, I did say that Naruto shouldn't make a direct beeline to Ichiraku Ramen every time he comes back from the training trip or from exile. But that also doesn't mean he should avoid it completely. It's the same thing with Iruka. If anything, that's the first person he would be honest with in the village.

I would like to thank the writer Dragon6 and his story A Family of Foxes & Snakes (both the original and the rewrite) for the pairing of Iruka and Anko. Ever since I read that story, I don't think Anko belongs with anyone else. I also hope that he adds in more scenes of Iruka and Anko in his new chapters, because those were always the funniest parts in the original version.

I'll see you all next chapter!


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